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Tim L
professor emeritus
Reged: 12/17/08
Posts: 563
Loc: Austin, TX
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After weeks of clouds, we got a break yesterday, so out I went. 
I started in Cassiopeia, taking in some double stars, and locating again some of its open clusters.
Then I noticed the Little Dumbbell (M76) was nearby, so I thought I'd take a crack at it. I hopped from 51 Andromedae to Phi, then over one more small step...and there it was! Cool! An OIII filter seemed to help it stand out more. Could tell it wasn't quite "round," but its dimness made it difficult to discern its shape in the eyepiece. I tried varying between 100 - 200x, and it seemed to take the extra magnification well.
Then I wandered over to the Blue Snowball (7662). This one seemed bright and easy by comparison. Nice color, and the nebula works well under magnification. I had remembered it being smaller, but I was maybe confusing it with NGC 40 in Cepheus.
Then on to my challenge objects. I've been wanting to catch Stephan's Quintet in Pegasus and M74 in Pisces for a while, so off for the hunt!
For the quintet, previous attempts helped me find the nearby galaxy NGC 7331. From here is where it always gets tricky. There's an asterism nearby that reminds me of an anchor, with three stars in a small arc beneath the anchor. The quintet is just below those three stars. I found the anchor, was barely able to see the small arc beneath it, but ... no quintet. 
So, while I can't say I've seen it yet, I now know exactly where to look, and I'll be sure to nail it when I get to darker skies again! 
On to M74...I knew it was between Eta Pisces and two small stars to the NE, and scanned back and forth, but never caught it. Checking charts on my laptop later, I recognized some of the asterisms I saw in the sky. I was looking a slight bit north of where I should have been, so this one counts as a clean miss--not quite on target. But, getting warmer! I hope on my next time to be able to at least nail down the location, even if I can't yet see the object from the city.
I want to encourage all the other newbies to telescopes to have patience, and remember that even on nights when you don't find what you're looking for, you're still gaining familiarity with the sky--and that will eventually help you find your target! 
Happy hunting! 
--------------------
Tim
Zhumell Z10 dob
Meade 60mm refractor
Zhumell 1.25" eyepiece and filter kit
Zhumell sky-glow, UHC, and OIII filters
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Jack Tripper
sage
Reged: 05/10/09
Posts: 345
Loc: Canada
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Quote:
I want to encourage all the other newbies to telescopes to have patience, and remember that even on nights when you don't find what you're looking for, you're still gaining familiarity with the sky--and that will eventually help you find your target!
Great advice! It's also true that the more time you put into a target (say months or years), the easier it is to see details.
As for M76, I was JUST able to catch it under magnitude 3.5 skies, with no filter. Also, just trying for the Quintet is quite an accomplicement. Hopefully it will reveal itself to you in the near future.
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Celestron CPC 1100
Denkmeier S2 Power Filter Switch Diagonal (.66x Reducer, 2x Barlow)
Ethos 17mm, Baader Scopos 30mm
Lunt 60mm Hydrogen-Alpha Solar Scope, Lunt Zoom
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starrancher
professor emeritus
Reged: 06/09/09
Posts: 596
Loc: Northern Arizona
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Cool report Tim ! We need more of these .
That M74 is a bugger even in dark skies . The core is almost all I have been able to make out in my 8 incher . Just a faint haze around the core & I really had to look for that . The photos of it are awesome , so with continued tries , I hope to catch it on a grand night & see more . IMHO it is the most challenging of all in the Messier catalog .
Clear Skies !
Dave
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LXD75 AR5
LXD75 SN8
Series 4000 Plossls
Misc. other stuff
Fort Rock , Az .
Edited by starrancher (10/15/09 06:34 PM)
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Jack Tripper
sage
Reged: 05/10/09
Posts: 345
Loc: Canada
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Quote:
IMHO it is the most challenging of all in the Messier catalog .
WOW! That is great news for me if that's even remotely true!!!
