#142: Leo Deep Sky Part 3: Unranometria Chart #92, Right Side

 This is a direct continuation of blog #93 from April 2016.  Note that egs 3130, 3134, 3153, and 3154 are all discussed in the earlier blog, as they overlap on Chart 93.  Also note that I mainly viewed NGC objects (galaxies, in this case), with a very few IC objects as well.  In later observing projects I would include many galaxies outside the NGC/IC lists.  I may return someday to check out the UGCs etc, but for now this is what I saw in Leo.

Beginning in the south, near the border of Sextans, there are two galaxies to report.

eg 3186: 0'.7 x 0'.7:  Vis. 15.1; SB 14.2:  As difficult to locate as it was, it would have been much harder without nearby I. 602.  At 187x and 200x, a very tiny haze wtih faint stellar core was noted.  At 250x a 2nd stellar object was noted N of the main one, but with no haze.  Some catalogues list these  as eg 3186-1 and 3186-2.  NOTE: Several catalogues list 2186 as non-existent; others use PGC 30058 as the missing object.

eg I. 602: 0'.8 x 0'.5:  Vis. 13.2; SB 12.1:  Nearly attached to a mag. 13 star S, the galaxy was observed at 100x, 136x, and 187x.  It appeared as round with a bright centre.  

Three galaxies lie in the SE corner of the page.

 

eg 3349:  0'.5 x 0'.5:  Vis. 14.5; SB 12.8:  This tiny object was seen well at 187x 200x, and even 250x.  It is seen full size with averted vision, but looks somewhat oval.  It is preceding its partner closely (see below).

eg 3356:  1'.7 x 0'.8:  Vis. 13.3; SB 13.5:  Big brother to tiny 3349, it was located at 136x, N of a mag. 10.7 star.  It is large and oval.  Elongation shows up better at 187x and 200x.  3349 is immediately following.

NGC 3356 is centre, with 3349 to the right.  

All images from NASA, hosted here.

 http://www.astrosurf.com/benoit/p33.html 

 

eg 3362:  1'.4 x 1'.1:  Vis. 12.8; SB 13.1:  Located at 100x, it is already quite large and oval, but not bright.  136x shows the middle part to be brighter.  At 187x the galaxy is now pretty bright using a.v., and very obviously oval.

NGC 3362 is located just NP a mag. 9.5 star.  The star is also shown on the atlas. 

 

Moving north along the right side we come to eg 3217, at +11 degrees.  After this we will continue north.

 

eg 3217:  0'.5 x 0'.3:  Vis. 14.5; SB 12.3:  I used a hand drawn map to locate this.  I use telescopius.com for these kinds of maps.  I can star hop from much fainter stars than are shown on Uranometria.  From a mag. 9 star shown on the atlas I followed a line of 3 11 mag. stars to the galaxy, which was seen as a very faint and very small oval of haze (towards the star line\).  A 14 mag. star is just SP.  Only on a perfect night!

eg 3220:  2'.3 x 1'.1:  Vis. 12.8; SB 13.7:  A bright slash was seen just N of a pretty notable star.  The galaxy showed a bright core at 136x, 187x, and 250x.  Overall it was pretty small, but averted vision gave occasionally glimpses of a larger object.  At 100x it can appear as nearly stellar companion to the close star.

eg 3230. 

 

UGC 5646: 2'.3 x 0'.7:  Vis. 12.8; SB 13.2:  Like many UGC objects, the stats don't seem to be that accurate for visual observers.  It is a very faint galaxy seen at 136x and 187x.  It was oval and seen best with averted vision.  I had hoped for better.

eg 3253:  1'.2 x 1'.1:  Vis. 13.6; SB 13.7:  This galaxy is a fair size, and round,  It is faint at 136x and 187x.  Best view was at 200x with averted vision, but it is still a ghostly sight.

