Costa Rica - The Southern Planetaries

18" (7/8/02): at 171x (unfiltered) this striking planetary is a bright (V = 9.7), small, very high surface brightness oval with a pale blue color. With a UHC filter, it appeared ~15"x10" and looked like a cosmic easter egg set in a beautiful star field!

13.1" (2/18/04 - Costa Rica): at 105x this interesting Vela planetary appeared fairly faint, moderately large, slightly elongated ~E-W, 1.3'x1.0. Good contrast gain with a UHC filter and the surface brightness appears very irregular or mottled with a brighter knot on the SW end which is nearly detached and an irregular darker center. Also a less-defined knot appears to be situated on the north end. Four mag 7.5-9 stars are in the field to the W and N and the PN is situated 9' E of mag 7.3 SAO 236965. The faint planetary Wray 17-31 = VBRC 2 is 38' ESE

18" (7/8/02 - Australia): at 171x, this moderately bright planetary is fairly large, ~1.5'x1.0', with an irregular shape and surface brightness. Adding a UHC filter improved the contrast and the PN is clearly elongated with an annular or bi-polar appearance with a darker, irregular center. There are two brighter knots or arcs on on the SW and NE sides of the central section (minor axis?) with the SW knot more obvious. Situated in a fairly rich star field with four mag 7-9 stars including a mag 7.3 star 9' W.

13.1" (2/18/04 - Costa Rica): not seen at at 105x using a UHC filter but glimpsed consistently using averted vision with an OIII filter as a moderately large, round, low surface brightness disc, at least 1' in diameter. Three stars are superimposed or near the periphery of the planetary. Located 38' ESE of the interesting planetary N2899. Discovered by Wray in 1966.

13.1" (2/17/04 - Costa Rica): at 40 degrees elevation, N3132 was quite beautiful at 200x and 260x. The 10th magnitude central star is embedded in the center of a very bright, elongated annulus with a darker center and interesting outer ring NW-SE. The oval ring is relatively narrow with a brighter rim surrounded by a thin outer envelope. The ring is slightly offset in orientation to the major axis of the planetary giving a complex multi-ring appearance.

18" (7/8/02): this is an interesting planetary at 171x with a UHC filter or at 228x. It appears moderately bright and large, ~40"x35", slightly elongated ~N-S. This disc has a noticeably irregular surface brightness with a slightly brighter knot on the following side and a hint of annularity. Good response to UHC and OIII filters. Located in southern Chamaeleon between Zeta and Delta Cha.

18" (7/8/02): at 171x this small, high surface brightness planetary was immediately seen in a rich star field. It appeared bright (V = 10.4), very small, slightly elongated, ~8"x6", with a bluish tinge. Excellent contrast gain with a UHC filter. Located 58' directly west of N3211 which was viewed right afterwards.

13.1" (2/18/04 - Costa Rica): Picked up unfiltered at 105x as a moderately bright, 15" disc. Good contrast gain with UHC filter. Appears bright, evenly illuminated with a well-defined bluish halo. Appears to float in a beautifully rich Carina star field and centered within a parallelogram of mag 10.5 stars (sides ~9'x7'). Located 1.3° S of the mag 3.4 q Velorum.

18" (7/8/02 - Australia): at 171x and UHC filter this fine planetary appeared as a very bright, round disc, ~15" diameter, crisp-edged with a bluish hue. Good filter response to UHC. The surface brightness was very high and there was a hint of a slightly brighter rim. Set in a rich Carina star field.

13.1" (2/18/04 - Costa Rica): the mag 12 central star (variable KV Velorum) was easily identified using a finder chart at 166x, although no nebulosity was visible with an unfiltered view. But at 105x (14mm) and OIII filter, a relatively large disc was clearly visible, roughly 1.5'-2' in diameter. I could almost hold this obscure planetary steadily with averted vision. A mag 10 star lies 3.7' E of center. Located ~1.4° NE of mag 2.7 Mu Velorum.

13.1" (2/17/04 - Costa Rica): at 105x, this challenging planetary was suspected without filter. Adding an OIII filter, a giant 3' low surface brightness disc with a perfectly circular crisp edge was surprisingly visible. I could just hold it steadily with averted vision and concentration. This 1977 discovery appeared to have a fairly even surface brightness with a slightly darker center.

13.1" (2/17/04 - Costa Rica): at 100x, this planetary appeared moderately bright and large, ~60"-65" in size. There was a good contrast gain with a UHC filter at 105x and 166x and it appeared brightest on the north side of the planetary. A dark rift running WSW-ENE appears to nearly detach the smaller and fainter southern section.

