Erix
Toad Lily
Reged: 12/25/04
Posts: 22222
Loc: Ohio, USA
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M31 The Great Andromeda Galaxy - not only good for nekked eye views, but small aperture scopes and binoculars as well. It's also a good opportunity to squeeze in M32 and M110 with it with a field of 120'.
You are encouraged to supply any or all of the following for observing/sketching the M31:
- tips on how to observe that object, filters or other equipment used
- media tried and tested for your renderings
- mini tutorial with an explanation and or/photos on how you did created the observation sketch
- link to any reports involved with the target, after all, these are observation sketches and links to reports will help all of us learn the object better as well as learn what to look for and how to optimize your viewing/sketching session
- or finally, just the sketch itself so we can all see each other's works in progress
Past monthly tutorial, tips, target threads
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Erika
Automatic doors make me feel like a Jedi. 
10" LX200 Classic, ETX70-AT, DS Maxscope 60mm, 12" Truss Dob, Orion ED80
My CN Gallery * 2007 July - tracking NOAA10963
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Aldebaran
super member
Reged: 09/30/06
Posts: 101
Loc: Turku, Finland
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Hello!
Here you can see my observation of The Great Galaxy from last fall:
Here is some details of the observation:
Observation information:
Date: 1/2.9.2006
Time: 23.20
Location: Koivuluoto, Ulvila, Finland
Instrument: N 250/1200 mm (10''/F 5)
Magnification: 37,5x
Field of view: 84,0'
Filter: -
Observation conditions:
Limiting magnitude: 5,7
Seeing: 3
Background sky: 2
Altitude: 47
Visuality: 3
Weather: Clear sky, moist air
Description:
Large and very bright galaxy, with bright and compact core. The outer parts of the galaxy were best with averted vision.
The dust lanes were also pretty well visible. The dim spots in the field are satellites of M 31, M 32 and M 110 in the bottom of the image.
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Juha
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Instruments:
10'' Newton
3'' Lens (RFT)
7x18 Binos
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http://juhansivut.pp.fi/Deepsky (my deep sky pages)
Taivaanpallo (my amateur astronomy blog in finnish)
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CarlosEH
Post Laureate
Reged: 01/19/05
Posts: 3953
Loc: Pembroke Pines, Broward County...
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I was able to finally make an observation tonight (10/10/07 at 02:30 U.T.) of the famous Andromeda Galaxy (M31) and companions (M32/M110) using my 9-inch (23-cm) F/13.5 Maksutov-Cassegrain reflector at 78x. The seeing conditions were average (5/10) and transparency 4/6. The nucleus of the galaxy appeared star-like and the central portion was prominent as well. Dust lanes were visible adjacent to the central region of the galaxy. M32 appeared towards the southeast as a diffuse elliptical glow. M110 was visible towards the west as a diffuse object with a bright core. I hope that you all like it. I look forward to everyone else's observation of this galaxy.
A graphite observation (4H to HB) and then scanned and inverted in Photoshop.
Carlos
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rodelaet
Post Laureate
Reged: 04/28/06
Posts: 3061
Loc: 50°56' N - 4°58' E (Belgium)
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Here is my little contribution.
I wanted to sketch a low power view of M31. Because this galaxy is a large object, a power of x16 to x20 would do the trick. Unfortunately my sky produces a lot of skyglow. The humidity in the air also added to the skyglow. I choose for the x20 eyepiece. A higher power does certainly counter the skyglow at the expense of field of view. I added the Baader Contrast booster filter, which darkens the background a bit without loosing too much starlight. I observed the galaxy for about 20 minutes without sketching. A large amount of details is only visible with averted vision. My eyes kept bouncing around the fov to produce a moving target. Wiggling the tube up and down also helped to detect fainter features in the galaxy. (While some people like steady tripods, I prefer a 'loose' one that I can shake  ) Once familiar with the view, I started sketching. I used a clipboard with a sheet of printing paper (letter format). My fov-circle measured 18cm. I first plotted the stars with a pigment liner. Then I added the brightening of nebulosity with a mechanical pencil. And finaly I used the liner to mark darker portions in the galaxy. I used this raw sketch to produce a digital rendering using layers. I have included the four layers of the sketch in the picture below. Top left is the eyepiece template. Top right has the layer with the stars. Bottom left shows the nebulosity of the galaxy. And finaly Bottom right shows the core of the galaxy. I should note that the layers are a bit 'enhanced' to make them clearly visible in this mini tutorial. The sequence also demonstrates the way that the sketch is built up. First come the stars and then the nebulosity. The stars make the frame to position the galaxy and the core. The picture shows the separate layers. When I work on one layer, I keep the other layers visible as well.
