Social observing on Skyline 1/1/07

by Pentti Kanerva

Even if you may swear by the New Moon (& sweat at the Full), when going out with people for their first viewing, the Moon can be a friend, and it can be fun. Last night I set up my 5" Mak-Cas at the vista point on Skyline Boulevard next to the road to Half Moon Bay. This was the first time at an eyepiece for a teen-ager who had recently subscribed for an astronomy magazine. His parents and my wife were along sharing the views. The secret is to go for easy targets, let the teen-ager work the controls, and not to worry about dark adaptation. It hardly mattered that a few cars came and went with their headlights blazing.

Setting up and packing under a nearly full moon is a cinch, and amusing to be observed. We started by looking at the twinkling lights of San Jose. Next the Gamma star of Andromeda (Almak at ca. 150x), a double with a beautiful color contrast. Then we compared the colors of Orion's Rigel and Betelgeuse. My question: a few stars that would appear particularly red in a small scope--any suggestions?

The Great Orion Nebula showed a hint of nebulosity at 73x, but the Trapezium was bright and clear. Combing around the Orion's belt was fun, and then we went for the Andromeda Galaxy--"but isn't it supposed to be a spiral?" In the Hubble it is; we were lucky to have found anything at all. Sirius was up by now so we took a look and talked of its companion. Seven Sisters is nice even under a full moon; we viewed it at the lowest magnification (38x). And finally the Moon, through a polarizing filter. It nearly fills the 25mm eye piece (62x). There was enough of a shadowy edge to see some relief.

It was surprisingly warm for a winter night and made for a pleasant evening under the stars. Next time we'll look for the Beehive and Saturn.

Happy New Year, one and all. -Pentti

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