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Dave Mitsky
Postmaster

Reged: 04/08/02

Loc: PA, USA, Planet Earth

Re: Herschel 400 new

new

[Re: Bill Weir]
#5592815 - 12/28/12 02:52 PM

Quote:

Here's my suggestion. Forget about what others might say about difficlties of objects and just get out there and give it a go. The galaxy in question NGC 6118 was difficult with my 6" dob but certainly not the most difficult object I've ever seen with it. I do my observing from a location that more and more I consider better than most on the eastern side of the US and I consider it JUST adequate. My backyard and the observatory down the road on average have SQM readings of around 21 + or - and decimal place or two.

Bill,

Your observing sites ARE better than most East Coast sites. As we all know, dark skies make all the difference.

Dave Mitsky

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kenrenard
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 12/13/12

Loc: Dunmore, PA

Re: Herschel 400 new

new

[Re: Dave Mitsky]
#5593300 - 12/28/12 08:34 PM

Dave,
Thank you for your advice. I would not even classify myself as an novice observer so I do appreciate you and others taking the time to answer my questions. I'm not even sure how light polluted my backyard is, I know there are better times than others like 5 am once all the lights are off.

I did read a bit about Stephen O'Meara and the skies he has in his own yard. I am not familiar with Mr. Freeman but I can only imagine his skill using something the size of my finder scope.

By no means was I trying to offend anyone. After reading through the forums I could see there were some very experienced people answering the questions. When I have been able to I answer questions based on mistakes I made and misconceptions I had from my own ignorance.

One of the things I have learned over the past year is to have a plan what you want to try to observe. When i first got into it I didn't know what to look at and just roamed around looking for something interesting. If I can get through the Messier object list I thought the Hershel was a logical progression. I may be wrong to think this so please correct me if I am wrong.

Again thank all of you for your input and expertise.

Ken

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City Kid
Carpal Tunnel

Reged: 05/06/09

Loc: Northern Indiana

Re: Herschel 400 new

new

[Re: kenrenard]
#5593341 - 12/28/12 08:59 PM

Quote:

If I can get through the Messier object list I thought the Hershel was a logical progression. I may be wrong to think this so please correct me if I am wrong.

The Herschel 400 is a very logical step from the Messier list, especially if DSOs are your targets of choice.

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Dave Mitsky
Postmaster

Reged: 04/08/02

Loc: PA, USA, Planet Earth

Re: Herschel 400 new

new

[Re: kenrenard]
#5593364 - 12/28/12 09:18 PM

Quote:

If I can get through the Messier object list I thought the Hershel was a logical progression. I may be wrong to think this so please correct me if I am wrong.

Again thank all of you for your input and expertise.

Ken

Well, the H400 is certainly a step beyond the Messier catalog (not list) but not necessarily the best one.

You may want to work on some of these easier "best of" lists first:

http://seds.org/messier/xtra/similar/sac110bn.html

http://seds.org/messier/xtra/similar/rasc-ngc.html

http://x.astrogeek.org/observations/list.php?list_id=16 (sci.astro.amateur 100)

http://x.astrogeek.org/observations/list.php?list_id=17 (sci.astro.amateur 200)

http://www.taas.org/taas200.html?type=10

You're welcome.

Dave Mitsky

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kenrenard
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 12/13/12

Loc: Dunmore, PA

Re: Herschel 400 new

new

[Re: Dave Mitsky]
#5593377 - 12/28/12 09:32 PM

Wow they ought to keep me busy for a while. I am going to try to complete the Messier catalog first and try to sketch the objects I have sketched about a dozen so far, it seems to give me more detail if I try to draw the object although I am no artist.

Thanks again.

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kenrenard
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 12/13/12

Loc: Dunmore, PA

Re: Herschel 400 new

new

[Re: City Kid]
#5593394 - 12/28/12 09:38 PM

Thank you city-kid for your help also.

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Dennis_S253
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 11/22/11

Loc: West Central Florida

Re: Herschel 400 new

new

[Re: kenrenard]
#5593396 - 12/28/12 09:39 PM

bummer, I just posted and it said this was deleted. Wasted a lot of time

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Dennis_S253
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 11/22/11

Loc: West Central Florida

Re: Herschel 400 new

new

[Re: Dennis_S253]
#5593438 - 12/28/12 10:14 PM

Basically I said, believe what you see, not what you hear. There was more but...

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dennyhenke
super member

Reged: 09/07/12

Loc: Fredericktown, MO

Re: Herschel 400 new

new

[Re: Dennis_S253]
#5593529 - 12/28/12 11:12 PM

I'm working on the H400 at the moment, almost half way there. And from my fairly dark sight and an 8" dob I've been able to find everything pretty easily thus far with one exception.