The observation and final sketch can be found here.
Clear skies,
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Rony
My Astronomical Sketches
My Binocular Sketches
Callibrate your Monitor with this little strip.
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Kris.
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 09/16/04
Posts: 1260
Loc: Belgium
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Hi, i'd also like to contribute my attempt at M31 from last year. the post itself is here
the sketch was done on 26 november 2006 with an 8" dob at 42x power with a pan24.
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Kris
To be old & wise, you first gotta be young & stupid 
8" dob
AstroTech 66ED/APO
TAL 120 newt.
my CN sketch & picture gallery
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CarlosEH
Post Laureate
Reged: 01/19/05
Posts: 3953
Loc: Pembroke Pines, Broward County...
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Kris,
An excellent observation of the Andromeda Galaxy. You have recorded the star-like core and dust lanes very nicely. M32 is clearly visible as well. Thank you for sharing it with us all.
Carlos
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pike_fly
sage
Reged: 10/10/07
Posts: 365
Loc: Roxborough Park, Colorado
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Here's a sketch I did earlier this summer. Only the fourth or fifth that I've attempted.
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CarlosEH
Post Laureate
Reged: 01/19/05
Posts: 3953
Loc: Pembroke Pines, Broward County...
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Lee,
An excellent observation of M31/32. You have captured their appearance very nicely. Thank you for sharing it with us all.
Carlos
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WadeVC
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 12/02/05
Posts: 2831
Loc: Lodi, California,
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Tch...where are my manners. I have looked at these sketches I don't lnow how many times and haven't left any comments.
VERY nice sketches everyone!!!!!! 
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Orion XTi10 f/4.7
Orion XTi8 f/5.9
Meade NGC 70mm f/10
Orion UltraView 10x50 Wide-Angle Binoculars
My Sketch Gallery
My Astronomy Blog
A wise man can see more from the bottom of a well than a fool can from a mountain top.
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Erix
Toad Lily
Reged: 12/25/04
Posts: 22222
Loc: Ohio, USA
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Fantastic job everyone. Although I observed this area a few weeks ago, I'm sorry I don't have a sketch/tutorial to contribute.
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Erika
Automatic doors make me feel like a Jedi.
10" LX200 Classic, ETX70-AT, DS Maxscope 60mm, 12" Truss Dob, Orion ED80
My CN Gallery * 2007 July - tracking NOAA10963
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Demelza
super member
Reged: 05/07/06
Posts: 171
Loc: The Netherlands
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Here is my contribution. Just in time!
I observed these objects with my Dobson 8" and a 32mm eyepiece.
I made the sketch with an HB pencil on white paper and made an negative photograph of it.
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Take a look at my website: Observing the night sky.
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CarlosEH
Post Laureate
Reged: 01/19/05
Posts: 3953
Loc: Pembroke Pines, Broward County...
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A nice observation of the Andromeda Galaxy (M) and companions (M32/M110). Thank you for sharing it with us all.
Carlos
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FalseColor
member
Reged: 10/03/07
Posts: 17
Loc: San Francisco, CA
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Better late than never.
Here's a wide-field sketch of M31 that I made the night of October 13 at Mount Tamalpais State Park, CA. It shows M31 along with M32 and M110. Seeing 4/10, Transparency 6/10.
The telescope was a William Optics Megrez 80 II FD refractor with a 32mm Erfle eyepiece (18x). The sketch was done with regular sketch pencils and a blending stump on Strathmore 400 series drawing paper. I scanned the sketch on a Macintosh and processed it using Pixelmator graphics software, following the techniques on Jeremy Perez's website.
Edited by FalseColor (11/04/07 05:13 PM)
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WadeVC
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 12/02/05
Posts: 2831
Loc: Lodi, California,
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Nice lookin' sketch FalseColor...
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Orion XTi10 f/4.7
Orion XTi8 f/5.9
Meade NGC 70mm f/10
Orion UltraView 10x50 Wide-Angle Binoculars
My Sketch Gallery
My Astronomy Blog
A wise man can see more from the bottom of a well than a fool can from a mountain top.
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pike_fly
sage
Reged: 10/10/07
Posts: 365
Loc: Roxborough Park, Colorado
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It's not often you get to see all three galaxies together. Nice job.
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Lee
8" Celestron f6 Dobsonian
10" Zhumell Dobsonian
Class 4 Bortle Scale Backyard Site
View Lee's Gallery
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