eg I. 607:  1'.3 x 0'.9:  Vis. and SB 13.2:  Located with a hand drawn map, the galaxy is fairly bright but quite small.  It had a brighter core, nearly stellar.  Best view was at 187x using averted vision, where it appears slightly oval.

eg 3239:  5' x 3'.3:  Vis. 11.3; SB 14.2:  A beautiful sight is quite spoiled by a mag. 10 star right overtop the galaxy, and dead centre.  All I saw was a bit of haze, mostly N and F.  I took a second look here the next night.  I noted two bright spots, one N and the other NF the star.  These spots can seem at first to be companion stars.  The envelope is hazy surrounding the star, but mostly noted towards the NF side.  

Now we move east across the top of the map, and then finish the right half of the chart by diving south.

 

eg 3370:  2'.6 x 1'.5:  Vis. 11.6; SB 12.9:  Located at 60x and 100x, the galaxy was oval, pretty bright, and quite large.  At 136x the size becomes more impressive, as does the brightness and shape.  At 187x and 200x it is impressively large, bright, very elongated, and has a bright middle.  A nice catch in a 12"!

eg 3370.
 

eg 3346:  2'.9 x 2'.5:  Vis. 11.7; SB 13.7:  Easy to find at 60x and 100x.  It is large though pretty faint, located just NF a pair of notable stars.  At 136x it is large, slightly oval, and has a slightly brighter middle.  AT 187x using a.v. vies are good.  It is large but still faint.  At 200x the galaxy is fading.

eg 3346, with image ghosts.

 

eg 3377A:  2'.2 x 2'.2:  Vis. 13.6; SB 15.1:  I spent a long time making certain I did see this very challenging object.  I had glimpses of it using a.v. at 83x, 100x, and 136x.  It was round, not small (1'8?), but extremely faint.  It possibly had a faint stellar core.  It was "best" at 100x.  A.v. only.

eg 3777:  5' x 3':  Vis. 10.4; SB 13.3:  View at all magnifications, from 60x through 250x, it has a very bright middle.  The surrounding envelope is subdued by the central glare.  That envelope was only seen at 187x and higher.  The galaxy is wide, large, and oval.  The centre is bright in all ranges, and is quite large itself.

eg 3377 in centre; 3377A is NP. 

eg 3367:  2'.5 x 2'.2:  Vis. 11.5; SB 13.2:  Easily located at 60x and 100x, the envelope resolution was flaring in all directions.  Teh galaxy is large and bright.  At 136x a pretty decent object for observation is presented.  It is round, or perhaps slightly oval.  Viewed at 187x and 200x, it is bright, round, pretty evenly lit, and pretty large.

eg 3367. 

 

eg 3300: 1'.9 x 1'.3:  Vis. 12.1; SB 12.7: Located amidst a bright star field at 60x and 100x, the galaxy is large, bright, and very elongated.  It is very bright at 136x, especially the centre, which is quite expansive.  Also viewed at 187x, 200x, and 250x where it appeared very large, very bright in the middle, with a smaller stellar core.  It was a nice way to finish up an observing night, as well as being the final entry in Vol. 8 of my notes (I am now in Vol 13!).

eg 3300. 

 

eg 3338: 5'.9 x 3'.6:  Vis. 11.1; SB 14.2:  At 60x this galaxy was big, bright, and very elongated.  It immediately follows a mag. 9 star.  At lower powers the envelope aimed towards this star cannot be seen.  As a result, it looks like the bright centre if the head of a comet, and the tail is the faint envelope following.  The object was also viewed at 136x, 187x, 200x, and 250x.  The preceding envelope is now seen, despite the bright star.  The envelope seems to extend to the star.  A few very faint stars (mag. 14-15?) surround the galaxy, including a few just N.  There is a very tiny stellar core.

eg 3338. 

