With Lyra completed and summer constellations moving forward less and less each night due to shorter days, I have taken up the task of viewing the deep sky objects of Cygnus. Later during the night I will switch over to Cassiopeia, but first I thought I would give an idea of what Cygnus has to offer for someone with a 12" mirror.
My first and primary goal is to view all of the NGC and IC objects. However, Cygnus is loaded down with "other" objects as well, mostly open clusters from different catalogues. I will briefly discuss each main category, beginning with the NGC.
There are 57 NGC objects in Cygnus. 33 of them are open clusters. While I have seen many of them with my previous telescope (8"), there are quite a few new ones for me to observe. Things I have seen previously should look considerably different in my larger mirror. In addition to the clusters, there are 9 planetary nebulae, 8 galactic nebulae and 7 galaxies. M 29 and M 39 are also included in this NGC list. Even this many objects could keep an observer happy for many viewing sessions. It is doubtful I will get through them all this summer.
There are 16 IC objects in Cygnus. 6 are galactic nebulae, 5 are galaxies, 4 are open clusters and 1 is a planetary.
Finally come the other catalogues, mostly open clusters from Berkeley, Collinder and several others. 57 of these other objects are open clusters, many of them very small and faint, and truthfully probably worth just a quick glimpse. There are 2 planetaries and 1 galactic nebula. I have decided to largely pass on the PK planetaries, at least for this season.
In total, I will be viewing 132 deep sky objects in Cygnus. 94 are open clusters, 14 are galactic nebulae, 12 are galaxies and another 12 are planetaries. I have mixed in a number of double stars as well. All of the objects are plotted and named on Uranometria All-Sky Edition, though the double stars are mostly unnamed in there.
I already have a small start on Cygnus (see previous post), and am impatiently awaiting the time near last quarter moon when observations will get underway again. With darkness falling a bit earlier now, even more time can be spent at the eyepiece if it is clear. My next post will be a similar brief look at upcoming deep sky objects in Cassiopeia.
Mapman Mike
I have been an amateur astronomer since 1968. I hope to share suggestions on making observing sessions more pleasurable and rewarding. I will also share my experiences and descriptions of observations, including my relentless pursuit of NGC objects. Any topic of interest to amateurs may be found here, especially suggestions from readers. Most of my observations are done with an Orion 12" Dobsonian.
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