#83 Small Telescope Adventures: Part 6

The Olcott Project:  Adventures with a 2" Telescope--Night 7

Tonight's lunar observation (October 22nd) was aided by still air and mild temperatures.  Our 50 mm refractor is proving to be a wonderful instrument with which to study the lunar surface once again, something we haven't done much of in many years.  We observed our 25th object with Space Eye tonight, a minor milestone.  This marks our second lunar observation, with eight more allowed in our initial project of sixty objects.  We are hoping to eventually include several planets, too.

Object #25:  Sinus Iridum

We used Plate VII from the Field Guide, studying a very attractive and conspicuous area in and around Sinus Iridum, also called "Bay of Rainbows."  The Bay is 242 miles x 157 miles, and has a flat floor that sits about 2,000' lower than adjoining Mare Imbrium.  The curving mountain range ringing the north end are the Jura Mtns., rising to 18,200'.  They were spectacular tonight.  While some of the Bay was still in deep shadow, the mountain tops were brightly lit beyond and into the terminator.  We studied the area at 60x and 75x (without a filter), noting many other involved features (see sketch, below).  This area was lit spectacularly tonight, repaying careful study, and was easily the finest sight on the moon!  The moon was exactly ten days old.

Each curving end of the Juras has a name.  Cape Laplace, on the eastern end, rises to 7900', while Cape Heraclides, on the opposite side of the Bay, rises to 5500'.  The craters Bianchini, Helicon, and Leverrier all require a 2" glass to see clearly.  Their diameters are 23 miles, 15 miles, and 12 miles, respectively.  The adjoining Straight Range/ Montes Recti rises to 5500'.

 Deb's sketch of the Sinus Iridum area.  60x, 2" refractor.  10-day old moon.

Here is what Olcott says about the Sinus Iridum area:  "Capes Heraclides and La Place are at the eastern and western extremities respectively of the Sinus Iridum or "Bay of Rainbows."  They are 135 miles apart.  The former is 4,000' high [now 5500'], and its shadow forms the silhouette of the "moon maiden," best viewed when the moon is 11 days old."

 We also explored the Carpathian Mountains, a complex area near the terminator tonight, and just north of Copernicus.  The crater Tobias Mayer, at the eastern edge of the mountains, is 9300' deep and looked like a circular black pit!  This would also make a good area for detailed observations around the 10-day phase.

Mapman Mike

#81 Small Telescope Adventures: Part 4

The Olcott Project:  Adventures with a 2" Telescope--Nights 4 & 5

We have managed to squeeze two more clear nights out of the October new moon session.  I am still hard at work with the 12", and recently completed observations of "Stephan's Quintet" in Pegasus, along with eg 7331 and its attendant galaxies.  We take time out to work with Space Eye from time to time during these clear nights, finding it just as addictive as observing with our bigger scopes.

The night of October 10th began as a hazy mess.  We drove to Hallam Observatory anyway, thinking that we might just set up the 2" and review some of the already seen objects.  Well, the night didn't turn out to be so great for galaxy hunting, so the 12" stayed inside the VW Tiguan.  However, the haze lifted enough to provide us with a pretty decent night of observing.  We set up Deb's 6", along with Space Eye, and we ended up comparing views.  The 6" has about 9x the light gathering power of the 2", so there isn't much to compare.  I ended up using the 2" exclusively that night, adding 7 new objects to our ever-growing list.

Each time we use the scope we get better at finding objects using Olcott's charts.  A big part of this new-found success is the red dot finder now installed, replacing the 5 x 20 toy finder scope.  We are finding the alt-azumith's up and down locking device a bit of a pain, especially when the scope is pointed high.  Once an object is sighted and the device is "locked," there is some play in the system, causing the tube to fall just a bit short of where it was placed.  We are learning to compensate, however.  Also, when the knob is tightened, it really needs to be tightened.  A few times I thought I had tightened it and the eyepiece gracefully descended to a vertical position.  There are no problems with the side to side controls.  Both slow motion controls work flawlessly, too, and the focusser has loosened just enough to make it perfect for getting that exact image of a star.