18" (7/7/02 - Australia): at 128x this interesting planetary is moderately bright, fairly large, ~70" in diameter with some faint stars superimposed. With the UHC filter the appearance is very unusual with a dark rift bisecting it in a WSW-ENE orientation just below the geometric center. At 228x, the northern "hemisphere" is both larger and brighter with an irregular surface brightness. A mag 13 star is ~1' NW. This is a fascinating planetary set in a beautiful Centaurus star field with an appearance similar to faint HII region or a small version of Cen A!

18" (7/7/02): excellent view at 128x and UHC filter as appears as a fairly bright oval disc, ~40"x30", crisp-edged. At 228x appears brighter to a "starry" center but a central star could not be picked out from the high surface brightness glow. The planetary is set in a rich star field 21' NE of mag 5.8 HD 99574.

13.1" (2/17/04 - Costa Rica): This small planetary is located just 11' SE of N3699 in the same field! Visible at 166x unfiltered but appears as a mag 14 star with no visible disc. Good contrast gain with a UHC filter. Appears very small, slightly non-stellar, perhaps 5" diameter although the seeing was fairly poor at this time.

13.1" (2/20/04 - Costa Rica): at 195x, this 8th magnitude planetary appears as a beautiful 10"-12" blue disc with a very crisp-edge. No central star was glimpsed or other structural details at this magnification as the surface brightness is unusually high. Situated in a rich star field but set near the middle of a oval 12'-13' ring of mag 11 and 12 stars which are near the periphery of the 17' field at 195x! Located 8.4' SSW of mag 8.1 HD 102817 and 19' SW of mag 5.6 HD 103101. The open cluster N3960 lies 90' N.

18" (7/8/02 - Australia): at 171x, the "Blue Planetary" appears as a bright, round disc, ~15" diameter with a vivid blue color (V = 8.2). The surface brightness is very high and the edge of the halo is crisply defined, but no structural details or central star were noted. Good response to UHC filter, although it was unnecessary for a good view. The Milky Way is quite rich here in faint stars but the planetary seems to be set a darker, circular hole without the faint background glow - a contrast affect with the PN?

18" (7/8/02): picked up at 171x without a filter as a faint haze with an 10th magnitude star nearly attached on the SE side. With the UHC filter, the planetary was easily visible as a moderately large, round disc with a crisp edge, ~70" diameter. The brighter star, 0.9' from center, still detracts but the planetary seems pretty evenly lit.

12" (6/29/02): this is a bright, strange-looking PN with a complex bar structure dubbed the "Spiral Planetary". At 140x and UHC filter, it resembles a small barred spiral galaxy with prominent bar extending SW-NE with curved tips, ~1' in length embedded within a fainter, slightly elongated halo of ~2'x1.5'. A few stars are superimposed. At 186x, the "bar" is irregular and knotty with a bright knot at one end. A mag 11 star is at the SE end with a couple of faint stars on the opposite end. The faint 14th magnitude central star is just south of the bar. Set in a rich star field in the NE corner of Musca 6' NNW of mag 7.2 SAO 252366. This is a fascinating sight!

See http://www.blackskies.com/nsp01.htm for a thorough discussion of this object by Andrew Jones.

18" (7/7/02): at 128x and UHC, K1-23 appeared as a moderately bright disc, slightly elongated ~N-S, ~50"x45". The rim appeared slightly brighter giving just a suggestion of annularity. This object was surprisingly easy and relatively prominent! At 228x, a very faint mag 14.5-15 star is embedded at the NW edge of the rim. A 6" pair of mag 10 stars lie 4' ESE. The Centaurus Cluster is located ~4.4 degrees NE.

13.1" (2/20/04 - Costa Rica): at 140x this bright bipolar planetary appeared fairly small, 20"-25" diameter with a high surface brightness and a bluish color. The outline is unusual, appearing somewhat boxy or rectangular in appearance. A faint star is just off the W edge. At 195x there appeared to be very faint extensions ~E-W, increasing the dimensions to 2:1.

13.1" (2/20/04 - Costa Rica): this planetary was not seen at 105x unfiltered once the position was pinpointed. Adding a UHC filter, though, an obvious 15" disc was immediately seen with a fairly crisp edge to the halo. With averted vision fainter extensions were visible oriented SSW-NNE, increasing the total size to nearly 25"x15". Located 45' due W of Alpha Centauri and 26' ESE of the open cluster N5617!

