Menlo Park 31 Dec 05

by Pentti Kanerva

It cleared last night enough to take the scope out once more in 2005. I set up first at the street to show Venus to the neighbors' children--and adults too. Everyone was surprised to see it looking like a young moon. Kids also had fun working the controls to track the setting Venus.

After dark I wanted to give one last try at the Crab Nebula from the city, with the aid a finder chart telling exactly where the fuzz was supposed to appear. And it was there, although with my scope, eyesight, and city lights, having it merely somewhere in the field of view is not enough for me to find it. The same goes for the M78 and NGC 2071 nebulas in Orion, but with the chart I saw them--or at least the stars that light them up.

Other things observed: Saturn and Mars, asteroid 61 Echo in Taurus (magnitude 10.1), M79 OC in Lepus, and the Beehive and M67 OCs in Cancer.

I took the dew-soaked scope in around 11:30, to dry up for the approaching (Happy) New Year.

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Posted on sf-bay-tac Jan 01, 2006 17:26:14 PT
Converted by report.pm 1.2 Mar 16, 2006 23:10:56 PT