ETX-125 VIEWING REPORTS FOR AUGUST 2004.
All observations were made from a suburban location in Bury, Lancashire, England with a Meade ETX-125 EC.
Report 1 - 6 Aug 2004
Time (UT) :2045-2315
Limiting magnitude (zenithal) 4.4
Seeing (out of 10) :7
Weather :Clear spells, calm
This being the first night of proper viewing with the scope, I decided to put it through its paces.
After aligning Autostar, I decided to try out some Messier objects for first glancing at 73x power.
M3 and M5 were both getting low in the light-polluted sky, so appeared only as misty patches, as did M10 and M12 in Ophiuchus. I then decided to try M13, and it began to show hints of resolution, or was it wishful thinking ?
I then thought of trying some other Messier objects, so I went for the Ring Nebula M57. The GOTO worked well, as there was a faint ring-like object in the field, totally unlike any star, and doubling the power revealed the shape clearly.
The dim M56 in Lyra was next, and the ETX had no difficulty finding it - it looked like M13 as seen in 7x50 binoculars.
The galaxy pair M81 and M82 in Ursa Major were next on my hit list, and were both just about visible in the same field at 48x.
Emboldened, I tried to find some objects in Sagittarius, but I drew a blank at both M17 and M22. Either the GOTO was inaccurate, or the light pollution and mist killed the images.
I then went double star hunting, choosing some well-known textbook targets. Beta Cygni of course showed up beautifully at 48x, gold and cyan, as did Mizar at the same power. The Double-Double (epsilon Lyrae) was split into its four components at 146x, though with a little difficulty, as was Epsilon Bootis, where the companion appeared as a bump rather than being clearly split.
Two other coloured doubles came out well at 146x: Alpha Herculis (orange / green) and 70 Ophiuchi (yellow / magenta). I tried to find Gamma Delphini, but the GOTO software went cuckoo and slewed randomly. I decided to call it a day at midnight, and try for more the following night.
Report 2 - 7 Aug 2004
Time (UT) :2100-0000
Limiting magnitude (zenithal)4.5
Seeing (out of 10) :7
Weather :Clear spells
Repeated most of the Messier observations of the previous night, but this time M3 and M5 showed up rather better and looked close to resolution at 146x. I was also able to see the cluster M16 though not the nebula, and could resolve parts of M11 into stars. M13 looked better than before, as I could get definite resolution at 146x with averted vision. Again, increasing haze from the south stopped me from looking at Sagittarius, so I tried some non-Messier objects out of curiosity. One such object was NGC6633 in Ophiuchus, a large and bright open cluster which showed up well at 48x. IC4756 in Serpens was more scattered and less impressive.
As the sky started to haze up a bit more, I went for some more doubles in Bootes before they sank too low. Kappa, Xi and Pi were all easy at 73x, and Epsilon was definitely separated at 146x. The other 'double-double' (STF 2470 / 2474) in Lyra was also attractive.
At 2230 UT, the sky haze appeared to lessen a little, and so I went back on my Messier hunt. The two open clusters in Cygnus were next. M29 was rather obscure at 73x, drowned out by field stars, but M39 was very attractive at 48x - a triangular grouping of bright stars against the very rich Milky Way. Whilst in the Cygnus region, I looked at M27, and it really did look like a dumbbell at 73x. M71 was next, and easily visible, though not resolved, at the same power. By now, Pegasus and Aquarius had become visible past our wall, and so I pointed the ETX to M15 and M2. I could not resolve the latter, but I did spot some granulation in M15 at 146x with averted vision. By 2300, I thought that Uranus might be visible, but using GOTO only got a neighbour's roof into view, so I had to wait. I thought, let's try some non-Messier planetaries and see what the ETX could do. NGC6543, the Cat's Eye in Draco, was easily visible as a greenish disk with a brightening in the centre at 146x. The biggest surprise of the night was NGC7009, the Saturn Nebula in Aquarius, as it showed up as a bright greenish oval at 146x, despite its low altitude. By contrast, I could not locate M30 in Capricornus, even with the broadband filter. Evidently planetaries can 'stand' light pollution better than globulars.