 

UGC 5832:  1'.3 x 1'.1:  Vis. 12.8; SB 13.1:  The galaxy is not difficult at 136x.  It is best seen at 187x, where it remains faint but pretty big and somewhat oval.  A faint star is following.  A mag. 11 star is just N.

eg 3299:  2'.2 x 1'.7:  Vis. 12.7; SB 14:  Located at 100x!  It is not far NP from eg 3306.  It is very large, oval, and quite faint.  At 136x it appears brighter in the middle, with noticeable fainter areas outside it.  This faint outer area is large.  Though fading at 187x it is still large.  Later it could be seen at 60x!

eg 3299 is large and faint in a 12" scope. 

 

eg 3306:  1'.3 x 0'.5: Vis. 13.4; SB 12.8:  At 136x the galaxy appears as a wide, very oval haze, very near to a bright star SP.  It is pretty bright at 187x, appearing fuller still at 250s using a.v.  Eg 3299 lies close by, NP.

eg 3306.  Very faint galaxy C65-69 is north (not attempted by this observer). 

 

eg 3351 (Messier 95):  7'.4 x 5': Vis. 9.7; SB 13.5:  The first of three Messier objects that lie close enough together, this area makes for some very fine observing with larger telescopes.  At 60x and 100x. M 95 appears like a massive, unresolved globular cluster.  It's easy to see why Messier might have wanted to eliminate this as a possible bright comet.  At 136x it is big, oval, shows an intensely bright middle, and a very large barred core area.  At 187x, 200x, and 250x the core is blazing.  The position angle makes a rough V-shape with a pair of stars preceding.  Overall, it is very large, has a big, bright middle, and a lot of faint, outer haze shows at higher power.  I have seriously upgraded my eyepieces since 2016, and I must return to these Messier objects this year for a second look.  When I do, I will add to these descriptions.  This galaxy is suitable for virtuyally all size telescopes.

eg 3351, Messier 95. 

 

eg 3368 (Messier 96):  7'.6 x 5'.2:  Vis. 9.3; SB 13.1:  At 60x and 100x, the galaxy is seen to be notably brighter than M 95.  It also appears to be more obviously oval.  At 136x it features a nearly blinding middle section, itself very oval.  It is very, very large.  Also viewed at 187x, 200x, and 150x.  Even here it has an incredibly bright and large middle section, surrounded by a very broad and oval hazy envelope.  Like M 95, it can appear very comet-like.  The position angle is similar to M 95.  I tried for detail within the galaxy and extensions, but being late at night my eyes were very tired.  I do need a return visit in 2024 (these observations are from 2016).

NOTE:  I discuss M 105 and its two satellite galaxies in the next blog entry, Chart 92 left. 

eg 3368, Messier 96.

UGC 5897:  2'.6 x 0'.9:  Vis. 12.7; SB 13.5:  Often overlooked by Messier fanatics, this galaxy is located immediately south of a faint star.  It is pretty small and oval at 136x.  It is a bit more extended at 187x, though quite faint.  Not that difficult to find.

eg 3279:  2'.9 x 0'.3:  It was located at 100x, a long, very faint, very thing slash, a classic edge on galaxy.  It lies just S of a mag. 10.5 star, and slashes between 2 much fainter stars.  At 136x and 187x it is very, very thin and quite long.  As I star hopped here I came across a beautiful wide double star, yellow and lavender at 60x.  Looking it up later, it is Bigourdon 1: 7.4-9.7/60".  Watch for it NF!

Ultra thin eg 3279, and another galaxy image ghost. 

 

eg 3332:  1'.4 x 1'.4:  Vis. 12.3; SB 12.9:  Located at 100x and 136x, it was very small and faint.  It lies just S of a mag. 13 star.  Views improved a lot at 187x and 200x.  It is round, not very large (less than 1"), and shows a stellar core.

 

My adventures in Leo will continue in the next blog entry.

 

Mapman Mike

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

#105 Climbing Mount Everest: The NGC Project Contines!

NOTE:  Part of this article appeared in the March newsletter of the RASC Windsor, Canada.