18" (7/8/02): this fairly bright, moderately large planetary was quite interesting at 171x and UHC filter. It was elongated 3:2 E-W, ~55"x40". It appeared brighter on the following end with an indentation or notch on the north side giving the impression of a bipolar structure. Set in a rich Triangulum Australe star field 3' SW of a mag 9 star with a mag 10.5 star (close double) 2.5' E.

18" (7/8/02): at 171x and UHC filter, this small planetary appeared as a very bright (V = 9.5), high surface brightness round disc, ~12" diameter with a bluish color. The surface brightness is very high. At 228x there is an impression of a thin outer shell, with the size ~16" diameter. Observation from Magellan Observatory in Australia.

13": very small round disc visible at 80x, estimate V = 10.0. Good contrast gain with an OIII filter. A prominent small disc visible at 166x with a mag 12 star 4.4' NE. Located 10.8' WNW of mag 7.4 SAO 225623. Very far south for viewing from Northern California!

18" (7/8/02): picked up at 171x without a filter as a moderately bright, round disc, 22" diameter. Good contrast gain with UHC filter with the size increasing to roughly 27" and is slightly elongated. The surface brightness appeared irregular with an impression of a brighter rim and weak annularity. Set in a beautifully rich Norma star field.

18" (7/7/02): at 171x and UHC filter, N5979 appeared moderately bright, small, round. The disc was 10"-15" diameter and fairly evenly lit and seemed a bit larger than catalogued size of 8". At 228x (unfiltered), the surface brightness is slightly irregular with a possible very faint halo or the halo dims at the periphery. Set in a rich star field with a mag 10 star 2.7' S. A distinctive trail of mag 12-13 stars meander off to the east. Located in the NW corner of Triangulum Australe, about a degree from the Norma border.

18" (7/7/02): at 128x and UHC filter, this ring planetary appeared fairly faint, round, ~80" diameter and weakly annular. Upping the magnification to 171x (without filter), a faint central star (mag 14) was quite evident and the annularity was still visible. This planetary responded well to filtration and inserting the UHC filter a striking perfect ring was clearly visible, while the central star still shone steadily! This is an excellent planetary using this combination and appeared as a moderately bright, very delicate, symmetrical ring with a relatively large central hole set in a rich star field. A couple of mag 12 stars are within 2' and mag 7.7 SAO 243057 lies 6' SSE.

18" (7/8/02): at 171x and UHC filter, a 60" very low surface brightness glow was visible with averted vision ~80% of time. It appeared round and fairly well-defined but very faint.

18" (7/7/02): at 171x and UHC filter a moderately bright disc was easily visible, fairly small, round, 25" diameter. The rim is unevenly lit and brighter along two opposite ends giving a weak annular appearance. Situated in a rich Norma star field. This is a very nice non-NGC/IC planetary!

18" (7/8/02): fairly bright, small, round, compact planetary in a rich star field. Picked up immediately at 171x and UHC filter as the 15" disc was obvious. At 228x the surface seems a bit irregular with a hint of a starry center. Located just north of the midpoint connecting Beta and Zeta Arae 2° ESE and 2° WSW.

18" (7/8/02): very bright, small, round compact PN in a dense field of stars. A couple of mag 14 stars are just off the N and E sides. At 171x and UHC filter, the crisply defined periphery is slightly elongated and evenly illuminated with no hint of a central star. The diameter appears to be ~15" with V mag ~10.5. Located 3.5° NE of gc N6397 and a similar distance SSW of gc N6352.

18" (7/8/02): Immediately picked up at 171x and UHC filter and I was pleased to find a relatively prominent non-NGC/IC planetary. Appears as a fairly faint, moderately large well-defined disc, ~80" diameter, with a mag 12 star just off the N edge.

18" (7/9/02): easily picked up sweeping at 76x with a 27 Panoptic. At this power, it appears as a mag 12.5 "star" surrounded by a fairly small halo. Excellent view at 171x - the central star is quite bright and the halo is round, ~35" diameter. Excellent contrast gain with OIII filter and the halo was bright with a sharp edge. Set in a beautiful star field covered with a rich mat of stars.

18" (7/6/02): at 171x and UHC filter, this beautiful planetary appears as a large round ring, nearly 2' diameter, with a bright, thick annulus which is irregularly lit. The rim is slightly brighter and thicker along the SE side and also barely enhanced on the NW side. The central hole appears 25"-30" diameter and is dark except for a central star which was intermittently visible with averted vision at 228x unfiltered, although listed with a magnitude of 16.5! Good contrast enhancement with the UHC filter. A mag 10.5 is off the SSW side 1.8' from the center.