I tried again for Uranus at 2330 UT, and by then the ETX had slewed to an area of sky rather than a roof. When I looked in the scope at 48x, I spotted what looked like two stars, one above the other. Was one of them Uranus ? At 73x, the lower star remained pointlike but the upper star looked like a tiny green disk. Doubling with the Barlow revealed the Uranian disk without doubt. (The star below it, incidentally, was Sigma Aquarii).
Next, I slewed the scope north to another double, Gamma Delphini. Very pretty at 73x - yellow and cyan. I would have packed up for the night, but for the appearance of Cassiopeia's W in a narrow gap between our wall and the neighbour's. I typed in NGC869, let the scope slew, and WOW! - it was pointing at clear sky, not brickwork ! The Perseus Double Cluster was a mega-hit at 48x - I could resolve innumerable stars against a glorious background. Sadly, this only lasted for another five minutes, as the Earth's rotation caused the clusters to go out of view behind our wall.
Session ended at 0000UT
Report 3 - 10 Aug 2004
Time (UT) :2045-2230
Limiting magnitude (zenithal) 4.2
Seeing (out of 10) :7
Weather :Clear spells with high cloud
The high cloud kiboshed any chance of decent DSO viewing, and so I decided to do an extensive double star hunt using SAO numbers on Bootes, Corona, Hercules, Aquila and Cygnus before conditions became really bad.
In Bootes, I was able to split 39 Boo, STF 1838, STF 1835 and STF 1850 at 146x, but 44 Boo remained indistinct. Zeta Coronae was easy at 73x.
Touring Hercules, 95 Her split very colourfully at 73x (red/green), Kappa was very easy at 48x, 100 Her and STF 2063 were clear at 146x, but I could not see the companion to Gamma, and that of Delta was difficult due to magnitude difference.
Next I 'did' Aquila, and 57,15 and 5 Aql were all easy at 73x. STF 2489 and STF 2644 were separated at 146x.
Cygnus was the final tour, again with very rich pickings. 61 Cyg was a very easy yellow pair at 48x, as were STF 2578 and 2486. STF 2671 and 2762, and Psi and 49 Cyg required higher power but revealed themselves at 146x. I was unable to see the companions to Gamma (too faint) or Delta (too close). I therefore looked at Beta again for feelgood reasons !
Before the clouds became any worse, I had another look at the disk of Uranus - it was clearly visible again.
Report 4 - 14 Aug 2004
Time (UT) :2100-2200
Limiting magnitude (zenithal) 4.0
Seeing (out of 10) :8
Weather :Clear spells with high cloud
I'd received a high power (253x) inexpensive eyepiece (TAL 7.5 mm Super Plossl) in the post this morning. I figured that I would use the eyepiece very rarely, its magnification being bang on the recommended observing limit of 50x per inch (2x per mm) of aperture.
I thought, let's try some tough doubles tonight.
First was the celebrated Epsilon Lyrae. I had managed to split it easily enough at 146x, but at 253x, all four components showed distinct Airy disks and steady diffraction rings for short spells. I thought, so far so good, so I went for 44 Bootis. I was unable to split it the other night at 146x, but to my satisfaction I could see the components in the TAL. Epsilon Bootis was very fine indeed at 253x, with clear sky between the yellow and blue Airy disks - surprisingly good for the declining altitude. STF 2052 Herculis was similarly successful.
Finally, I went for Delta Cygni, known to be a tough test, where I had already tried and failed. At 253x, it showed a crisp Airy disk and diffraction rings, but no companion. I rested my eyes for a minute, and suddenly I saw what I thought was a faint companion outside the first diffraction ring for a second or two. I kept looking at the diffraction rings, and the companion reappeared for a few more seconds, in the 8-9 o'clock position. I checked with my Norton's Star Atlas, which gave a position angle of 246 degrees, or WSW. I was worried for a while until I remembered that the ETX gives a mirror-reversed image !
I can honestly say that this was the first big test of the capabilities of my own eyes and the optical equipment, and that I passed it !