Up to and including April 1st, 2017, I managed to snag 68 new NGC/IC objects, mostly in Auriga and Leo.  I enjoyed 10 outings with the 12" Dob, totaling just over 26 chilly hours of observing time.  I also managed to add 24 new deep sky objects from other catalogues, as well as a few dozen double stars.  I still have a few years to go before finishing Leo, but have added 48 of its NGC galaxies so far this year.  Auriga will be easily finished next autumn/winter, and then I will commence my first extensive survey of Orion.  It has been a productive winter and early spring.  Once Leo has passed by, I will resume work in Bootes and Hercules, likely finishing up NGC work in both constellations this season.

When exactly I decided to go for all of the NGC I cannot say, but I likely had a fever at the time.  I am not pursuing all of the IC objects at this moment, but I do drop in on them if nearby, as well as objects from other catalogues.  I wanted to take my time seeing each NGC object, recording it in my log (with a sketch if possible) and hopefully remembering many of them with the help of my notes.  I did not want this to become merely a checklist, and so far it has not been so.

From 42 degrees N Lat. there are approximately 6400 NGC objects visible, out of a total of 7800+.  I do not usually plan on viewing galaxies if they fall below -30 degrees declination, but with clusters I can go almost to the horizon (around -40 degrees).  I have seen a few larger and brighter galaxies lower than -30 degrees, but they are not usually very impressive in our south skies from Hallam Observatory.  In a moment I will tell you how many NGC objects I have seen so far.  I do count ones I have seen with the old 8” scope and not yet with the 12”, though I have redone many of them with the larger aperture.

 

During the spring of 2013 I began my Leo project observing from Malden, Essex County, Ontario.  The south skies were okay, but not great.  I didn’t observe from Hallam Observatory until much later that year.  So my first season was rather slow going, and I ended up with less than 35 galaxies observed.  Still, it had been the start of a great adventure and I couldn’t wait for the next year.  In the meantime I had expanded my NGC project to Lyra, then on to Cygnus, Cassiopeia, Cepheus, Cetus, Bootes, Lepus, Monoceros, Sagittarius, Aquila, Delphinus, Equuleus, and others, now all completed except Cetus.  I am continuing my work in Leo, as well as in Hercules, Pegasus, and a few others.

Back to Leo.  I have now spent four spring seasons observing galaxies here (all of the Leo NGCs are galaxies).  2017 is my fifth year exploring this most amazing constellation.  Though Leo has its fair share of 14^th mag. little troublemakers, there are so many bigger and brighter ones that during each session I can count on at least one gem, if not more.  And they often come in twos, threes, fours, and mores.  Some sessions I may only log six or seven objects, especially if they are all singles.  Other nights I might grab fifteen, especially if there is a quintet (last night I got 12).  Some of the galaxies require great finding skills.  I generally use my Push-To computer to get into an area, then star hop (actually, galaxy hop) for the session.  I may spend more time searching for a faint galaxy than observing it, but the brighter ones get plenty of my observing time.  I have now located and recorded 250 of Leo’s 363 galaxies.  That’s a little better than 50 per year on average, not that far from my original goal (last year was my most successful, seeing around 80!).  I even make time to go back and review some of them from time to time, and not just the five Messier objects.  Leo is an amazing playground for a 12” scope!

And finally, how many of the 6400 NGC objects available to me from Hallam have I observed so far?  Would you believe just over 1700? (as of Apr. 1^st, 2017)  That is a little better than 25% of them!  Huzzah!  It will be impossible to finish the project in my lifetime, but I like it that way.  I will never run out of things to observe.  I will certainly finish the summer and autumn NGCs, but the spring galaxies will prove to be too overwhelming.  Winter is also a tough season for observers in Canada.  I will continue to report on my progress here; usually as I finish a constellation I post about it here.  Due to the size and number of Leo objects I will continue to post progress reports by Uranometria chart.  An new entry should come later, so check back if you are a Leo fan.