Object #14:  M13:  20'; Vis. 5.8; Br. * mag. 11.9:  We had a good, long look at the grand-daddy of northern sky globular clusters, and Space Eye did not disappoint!  At 30x the center blazes with light.  Three distinct levels of brightness can be observed, as the cluster fades outwards.  A large area of very faint haze surrounds the central, brighter areas.  At 60x the texture of the cluster becomes granular.  At 75x 3 or 4 stars can be seen, winking in and out.  Fun!  Olcott devotes five paragraphs to this cluster, but only on his binocular and naked eye observing page!

http://www.vcastro.com/messier/page004/html/04-0811_m13_gk0r3006_std.jpg

Object #15:  Delta Herculis:  3.2-8/11":  Not an easy double star for a 2" scope.  But what are all my years of observing experience for, if not for challenges like this one?  We split it at 60x, but the two stars appeared very close.  It's very likely that a trained eye is needed here.  The primary star is white.

http://www.astrosurf.com/bolteau/etoilesdoubles/delta-herculis.jpg

Object #16:  Beta Lyra:  A multiple star with 4 members:

     3-6.7/46"

       -9.2/67"

      -9.8/86"

On the first night I misread Olcott's list and left out the 9.8 mag. member.  However, that was remedied on the 11th of October, when we reviewed the whole system.  Three star members are observable at 30x, and the fourth at 60x.  Beta also is a gateway star to M 57.  Olcott discusses Beta's variable characteristics, as it is one of the most famous variables in the sky.  It was considerably dimmer than Gamma tonight.

http://i0.wp.com/www.universetoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/beta_lyrae.gif

Object #17:  M57 "Ring Nebula:"  76"; Vis. 8.8:  Small, faint but quite distinct at 30x, I reached here using the slow motion controls from Beta Lyra.  60x and averted vision really help with the view, though the dark center is elusive and challenging.  75x (Epic 11 8 mm) gives really decent views of a now dark-centered ghostly object.  It appears to be pretty large in this range, and very round.  This marks Space Eye's first planetary nebula!  Olcott says: "The "+" [on his chart of Lyra] marks the location of the famous "Ring Nebula," a wonderful sight in our largest telescopes."

http://www.jagowds.com/_jap/gfx/deepsky/m57_042404.jpg

Object #18:  NGC oc 663:  15'; Mag. 7.1; Br. * mag. 9:  Observed both nights (10th and 11th), I really enjoyed spending time here.  This is another open cluster success for Space Eye.  I enjoyed long looks using 30x, in addition to sweeping the area slowly.  40x and 60x were also used with success.  Along with several obvious brighter stars, many faint ones were also seen.  The cluster field fits nicely at 60x.  The surrounding area is also rich with stars, making for fine sweeping with the slow motion controls.  Recommended for 50mm apertures.

http://www.jagowds.com/_jap/gfx/deepsky/m57_042404.jpg

Object #19:  Struve 163 (Cass):  A triple star. 6.2-8.2/35"  -9.7/115":  On the 10th I overlooked the fainter star, so we redid it on the 11th.  Nothing was split at 30x.  However, at 60x a lovely gold and blue pair resolved, though somewhat faint.  It looks much more impressive in the 6", but it isn't too bad in the 2".  The third member was seen at 60x and 75x under excellent skies on the 11th.  It may have been visible on the 10th under less favourable sky conditions, but I did not look for it.

http://www.deepskywatch.com/images/sketches/struve-163-sketch-s.jpg

Object #20:  NGC oc 7789:  25': Vis. 6.7; Br. * mag. 10:  Olcott places the cluster on his Cassiopeia chart, and says:  "NGC 7789 was discovered by Caroline Herschel in 1783."  That's not much of an incentive to go looking for it, but experienced observers will know that this is one of the most remarkable open clusters in the sky.  In my 12" scope at 136x (82 degree field) I am left speechless and breathless every time I observe it.  It is a challenge, however, for the 2".  I located it both nights, even though I really wasn't expecting to find it.  The given magnitude is deceiving.  Due to its vast size it is very faint.  We found it at 30x, though it was better at 40x, where a few stars began to resolve.  It was too faint for 60x to be of any use.  It looks like a ghostly, round, very faint cloud.  I was thrilled to even find it!  A second look on the much better night of the 11th showed very tiny stars resolving across the entire hazy patch at 40x.  Definitely worth a stop for veteran sky viewers.

