Date: 12/3/00 (Sunday)
Moon: about ¼
OVAS members Present: JB and RB
Weather: about 10-16 degrees f
EP’s: 22 mm Nagler IV, 12 mm Nagler IV, 7 mm nagler I
Scope: 20" Obsession
Star Atlas: Bright Star and Sky Atlas 2K
Books: The Night Sky Observers Guide
Astrophotographer: JB/130mm AP
Location: classified
It was Sunday and I’d spent the day sorting popcorn for the cub scouts, I arrive home; the answering machine winks ominously. JB wants to go out. Of course the Obsession has been gathering dust in the garage, so I agree. He has spoken to the *** about a new site and they’ve given us permission to use it.
One problem, I have no ramps. Jeff arrives at my house and we heave ho the mirror box -ground board assembly into the van. We use the wheel barrow handles as lifting devices. I feel like a coolie toting the royalty.
We drive.
We arrive. It’s dark.
Now, on to the site. The church on the next ridge has two bright lights. They negate this site over the old one. Well, we’re here.
Heave Ho. Umph. Wow it does roll well on these pneumatic tires. And here’s a convenient concrete pad.
I’m built before JB but collimation takes time. All observations are with the 22mm unless otherwise specified.
The ring nebula is big and bright.
JB can’t see the blinking planetary, but will not admit it, (ok, he does, but I say this for effect). NCG 6826 is mag 8.8 PN in Cygnus. This was better in the 10" at new moon with no church lights.
JB says that the little Dumbbell Nebula in Perseus looks just like the Dumbell in his scope. M76, a mag 10.1 PN is bright yet small.
NGC 7789 the mag 6.7 OC in Cassiopea, recently featured in a "top ten" objects list inSky and Telescope is beautiful. (I want a 31 mm Nagler for the increased FOV).
Saturn is big and bright. I count 6 possible moons. Still low. Moon is up.
The OC’s of Auriga. M38 a mag 6.4 OC looks bright. The nearby OC NGC 1907 mag 8.2 is pretty. M37 (mag 5.6) and Ma36 (mag6.0) are brighter then I remember.
M81 (mag 6.9) and M82 (mag 8.4) are big and bright. They look like galaxies and the moon is still up.
NGC 2403 a diffuse spiral mag 8.3 Galaxy is dim and low contrast. Yes the moon is up.
M31 (mag 3.50 , M32 (mag 8.2), M110 (mag8.0) are all well seen relative to the 10" dob even with the moon out.
M97, the ‘Owl’, show’s its eyes with averted vision. Looks big for a PN. (mag 9.9)
M108 is faint (mag 10.1 Gal) but I’ve never seen it before.
Ditto for M109 (mag 9.8 Gal).
The double cluster is pretty, can only look at ½ at a time.
But I like GC’s
Lepus. M79 is a mag 7.8 GC. Looks bright at gore with a fainter glow of stars arround it. Kind of looks like M13 in the 10" with no moon. Looked at with 12 mm Nagler and 7mm nagler, but the last was pushing the magnification.
You know its cold. I’m up to 3 pairs of pants and 3 layers on top, hat gloves.
With the 12 mm Nagler I hunt for the PN, IC 418. It is nonstellar. Kind of like a headlight. Mag 9.3.
Back to the Nagler 22.
M81 and M82 are twice as large with the moon gone. The galaxy NGC 3077 is dimmer then the other two. At mag 9.9, we did not see it until the moon set. Still, looks big and nice.
I have never seen such detail in the structure of M42. The dark spots are dark. Lots of light. M78 is faint but evident. Near by NGC 2071 is fainter, but the moon’s still up
NGC 2169 (a mag 5.9 OC) is less impressive.
M1 another new object for me is a faint glow (?mag 8), diffuse. Not to bright.
M35 a mag 5.1 OC in Gemini is pretty bright. Nearby NGC 2158 is pretty and small/tight mag 8.6 OC. IC 2157 mag 8.1 and consisting of 15 stars is disappointing. NGC 2129 is a tight mag 6.7 OC, much nicer then IC2157. So much for the foot of Gemini.
It took a while to find NCG1535. It’s a mag 9.6 PN in Eridanus. A round ball surrounding a star. A headlight.
Its 2 AM, can’t quit now, but must work tomorrow.
NGC 2244 is a pretty mag 4.2 OC in Monocerous. NGC 2301 is mag 6.0 and not as pretty.
M41 is big and bright at mag 4.5. Need that Nagler 31mm for increased fov. The 22 Nagler gives me about ).7 degrees fov. Tunnel vision.
This is all that I remember looking at.
I beat JB in the "race" to take the scope down. I know he respects me. He lets me help take apart his mount. But we still have to Heave Ho the beast into the van. Omph. After a final sweep for lost equipment, we head to the gate.
Get behind me. I need you to brace that. Omph. Arumph. Clunk.
Off to home. J*** is pulling over. What could be wrong? "I think that there may be something in my car, on the passenger side." (J*** needs to tell this one)
What a friend. Its 3 am, he follows me home so I can get the scope out of the car and my wife can use it to take the kids to school in the AM.
As night time guy I feel exhilarated after a night of great viewing. However I dread meeting morning guy at 7 AM. That fool has to go to work.
The tally 6 Planetary Nebulae, 1 Globular Clusters , 15 Open Clusters, 9 galaxies, 3 reflection nebuae, 1 planet, 1 super nova reminant.
All in all a good night. Sure, we had to lift and pull and push heavy things (and that was just to get into the site). But, you know, its like they say. You just can’t keep a good astronomer out.