Clear skies!

Mapman Mike

#62 2014: A Look Back

     It's now been just over two years since I purchased my Orion 12" Intelliscope and threw myself headlong back into amateur astronomy.  The past two years have been packed with fun and adventure, and in a month or two things will start again in earnest for hopefully another banner year.  Although my focus will continue to be the NGC catalog, I will explore all corners of a constellation, leaving no deep sky object or outstanding double star unobserved.

     

     2014 was an incredible year for my unique observing program, and for sheer number of nights of observing and total number of hours, it comes in second only to 2013.  I have been keeping records of my observations since 1968, and have had many very good years in there.  However, nothing compares to the quantity and quality of observations over the past two years.  Those two years have both had crappy beginnings (January is a fearsome month in Canada) and endings (November and December both years have been unbelievably cloudy, except near the full moons).  The middle parts of a year are sometimes not so great, either.  However, when we do get a good month, it can mean many hours of observing, including several nights in a row.  I am fortunate in that I can usually make use of any available clear night.

     So, what made 2014 special?  I set up the scope and observed 52 times!  Considering that there are about 180 available nights for some moonless observing, that means the ratio of clear nights to cloudy is about 1:3.6.  Not exactly ideal for a rabid astronomer, but it's the best Nature can do for me.  During those 52 nights, I stayed out for 165 hours of intense observing; on average just over three hours per session.

     In that time I was able to observe no less than 437 deep sky objects!  That's even better than last year, so my skills at locating objects have improved, and so has my observing eye.  Practice does make one better!  That's 2.6 objects per hour of observing, so I am not hurrying through the sky, but rather taking my time and enjoying the view, whatever might be in the eyepiece.

     How am I doing with my NGC project?  I observed 248 new (to me) NGC objects, and 27 from the IC.  In addition I was able to observe 83 objects from other catalogs, all listed on Uranometria 2000 charts.  I also reviewed 79 NGC/IC objects with the 12" that I had seen previously with my 8" Edmund reflector.  I do not yet have a final count of how many NGC objects I have logged in my life, but I am working on it (990, as of the end of 2014).  Also, I am working on a list of how many of these objects are possible from my location.  It's one thing to say that there are 7800+ objects up there, but many of those are in southern latitudes.  So I am compiling a to-do list of how many I can see from my latitude (42 degrees N).  I will report both of these figures in a future blog once they are complete.  I'm guessing that my life list is now at around 1,000 NGC objects, though likely short of that figure.

      What were the observing highlights of 2014 for me?  Certainly one had to be my increased skill guiding my scope and locating very faint objects.  I have been doing this for years now with my right eye, which is deteriorating rapidly due to a cataract.  I used to observe with my left eye, but it developed a cataract that ripened very quickly.  It (the cataract) was removed in November, so I am hoping to begin using a near-perfect eye for observing in 2015!  The limited amount of observing I have done with it already is very encouraging.  So finding faint fuzzies might be easier than ever in 2015!

     I made progress in Lepus and Monoceros towards the end of last winter, and hope to do so again this year.  Monoceros is so loaded down with fine objects, though most people only observe a few of them.  My jaunt through this area has been most rewarding, even though in winter I am usually stuck on my back deck, which is seriously light-polluted.

     In Spring my attention turns to Leo and then to Bootes, and last year it was a great year for both constellations.  Leo, sadly, passes through the Spring skies at breakneck speed, and it will take me years and years to finish work here.  Bootes, on the other hand, stays up there well into summer, so I should be able to finish up work here in two or three years.

     Last summer I was able to redo three constellations that I had very much enjoyed seeing with the Edmund 8".  Aquila, Delphinus and Sagitta are wonderful areas to explore with a 12" scope, and I really took my time observing here, even finding some of the faintest galaxies imaginable.  Resolving M 71 almost to the core was certainly a highlight for me!  Then I began work in Sagittarius, and I can't wait to get back here in 2015.  This might be my favourite constellation--it is loaded down with many of the finest deep sky objects anywhere, and I can access most of them from my latitude.  There are a few faint galaxies that will have to wait for a more southerly site.