http://www.walter-hohmann-sternwarte.de/galerie-dateien/offene_sternhaufen/NGC7789-20120907_kl.jpg

Observing Night #5

The night of October 11th gave us a near-perfect sky.  Much of the time I was hunting galaxies with the 12", but we took time out to add a few new objects to Space Eye's ever-growing list.  We had quick looks at Messier 8, 20 and 21 in Sagittarius, but I did not take any notes.  We'll wait until next summer for these, and many others, in that fabulous constellation.  Here are three new objects added to our list.  Pretty soon we will be halfway through our goal of 60 objects, and we haven't even started on the moon or planets yet!  I'm thinking this project may easily reach 100 objects.

 Object #21:  NGC oc 752:  75'; Mag. 5.7; Br. * mag. 8:  The cluster is easy to find thanks to a wide double star (56 Andromedae: 6-6/189"), a lovely object on its own, but lying just south of this remarkable open cluster.  Both members of the double are white, and it can be seen in binoculars.  The cluster can best be appreciated at 30x, using the slow motion controls to drive around its nearly endless circumference.  This is one of the largest and richest clusters one could imagine, and would be a perfect candidate for our 4" Astroscan.  However, the 2" shows it in its full splendour, too.  This one is worth many more visits!  Olcott merely places the cluster on his Andromeda chart.  However, he does mention the double star:  "The double star 56 can be separated with a field glass if it is held steady..."

 A nice image, showing the adjacent double star 56 Andromedae.

http://www.amateurastronomy.co.uk/constels/and/ngc752.gif

Object #22:  Messier 42 & 43 "The Great Nebula:"  Wow!  Certainly one of the finest objects for a small telescope, it is totally enthralling and amazing in Space Eye!  It appeared far brighter than I expected, and a lot of detail can be observed, even at 30x.  We viewed it around 1 am, and it wasn't even that high yet.  The Trapezium star group was bright and very appealing.  60x shows off the nebula to great advantage, with dark and light areas mingling and curling like smoke.  This is truly remarkable in the 2", and should get some oohs and ahhs at open houses and star parties, especially if someone has never seen it before.  Obviously it is worth many repeat visits.  Olcott devotes several paragraphs to it on his binocular page.  On the telescope page he says:  "Of course observe the nebula.  An excellent way to do this is to sight the telescope in advance of the nebula, and allow this to creep into the field.  A far better idea of the extent of the luminosity can be obtained by using this method.  Only a long exposure photograph can show the true vastness of this wonder of the skies."  Perhaps, but a 50 mm will not disappoint.

https://www.google.ca/search?client=tablet-unknown&hl=en&site=imghp&tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1360&bih=631&q=delta+herculis&oq=delta+herculis&gs_l=img.12..0i24.1585.4928.0.7128.14.10.0.4.4.0.126.993.2j7.9.0....0...1ac.1.64.img..1.13.1004.nv6SdVRqaDM#hl=en&tbm=isch&q=messier+42&imgrc=_

Object #23:  Messier 1 "Crab Nebula:"  I had zero expectations for this faint object, so you can imagine my surprise and delight when we located it at 30x without much trouble!  Apparently all of the faint galaxy work I do with the 12" has paid off!  The Crab was really faint, but nonetheless quite unmistakable.  It was oval, and though fairly small, we found that using averted vision and cupping our hands around the eyepiece really helped to bring it out from the background.  Huzzah!  Olcott says:  "The + shows the location [on his chart of Taurus] of the famous "Crab Nebula," the first nebula discovered by Messier.  It takes a powerful telescope to bring out any detail."  This one is for experts only.  There is not much here to see for a novice.

http://www.members.shaw.ca/guy.m/Sketches/DSO/M1.jpg

Until next time, clear skies to all!

