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lira
super member
Reged: 12/26/07
Posts: 125
Loc: Northeast, USA
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After spending the evening methodically observing the sights in the teapot's steam of Sagittarius, I decided to scan the skies to see what I might bump into, unplanned. While I enjoy doing this, inevitably I do bump into something potentially exciting, but then have limited points of reference and can't identify.
Last night (when this again happened) I believe I was somewhere between Rasalhague and Altair. Maybe more south, toward Scutum. I saw a distinct cloudy image that did not resemble a globular, although it was about the size of a globular. At first, I though it was a small cloud, but it did not move. After refering to my deep sky charts, I thought it was possibly the planetary nebula NGC 6572. Yet, I think the image I saw was too large. I have a 6" Newt in moderately light polluted skies. I know this isn't much to go on. Nevertheless, any ideas?
Thanks,
Sue
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Celestron 6" f/8 Dob Star Hopper
10x50 Nikon binoculars
Astro Chair
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tigerroach
sage
Reged: 08/13/08
Posts: 292
Loc: Houston, TX
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We can only guess, but I am going to go with M27, the Dumbbell Nebula. It is also a planetary, but a large and bright one.
"Scotum," lolz.  Sorry I couldn't help it.
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Brian
TeleVue TV-102, Gibralter alt-az mount
Webster 14.5" f/4.3 truss dob *under construction*
Canon 10x30 IS binocs
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bconley
super member
Reged: 05/28/08
Posts: 183
Loc: New Boston, New Hampshire
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Hey Sue -
My guess is that it was M27 - the Dumbell Nebula...It's right in that vicinity and looks like a little cloud in a viewfinder. It's just above the last little star in Scutum and I guess is technically considered in the constellation Vulpecula....It's a great planetary nebula to check out because it's pretty bright and during a new moon, really spectacular to look at! Good find!
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Now the proud owner of an Orion XT10 Intelliscope!
I set a course just east of Lyra
And Northwest of Pegasus
Flew into the light of Deneb
Sailed across the Milky Way
On my ship the Rocinante
Wheeling through the Galaxy
Headed for the heart of Cygnus
Headlong into mystery!
Rush, Cygnus X-1, 1977
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lira
super member
Reged: 12/26/07
Posts: 125
Loc: Northeast, USA
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Brian,
No apologies necessary! Thank you! I fixed it! I'm blushing! What a colossal error! In cyber-public!
The Dumbbell. Wow. I'll look into that. Thanks.
Sue
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Celestron 6" f/8 Dob Star Hopper
10x50 Nikon binoculars
Astro Chair
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tigerroach
sage
Reged: 08/13/08
Posts: 292
Loc: Houston, TX
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Quote:
No apologies necessary! Thank you! I fixed it! I'm blushing! What a colossal error! In cyber-public!
Sue
I wasn't picking on you Sue. That particular mispelling just set off my Beavis & Butthead sense of humor is all...
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Brian
TeleVue TV-102, Gibralter alt-az mount
Webster 14.5" f/4.3 truss dob *under construction*
Canon 10x30 IS binocs
Edited by tigerroach (08/22/08 11:05 AM)
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lira
super member
Reged: 12/26/07
Posts: 125
Loc: Northeast, USA
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Brian, I understand. I do. There's nothing like a great typo. And you were kind. But I can't POSSIBLY be the first to make that unfortunate spelling error.
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Celestron 6" f/8 Dob Star Hopper
10x50 Nikon binoculars
Astro Chair
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Protheus
Vaguely offended
Reged: 09/01/07
Posts: 4619
Loc: Illinois, US
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My wife had some trouble with her pronunciation of Scutum.
Chris
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"To tread the sharp edge of a sword;
to run on smooth-frozen ice,
one needs no footsteps to follow..."
"Well, people sometimes ask me 'how did you get involved in astronomy?' I said 'I got born, what's your problem?'" -- John Dobson
"In discussing the large-scale structure of the cosmos, astronomers sometimes say that space is curved, or that the universe is finite but unbounded. Whatever are they talking about?" -- Carl Sagan
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Achernar
Post Laureate
Reged: 02/25/06
Posts: 3676
Loc: Alabama, USA
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NGC-6572 is very small, but very bright and unlike many other small planetary nebula sticks out like a sore thumb. If the seeing's decent, it shows a small but obvious disk and has an intense blue color, which has lead to it being dubbed, "The Blue Racketball." You can get a nice view of it with a 6-inch telescope, even from a light polluted site.