      When autumn came around I finished up a few objects in Cassiopeia, then moved on to Cepheus.  I still have to do a summation essay of my work in Cassiopeia (watch for it here soon), and I have one page left to complete in Cepheus (about eight or nine objects).  I inched along in Cetus, and even did a bit of work in Taurus before the weather obliterated observations for the year.

     Finding a particular highlight is not possible.  Many of the nights were superb, and almost magical in their transparency and seeing.  It's the best possible feeling when you are setting up at sunset and you know it's going to be a great night!  Those are the nights that make the hobby worthwhile, and keep me coming back hoping for more of the same.  Whenever the weather clears up and warms a bit, I will resume work in Lepus and Monoceros.  I am anxious to get going, and hope that February will offer at least a few opportunities to observe without freezing conditions.  Usually I am fine for several hours if it isn't much colder than 25 F.  Much colder than that and things become more complicated, especially trying to keep fingers warm while changing eyepieces, scribbling notes and sketches, and keeping batteries alive on flashlights and the push-to computer.

     Clear skies to everyone hoping to observe in 2015!

Mapman Mike

#53 Sagittarius Deep Sky Plans

If you had to nominate one constellation as "best of" for northern deep sky observers, which would you choose?  Virgo, with all of those bright galaxies and Messier objects?  Scorpius, with its clusters and nebulae?  Or perhaps Orion, with the most amazing nebulae available.  I would argue Sagittarius. It has a reasonable number of NGC and IC objects (77), a consistently fine background when star hopping, plenty of worthwhile objects from other catalogs, and perhaps the widest variety of objects in any one constellation. There are open clusters galore, along with nearly as many globular clusters. There are planetary nebulae, galactic nebula, and even a few galaxies.  Double and variable stars are positively glorious.  I have yet to mention that there are no less than fifteen Messier objects!

Best of all, Sagittarius is a summer constellation and on view during the best observing weather for us northern folk.  Trying to choose favourite constellations is a totally subjective exercise, as is choosing a favourite object in such a rich area.  I won't even try, at least until I have viewed all of them.  This may take a few seasons.  The one disadvantage of observing in Sagittarius is its relatively low position in the southern sky.  My latitude is 42 N.  I can comfortably observe stars and clusters to about -35 degrees on excellent nights, and on occasion, for certain objects, I can reach -42 degrees. However, finding nights in the humid summer when I can clearly see the southern sky is difficult, and a rare occurrence.  For that reason, I always have other, higher constellations on the go.  I am working in Aquila, Delphinus and Sagitta most nights. However, if and when the southern sky is worthwhile, off I go to Sagittarius.  So far I have barely begun my re-exploration of this amazing motherlode of deep sky treasures.  For now, I am concentrating on the sky in and around M 23.

Here is a simplified list of what I will be observing in Sagittarius.  Firstly, the fifteen Messier objects are:  8, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 28, 54, 55, 69, 70, and 75.  Have I missed any?

In the NGC list there are:

19 open clusters

21 globular clusters

03 galactic nebulae, plus 2 more involved with clusters and having the same designation

06 galaxies (from my latitude--there are several more, but too low for me to attempt)

11 planetary nebulae

In the IC catalogue are:

01 globular cluster

10 galactic nebulae

06 planetary nebulae

From other catalogues of interest to me are:

33 open clusters

04 galactic nebulae

I am also seeking a minimum of 15 doubles, some of which I have seen previously with the 8" and recorded as worth viewing again, along with a few I could not split with that instrument.  Combined with my work in three other summer constellations, I am happily awaiting the last quarter moon phase and the next clear night closest to it.

Mapman Mike