Mapman Mike 

#78 Small Telescope Adventures: Part 1, The New Scope

It was a completely exhausting and wonderful September observing session, and we actually had five fine nights in a row, along with three others.  So Sagittarius is now completed with the 12", and will be summarized here soon.  October is already turning out to be one of the worst sessions, joining several other months from 2015 for that dubious distinction.

One of the more charming astronomy blogs out there was this older one, concerning a man in Singapore trying to observe 50 objects with a toy 50 mm refractor which he purchased from Toys R Us.   http://small-telescopes.blogspot.ca/.  I had enjoyed reading and following this blog in the past when it suddenly ceased to update.  I thought that someday I might wish to do a similar project.  After all, observing Messier objects with a 12" scope isn't much of a challenge, though it is fun and they are awfully bright.  I began to wonder how many of them could be seen with a 2" scope.  One night after observing and getting the big scope packed up and back into the vehicle, I took my 2" finderscope (8x) and had a look around.  I was amazed at the detail I could see in several bright objects, and this got my brain ticking.

The upshot is that Deb and I have just purchased a 2" refractor, and we have found an initial project to carry out with it.  Due to the fact that the Singapore blogger either lost interest in his project or has become incapable of observing, or is deceased (if anyone has info on him please contact me), Deb and I wish to follow in his footsteps, with a few differences.  First of all, we did not want a "toy" telescope, but rather the best instrument we could find at a very inexpensive price.  We succeeded beyond our wildest dreams.  Secondly, we did not wish to observe from massively light-polluted skies as our blogger colleague had, but rather from our usual dark sky site at our club's observatory near Comber, Ontario, Canada (Hallam Observatory).  Thirdly, we have chosen to observe 60 objects (related to the price we paid) all selected from Olcott's wonderful "Observing Handbook of the Skies," 1954 edition updated by Mayall.  This was my very first astronomy book back in the day.  We will use only the charts and objects from within the pages of this amazing little reference book.

Now, on to the new scope itself.  After extensive on-line research (and following up on a good lead) we chose this one:

 To say that I absolutely love the large box it came in would be a gross understatement.  I felt like a kid again, getting his first scope!

 Yup.  Slow motion controls on a 50 mm refractor.  And apparently you can switch eyepieces!

 Apparently this scope is about the actual size of Jupiter!  Look at all that detail we will be able to see!!

 Seriously, though, besides the slow motion controls this box of goodies features eyepieces with two magnifications, ones that are actually usable!  Well done, Vixen!!  There is no 575x to be seen, nor a 3x Barlow, nor any Barlow, but two decent 1.25" Plossls, non-plastic.

What's in the box?  An amazing tripod (Vixen uses the same one for their 70 mm scope) and solid alt-azimuth mount.  A 600 mm F12 2" refractor, and a 5x20 finderscope.  While many parts are plastic, they seem quite solid.  The tripod is aluminum.  The two eyepieces are Plossls (20 mm and 10 mm).  The rack and pinion focus is tight and very responsive.

 From box to assembly took around 7 minutes.  Here is the finished, ready-to-use scope.

 Usually seen at the eyepiece of a 6" Orion Star Blaster Intelliscope, Deb contemplates the daytime universe with the newest addition to our telescope domain instead.  She is looking directly at the sun (just joking).

 Himself, awaiting first light.

 

And now, on to the price.  The scope retails in Canada at around $125, with free shipping.  Added to the price is our miserable HST, which at 13% would raise the price to $140 Can.  However, since we live in a border town with the USA, we are able to order from there, fetch it from our UPS mailbox, and cross over the border and back home with it.  We found the scope on-line for $60 US at B & H in New Jersey.  Free shipping.  Free red flashlight bonus.  No tax, as it was being shipped to Michigan.  We declared the scope (and some martial arts attire) when coming back home, and were not asked to pay duty.  So, the scope cost us exactly $59.95 US.  We had to cross to Detroit anyway, so no real extra cost was involved.  Thus we will search for 60 objects from Olcott's book, costing us $1 US apiece!  Object #60 will be a bargain at $0.95!

All we needed now was a dark and cloudless sky.  The next post will deal with our "first light" experience with the Space Eye.  I hope you will join us.

 

Mapman Mike