Report 5 - 21 Aug 2004
Time (UT) :2015-2150
Limiting magnitude (zenithal) 4.6
Seeing (out of 10) :7-8
Weather :Clear spells between showers
A northerly wind has blown away much of the urban smog from Manchester, 10 miles to the south-east, so I decided to try some low-altitude deep-sky stuff in Sagittarius and its environs before the clouds and mists rolled in,
The first target was M17, the Swan Nebula. With the nebula filter, it looked like a square-root sign, with the 'bar' sloping downwards to the right. Not too bad for a southerly object !
The Lagoon nebula, M8, was also revealed, but little structure was visible due to low altitude. The associated stars were clearly visible, though.
The Trifid, M20, only revealed a hint of haze around some cluster stars. Next I tried for the Eagle Nebula in Serpens, M16. The open cluster was easy, with many faint stars, but again, the nebula was only ‘suspected’.
Finally, removing the nebula filter showed the globular cluster M22 well enough at 73x, but atmospheric dimming made it much inferior to M13. This is a pity, as we saw M22 as the brighter through 20 x 80 binoculars while on holiday in southern Portugal, at 37N.
Slewed north to see the mediocre globular M14 in Ophiuchus before aiming for some more northerly objects. A quick peek at M13 resolved many outer stars at 146x with averted vision but the core remained granular. I was also able to resolve the outer parts of M3 at 146x, aided by neighbours who had gone on a short vacation and switched off their sodium security lights !
Slewing to the Ring Nebula M57 showed more detail at 146x than on previous nights, but the star of the night had to be the Wild Duck, M11. I could detect about 30 individual faint stars at 146x with averted vision, and could have watched it all night, but clouds were beginning to spread.
I then tried but failed to see the Blinking Planetary in Cygnus (NGC 6826), as the cloud killed viewing that part of the sky, leaving only the low south and south-east clear - should I try Neptune ?
Returning to the edge of the Sun's backyard, my final search was for Neptune, so I tried to slew the ETX to it, and to my surprise I spotted a bluish 'star' in the field at 73x. I checked in the finder to find a star lower right (SE) of the 'planet', an observation confirmed in the main scope after slight slewing.
I checked the star and confirmed it to be 4th-magnitude Theta Capricorni, and so I slewed back to the 'planet' and put the Barlow in. At 146x, the ETX revealed a barely distinct blue disk - SUCCESS
Report 6 - 23 Aug 2004
Time (UT) :2105-2155
Limiting magnitude (zenithal) 4.9 (7 stars in Ursa Minor)
Seeing (out of 10) :7-8
Weather :A fleeting clear spell after heavy rain
This was definitely a mini-sprint rather than a marathon. After a day of appalling rain, the low cloud broke just in time for another quick hop around Sagittarius. I also stuck to 73x throughout the sprint phase to save time.
Note: trees and houses limit my viewing declination to about 30-31 degrees South, making M69 and M70 unobservable and M54 and M55 borderline. (M6, M7 and M83 also suffer the same fate, with M7 barely rising).
The main targets I had missed on the 20th were globular cluster M28 and the five Messier open clusters, so I went for those six objects.
2210 local (2110UT): I decided to start on the globular M28, which was picked up easily enough in the ETX, though with no details.
2213 local: The open clusters were next - M23 was a very pretty sight with dozens of stars resolved, with M25 even better, with a rich background.
2220 local: M21 was smaller and tighter but still attractive, but M18 was a bit of a weak let-down.
2224 local: M24 was a glorious region, worth a few minutes' sweeping, although I could not find the tight NGC 6603 inside it. The clouds were slowly beginning to creep up from the south, so I spent another few minutes for last looks at M23 and M25. Sagittarius clouded over by 2232.
2232 local: Slewing north to Scutum, I 'bagged' M26 as a hazy glow with about half-a-dozen stars. I needed to look at M11 again as a tonic - if anything, I resolved more stars at 146x than I did on Saturday.
2238 local: East to M15 in Pegasus, and the ETX picked out many outer stars at 146x with averted vision, though the centre remained unresolved. This cluster is definitely more condensed than M13 - might M 13 look clearer tonight as well ?