Taras
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10-inch F/4.5 Discovery Dob
6-inch F/8 Homebuilt Dob
4 1/4-inch F/4 Homebuilt reflector
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AstroRealtor
professor emeritus
Reged: 03/26/08
Posts: 538
Loc: Terra Firma
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Could you have been probing the depths of the "Scutum star cloud"? M11 "The wild duck Cluster" is on the edge of the cloud and there are lots of deep space objects in the vacinity you describe. It would be nearly impossible to tell you what you saw with the information you gave. I have found a lot of deep sky objects though by "accident" just scanning the skies. I've had the same trouble you allude to in nailing down the object as certain though if I don't get some frames of reference on a chart immediately before everything has a chance to move through my telescope.
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Clear Skies, Jim
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Discovering: Messier objects, Deep sky treasures, NGCs, Double stars, & Nebulae of all kinds.
Televue 85 "Polaris" Mount
Custom Crafted Newtonian Dob 8" f7 w/Feathertouch
Celestron Cometron Reflector 114mm f8
Zeiss Diafun 8 X 30 Binos
Zeiss 10 X 56 Binos
 Aldrich Astronomical Society
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bconley
super member
Reged: 05/28/08
Posts: 183
Loc: New Boston, New Hampshire
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Quote:
My wife had some trouble with her pronunciation of Scutum.
It really does lend itself to errors....intentional or not. 
--------------------
Now the proud owner of an Orion XT10 Intelliscope!
I set a course just east of Lyra
And Northwest of Pegasus
Flew into the light of Deneb
Sailed across the Milky Way
On my ship the Rocinante
Wheeling through the Galaxy
Headed for the heart of Cygnus
Headlong into mystery!
Rush, Cygnus X-1, 1977
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Bowmoreman
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 09/11/06
Posts: 2978
Loc: Bolton, MA
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Quote:
My wife had some trouble with her pronunciation of Scutum.
Chris
Is she from Massachusetts? As you may know the "Ahhhs" are silent up "heah"
But, indeed, the Dumbbell was fabulous last night, no matter whether it be in "Vulpeculiar" or "Sputum" or wherever! 
clear enough skies
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Dave
Ustream
YLive
XT10i, RTP, CGE, R200CF, TMB80SS
31T5, 22T4, 13Ethos, 8Ethos, TV 3-6 Zoom; Paracorr
MallincamColorHyperPlus,SBIG STV&237A;CanonRebel Xti
WilderSkiesObservatory(BYO #90)
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Protheus
Vaguely offended
Reged: 09/01/07
Posts: 4619
Loc: Illinois, US
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Quote:
Is she from Massachusetts? As you may know the "Ahhhs" are silent up "heah"
But Scutum has no Rs in it...
No, she's not from Massachusetts, but she does have the cutest accent. 
Chris
--------------------
"To tread the sharp edge of a sword;
to run on smooth-frozen ice,
one needs no footsteps to follow..."
"Well, people sometimes ask me 'how did you get involved in astronomy?' I said 'I got born, what's your problem?'" -- John Dobson
"In discussing the large-scale structure of the cosmos, astronomers sometimes say that space is curved, or that the universe is finite but unbounded. Whatever are they talking about?" -- Carl Sagan
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Charles Laird
super member
Reged: 08/24/07
Posts: 109
Loc: Kerrville, Texas
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Ah, there you are. I had been wondering how that lady with the 6in. scope was doing, you seemed very happy with it as I recall. Seems everything is going very well.
Charles
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"Nothing is too wonderful to be true."
Michael Faraday
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lira
super member
Reged: 12/26/07
Posts: 125
Loc: Northeast, USA
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Hello,
Thanks all for helping me identify the mystery sighting. Tonight I located the Dumbbell Nebula with my telescope - intentionally this time - and determined that it is indeed the deep sky object I bumped into the other night. I just logged it as my first planetary nebula - very exciting. Brian and bconley, you should be impressed with yourselves.
Charles, my Star Hopper and subsequent eyepiece purchases have been worth every cent. Stargazing is part of my life now.
Sue
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