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Celestron CPC 1100
Denkmeier S2 Power Filter Switch Diagonal (.66x Reducer, 2x Barlow)
Ethos 17mm, Baader Scopos 30mm
Lunt 60mm Hydrogen-Alpha Solar Scope, Lunt Zoom
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starrancher
professor emeritus
Reged: 06/09/09
Posts: 596
Loc: Northern Arizona
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Quote:
WOW! That is great news for me if that's even remotely true!!!
Hey ! they don't call it "The Phantom" for nothing ! 
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LXD75 AR5
LXD75 SN8
Series 4000 Plossls
Misc. other stuff
Fort Rock , Az .
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Jack Tripper
sage
Reged: 05/10/09
Posts: 345
Loc: Canada
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I couldn't see M101 last night, try as I did. Never seen it.
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Celestron CPC 1100
Denkmeier S2 Power Filter Switch Diagonal (.66x Reducer, 2x Barlow)
Ethos 17mm, Baader Scopos 30mm
Lunt 60mm Hydrogen-Alpha Solar Scope, Lunt Zoom
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starrancher
professor emeritus
Reged: 06/09/09
Posts: 596
Loc: Northern Arizona
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Quote:
I couldn't see M101 last night, try as I did. Never seen it.
I've tried that one in my backyard , .....Invisible ! Won't even waist my time on the DSOs anymore unless it is at a dark sky site . Well , some are o.k. under the light pollution . M42 & the open clusters . But for the most part it's planetary only in my backyard .
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LXD75 AR5
LXD75 SN8
Series 4000 Plossls
Misc. other stuff
Fort Rock , Az .
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Hrundi
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 02/06/08
Posts: 1236
Loc: Estonia
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I advise definitely giving M101 a try under dark skies. I enjoy it more than M51.
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Tim L
professor emeritus
Reged: 12/17/08
Posts: 563
Loc: Austin, TX
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M101 is way too low for me here right now. When it was higher, I never could get it from my backyard, though I was sure I must be staring right at it. When I got to a green zone, it was a lot easier.
I like to keep going back to the Triangulum galaxy. It was last season's big failure for me, not knowing how hard it was. One of the first Messiers I tried for! On my dark site trip, I finally got it, and now that I know what to look for, I can get it from home.
Every time I see it, I mutter a "hee hee hee!" under my breath--"gotcha!"
Some of the targets I like the most are the ones I had to work hardest to get. 
--------------------
Tim
Zhumell Z10 dob
Meade 60mm refractor
Zhumell 1.25" eyepiece and filter kit
Zhumell sky-glow, UHC, and OIII filters
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ggarrison
super member
Reged: 07/22/09
Posts: 158
Loc: Austin, TX USA
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Quote:
After weeks of clouds, we got a break yesterday, so out I went.
I started in Cassiopeia, taking in some double stars, and locating again some of its open clusters.
Then I noticed the Little Dumbbell (M76) was nearby, so I thought I'd take a crack at it. I hopped from 51 Andromedae to Phi, then over one more small step...and there it was! Cool! An OIII filter seemed to help it stand out more. Could tell it wasn't quite "round," but its dimness made it difficult to discern its shape in the eyepiece. I tried varying between 100 - 200x, and it seemed to take the extra magnification well.
Then I wandered over to the Blue Snowball (7662). This one seemed bright and easy by comparison. Nice color, and the nebula works well under magnification. I had remembered it being smaller, but I was maybe confusing it with NGC 40 in Cepheus.
Then on to my challenge objects. I've been wanting to catch Stephan's Quintet in Pegasus and M74 in Pisces for a while, so off for the hunt!
For the quintet, previous attempts helped me find the nearby galaxy NGC 7331. From here is where it always gets tricky. There's an asterism nearby that reminds me of an anchor, with three stars in a small arc beneath the anchor. The quintet is just below those three stars. I found the anchor, was barely able to see the small arc beneath it, but ... no quintet.
