by Tom Campbell
| Observer | Tom Campbell |
|---|---|
| Location | Iola, Kansas (Long: 95 30' W Lat: 37 55' N) |
| Equipment | 8" Discovery DHQ dob |
| Eyepieces | 1.25" Plössls - 25mm (49x), 15mm (81x), 10mm (122x), 6.5mm (188x), 4mm (305x), 2" 51.5mm (24x) Modified Plössl |
| Time | 9:00pm - 11:15pm CDT |
| Transparency | Clear (8/10) |
| Seeing | Stable (8/10) |
| Weather | Temperature in the upper 50s. There was a light breeze. |
The skies have been clear for the last several nights, but I've been too busy to observe. Not wanting to squander yet another opportunity, I took advantage of tonight's clear skies and decent weather.
| Little Dumbbell (M 76) | Perseus | Planetary Nebula | 9:20pm CDT |
|---|---|---|---|
| NGC 650 | RA: 01 42.3 | Dec: +51 34 | Mag: 12.0 |
| This planetary is faint, but fairly large, as planetaries go. It is
definitely a little smaller and much fainter than its namesake, M27. 121x
seems to offer about the best view tonight. It is difficult to make out the
shape with direct vision, except that you can tell it is irregular.
With averted vision, I noticed a little mottling and a generally rectangular shape. The long edges aren't quite straight, being bowed slightly inward. One end of the rectangle seemed to be noticeably brighter than the other end. | |||
| NGC 752 | Andromeda | Open Cluster | 9:25pm CDT |
| RA: 01 57.8 | Dec: +37 41 | Mag: 5.7 | |
| This is a large open cluster. It's fairly sparse for its size, but not too
bad for an open cluster. My 51.5mm eyepiece (24x) frames it nicely. There
are perhaps 3 or 4 dozen stars visible.
Off to one side of the cluster is a pair of bright stars of nearly equal brightness. They are a full magnitude or more brighter than any of the cluster members. The stars are strewn about the cluster pretty randomly, with no real patterns emerging. This isn't a bad cluster, but it doesn't make it to my favorites list. | |||
| M 34 | Perseus | Open Cluster | 9:40pm CDT |
| NGC 1039 | RA: 02 42.0 | Dec: +42 47 | Mag: 5.2 |
| This is a nice cluster, and one that I return to often at this time of year.
At 49x, it fits nicely in the field. Tonight, the cluster reminds me of a
spiral, with several tendrils of stars spiralling outward from the center.
At the center of the cluster is a group of bright stars that are mostly in pairs. The shape of the stars reminds me of a sea turtle, with a close pair of stars being the eyes/head, and other pairs of stars making the four flippers/feet, and a small oval of stars right in the center making the shell. I had never noticed this particular pattern before in this cluster, but tonight it jumped right out at me. | |||
| Eta | Perseus | Double Star | 10:00pm CDT |
| 15 | RA: 02 50.7 | Dec: +55 54 | Mag: 3.8, 8.5 |
| This is the star at the top of Perseus' head. It is a wide double, easily split at 49x. The main component is a deep lemony yellow, and the much fainter companion is a nice medium blue. This pair is gorgeous, and if the secondary star was a little brighter, it would easily oust Albireo as the prettiest double in the fall sky. | |||
| NGC 1528 | Perseus | Open Cluster | 10:05pm CDT |
| RA: 04 15.4 | Dec: +51 14 | Mag: 6.4 | |
| This open cluster is nice and compact. It fits in the field of view at 81x. At this magnification, it somewhat resembles a pinwheel, as curved chains of stars radiate from the center. Looking closely, several of the stars appear to have faint companions, and other dim stars are interspersed throughout the cluster. The cluster is roughly hexagonal in shape. | |||
| Zeta | Pisces | Double Star | 10:45pm CDT |
| 86 | RA: 01 13.7 | Dec: +07 35 | Mag: 5.6, 6.5 |
| This double is somewhat ho-hum. Both components are white and are easily split at 49x. One component is noticeably brighter than the other, and both are brighter than any other field star. | |||
| Psi-1 | Pisces | Double Star | 10:55pm CDT |
| 74 | RA: 01 05.6 | Dec: +21 28 | Mag: 5.6, 5.8 |
| This is another fairly wide double. The two stars are nearly the same magnitude and both are bright white. At 49x, the pair is easily split. Another faint star is nearby, and appears to be slightly bluish. Other than appearing like a pair of headlights, there is nothing remarkable about this double. | |||
| 65 | Pisces | Double Star | 11:00pm CDT |
| RA: 00 49.9 | Dec: +27 43 | Mag: 6.3, 6.3 | |
| This double is fairly tight. At 121x, it can be cleanly split. Both stars are the same magnitude and are both white in color. It looks like a pair of eyes staring back at you from space. | |||
At this point, a storm front started passing through, covering the skies with clouds and increasing the winds. I waited a few minutes to see if it would blow over, but the clouds kept getting thicker. I packed it in for the night.