2245 local: I just had to take another look at the Hercules globular M13, and this was the best view I've had of it so far. Despite wispy clouds coming in from the west, many outer stars were resolved at 146x, but several nearer the core made fleeting 'blinking' appearances with averted vision. The net effect was like watching fireflies !
2252 local: M13 appeared to fade - the sky had changed from 80% clear to overcast in a matter of a few minutes !
Packed up the equipment at 2255 (2155 UT).
This session has proved a good showcase for GOTO telescopes. In 45 minutes, I have been able to observe ten deep-sky objects, despite the variable weather, light pollution, high southern declinations, and the fact that the optics probably never had a chance to reach thermal equilibrium.
Report 7 - 27 Aug 2004
Time (UT) :2045-2230
Limiting magnitude (zenithal) 4.4 (10-day-old Moon)
Seeing (out of 10) :7-8
Weather :A fleeting clear spell after heavy rain
The viewing conditions were far from ideal for deep-sky objects due to the waxing gibbous Moon, so it looked like double star time again, plus a look at Luna.
LATE SUMMER DOUBLES
I began with revisiting some doubles in Bootes at 73x, and noting any colours this time. Pi appeared white / blue, and Xi was a yellow / reddish pair.
Serpens came next, where Theta was easily split as an all-white pair. I took another look at a pair of IC open clusters. 4756 was better than last time due to improved sky transparency, and 4665 was bright but coarse, better seen at 48x. A short detour to Hercules allowed me to split (at 146x) STF 2021, and Rho, an attractive yellowish / bluish pair. M13 was impressive, but not quite as good as on the 23rd due to the Moon.
In Lyra, STF 2351 appeared pale yellow / blue-white, whilst the 'other Double-Double' (STF 2470 / 2474) showed subtle differences. The southerly one (2474) was wider and its stars had a yellowish tinge, whilst the northerly one (2470) was a white pair. Eta was another easy pair, appearing white and lilac(?).
On to Aquila, and 15 Aquilae was another pretty yellow / blue pair, but I then decided to try the rather barren constellation of Capricornus for the first time. Alpha1 (Prima Gaedi) was a easy white pair at 73x, but Alpha2 (Secunda Gaedi) did not reveal its 10th mag companion - no doubt due to the Moon. Omicron Capricorni was however an easy whitish / blue pair.
I concluded the session (2215 UT) with a final look at the Moon, not very easy as the declination was -28, and there was only a brief 'viewing window' where trees and houses did not block the view. In spite of the low altitude, I was able to use 73x and even 146x to study the terminator region without too much. The craters Schickard and Herodotus were particularly sharp and prominent, as was the winding valley near the latter. I was still able to make out Clavius and Ptolemaeus despite their having lost most of their shadow, and the Tycho rays had not yet fully taken over. It is a pity that late summer and autumn are a bad time of year to view the waxing lunar phases in the evenings, with the ecliptic tilted at such a shallow angle to the horizon.
Report 8 - 30 Aug 2004
Time (UT) :2015-2300
Limiting magnitude (zenithal) 4.4 , then 4.0 (Full Moon)
Seeing (out of 10) :6-7, occasionally 8
Weather :Variable cloud with clear spells
Murphy's Law tonight. This would have been an ideal night for deep-sky objects, but for one fly in the ointment - the Full Moon rising half-an-hour after sunset !
My plan was to look at DSO's as the sky darkened, but before moonlight blotted them out good and proper. This was to be followed by looking at more doubles and the Moon itself.
1945 UT (2045 local) As soon as the sky darkened enough to see Beta Aquilae (mag 3.9), I slewed the ETX to Sagittarius for an attempt at M22 and M28. Both were clearly visible, but I could not see much in M22 at 146x - it was just a blob. (I'm missing the Portuguese night skies of yesteryear, where this area reaches 30 degrees up !). The Swan Nebula still put on a brave show in the nebula filter, as did the Lagoon M8 and its cluster NGC6530. Removing the filter still allowed me to see M23, 24, 25 and 21, but the sky was rapidly brightening from the south-east. Slewing north to Scutum revealed only about 15 stars in M11 - a far cry from the dozens and scores seen on earlier nights. It's doubles from now, I thought.