by Ron Bhanukitsiri
I've got to say this: Greg Crinkslaw's Skyhound website contains fascinating list of DSO! I stumbled across Markarian 421 a few months ago and put it in my plan. Tonight, the TV-102 Light Cup tuned in to the quasar. Or is it a galaxy? The LM was 5.5 and I observed between 10:30pm to 12:00am.
No show at 22x, 30x, 44x, 73x, 110x! Wow, this thing is tough! But the sky background was getting darker and darker and then.. There it was at 146x (6mm TV Radian), looking like an extremely star dim with averted vision and difficult to hold the view. At 176x (5mm Radian), it was much easier to see and hold still with averted vision. It nicely forms a triangle with the annoyingly bright stars: SAO 62387 and SAO 62392. They are part of a larger, pretty looking diamond of spade shape stars. The quasar can be held about 50% with direct vision at 220x (4mm Radian). Best view at 293x (3mm Radian) where it could just be held down with direction vision, a dim gray object that looks like a star. If this is truly a galaxy, it would be like no other galaxy ever seen through the Light Cup so far!
Since this is a new ground for the Light Cup, I wasn't 100% certain of nailing it until I found this photo on the web that really confirmed it for me (especially when I mirror reversed the image ;-) as compared with my sketch.
http://www.jfmto.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/mark421.htm
BTW, does anyone know what is its magnitude? I see number ranging from 12 to 13.3 on the web (seemed dimmer than mag 12 to me).
Someone on Astronomy Magazine Discussion Forum asked me about a GC in Hercules. After NGC 6299 was caught with ease, I noticed on my chart that there is a mag 11.6 galaxy (NGC 6207) very near M13. I've seen M13 many times and never noticed that there was a galaxy nearby :-(. I guess it's like watching Clark Gable and next to him is Austin Powers ;-). The LM was 6.0 in Hercules tonight. No show at 30x and 44x. At 73x (12mm radian), the galaxy is a very dim patch situated between two stars: SAO 65508 and SAO 65509. It was then that the Light Cup discovered a hidden dwarf-Hercules. NGC 6207 forms a key stone shape with the following dimmer stars: GSC 2588:1975, GSC 2588:2187 and GSC 2588:1957! The grand M13 still fits in the FOV but is super overwhelmingly brighter and much larger than the galaxy. It was noticeably dimmer at 110x but could still be seen at 146x.
Tonight brought another new frontier to the Light Cup. Last year, I wouldn't even have attempted the observation. To answer Skyhound's question of whether Markarian 421 is a quasar or a galaxy, well to the diminutive 4" TV-102 Light Cup it is neither, rather it's just an "ordinary looking dim star" ;-).