So, while I can't say I've seen it yet, I now know exactly where to look, and I'll be sure to nail it when I get to darker skies again!
On to M74...I knew it was between Eta Pisces and two small stars to the NE, and scanned back and forth, but never caught it. Checking charts on my laptop later, I recognized some of the asterisms I saw in the sky. I was looking a slight bit north of where I should have been, so this one counts as a clean miss--not quite on target. But, getting warmer! I hope on my next time to be able to at least nail down the location, even if I can't yet see the object from the city.
I want to encourage all the other newbies to telescopes to have patience, and remember that even on nights when you don't find what you're looking for, you're still gaining familiarity with the sky--and that will eventually help you find your target!
Happy hunting!
Tim,
Did you head for darker skies, or just view from town?
Gordon
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Gordon
Celestron Nexstar 8SE with XLT coating - Baader Planetarium Hyperion 8mm-24mm Clickstop Zoom eyepiece
Celestron Skymaster 20x80 Binoculars
Smart Seat II Observing Chair
all in the hands of a total neophite 
----------------------------
Register at ScopeBuddies.com to find local astronomy buddies! 
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markan
super member
Reged: 07/13/09
Posts: 126
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I found the Blue Snowball myself last night with my 200mm reflector. It definitely has a snowball appearance but I had to stretch my imagination trying to see the blue.
I tried for NGC 891, and I believe I found it, but it was very, very faint.
First time out with my reflector so I took a look at M31, M110, and M32 as well.
I started to look for Stephan's Quintet around 10:30, ready to start star hopping from Eta Peg, but by then my toes were very cold so I packed it up. It got down below freezing last night. I was actually dressed quite warm, except for my running shoes. Next time I'll know better to wear proper boots.
I'll try again tonight, weather permitting. M74 and M33 as well.
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Sky-Watcher 100mm ED f/9 refractor
Sky-Watcher 200mm f/5 reflector
EQ5 mount, Orion SkyView AZ
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Tim L
professor emeritus
Reged: 12/17/08
Posts: 563
Loc: Austin, TX
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Quote:
Tim,
Did you head for darker skies, or just view from town?
Gordon
Hey Gordon,
That was from my red-zone South Austin backyard, trying to keep the neighbor's security light behind a tree.
Other commitments will keep me away from a darker site (like Pedernales or Mansfield) tonight, but the CSC forecast looks good for this evening--I hope to at least be out in the backyard again!
...M74 can't elude me forever!
--------------------
Tim
Zhumell Z10 dob
Meade 60mm refractor
Zhumell 1.25" eyepiece and filter kit
Zhumell sky-glow, UHC, and OIII filters
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Tim L
professor emeritus
Reged: 12/17/08
Posts: 563
Loc: Austin, TX
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Hey Markan,
Where are you viewing from? How dark are your skies? Sounds like you did well for your first time out with that scope!
If you're viewing in below freezing temps, you're more dedicated than I am! 
--------------------
Tim
Zhumell Z10 dob
Meade 60mm refractor
Zhumell 1.25" eyepiece and filter kit
Zhumell sky-glow, UHC, and OIII filters
|
markan
super member
Reged: 07/13/09
Posts: 126
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I'm viewing in Ontario from a yellow/orange site. Cold again tonight but the skies were very clear. Frost on my finder scope when I left it sitting on my folding chair. I had to start my car and thaw it out before I could use it.
I went looking for Stephan's Quintet again tonight and I believe I was in the right area, but I couldn't see them. NGC 7331 was visible.
I also had a look at Pinwheel Galaxy, the Double Cluster and Pleiades, although I was using a Hyperion clickstop zoom, so the FOV was really too narrow for either the Double Cluster or the Pleiades. Both were visible to the naked eye.
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Sky-Watcher 100mm ED f/9 refractor
Sky-Watcher 200mm f/5 reflector
EQ5 mount, Orion SkyView AZ
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