This is great example of the importance of good seeing and transparency. On a night when conditions seemed to be fairly good but not great I went in search of NGC 2158, an open cluster in Gemini which should not have been that difficult. I star hopped in and there it wasn't. I confirmed I was in the right spot but couldn't find it. I must have spent 10 minutes waiting for my eyes to catch it. Nope. Looked at a few other things but pretty quickly realized that though there were no obvious clouds the humidity had risen and I was seeing less and less by the minute.

I went out the next night and looked for it first thing. There it was. I found it instantly. I learned from this to never underestimate what poor seeing and transparency can do to limit what I can see. Also, never underestimate how quickly fairly good conditions can deteriorate!

Edited by dennyhenke (12/30/12 03:02 AM)

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BillFerris
Post Laureate

Reged: 07/17/04

Loc: Flagstaff, Arizona, USA

Re: Hershel 400 new

new

[Re: kenrenard]
#5593711 - 12/29/12 01:28 AM

Quote:

I am working on sketching each of the Messier objects and have been able to get some really nice detail on quite a few.

Sketching is a great way to develop your observing skills and build a lasting & personal record of your observations. Enjoy the night sky.

Bill in Flag

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kenrenard
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 12/13/12

Loc: Dunmore, PA

Re: Herschel 400 new

new

[Re: dennyhenke]
#5593916 - 12/29/12 08:38 AM

Quote:

I'm working on the H400 at the moment, almost half way there. And from my fairly dark sight and an 8" dob I've been able to find everything pretty easily thus far with one exception.

This is great example of the importance of good seeing and transparency. On a night when conditions seemed to be fairly good but not great I went in search of NGC 2158, an open cluster in Gemini which should not have been that difficult. I star hopped in and there it wasn't. I confirmed I was in the right spot but couldn't find it. I must have spent 10 minutes waiting for my eyes to catch it. Nope. Looked at a few other things but pretty quickly realized that though there were no obvious clouds the humidity had risen and I was seeing less and less by the minute.

I went out the next night and looked for it first thing. There it was. I found it instantly. I learned from this to underestimate what poor seeing and transparency can do to limit what I can see. Also, never underestimate how quickly fairly good conditions can deteriorate!

Thanks Denny I will take this into consideration. I see you are doing a few at once. I never thought about it that way. Thanks for your feedback

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kenrenard
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 12/13/12

Loc: Dunmore, PA

Re: Hershel 400 new

new

[Re: BillFerris]
#5593924 - 12/29/12 08:41 AM

Quote:

Quote:

I am working on sketching each of the Messier objects and have been able to get some really nice detail on quite a few.

Sketching is a great way to develop your observing skills and build a lasting & personal record of your observations. Enjoy the night sky.

Bill in Flag

Bill,
I bought a hard cover sketch book and started sketching a writing details about the temp, wind, eyepiece, and seeing about a month ago. When I go back to look its very interesting. I also wrote about the Geminid Meteor shower what we saw and my daughters reaction. If anything we can have a laugh a few years from now.

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killdabuddha
Pooh-Bah

Reged: 08/26/11

Re: Herschel 400 new

new

[Re: Dave Mitsky]
#5594255 - 12/29/12 11:58 AM

Quote:

You're welcome.

Dave Mitsky

Wow. Thanks (anyway). What a great collection, and especially the first site linked to, which has so many other lists under one roof

http://messier.seds.org/xtra/similar/similar.html

Cheers

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Dave Mitsky
Postmaster

Reged: 04/08/02

Loc: PA, USA, Planet Earth

Re: Herschel 400 new

new

[Re: killdabuddha]
#5598053 - 12/31/12 02:04 PM

Hmm, my "You're Welcome" was meant for Ken.

Quote:

Again thank all of you for your input and expertise.

Ken

Dave Mitsky

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killdabuddha
Pooh-Bah

Reged: 08/26/11

Re: Herschel 400 new

new

[Re: Dave Mitsky]
#5598067 - 12/31/12 02:20 PM

Yes Dave,

And my "anyway" was to acknowledge that, and to appropriate yer "You're welcome" for my own thanks for the great links you provided. Sorry for the confusion.

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kenrenard
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 12/13/12

Loc: Dunmore, PA

Re: Herschel 400 new

new

[Re: killdabuddha]
#5598321 - 12/31/12 04:36 PM

Dave,
The lists you sent are really quite amazing. I am still trying to digest them. Great information. I didn't quite realize the depth of them when I first responded. I tried for m77 last night with no luck. I have a long way to go!

Thanks again. Happy New Year and clear skies.

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Dave Mitsky
Postmaster

Reged: 04/08/02

Loc: PA, USA, Planet Earth

Re: Herschel 400 new

new

[Re: kenrenard]
#5599055 - 01/01/13 02:06 AM

Here are a few more good lists with even more DSOs:

http://vicmenard.com/the_list.pdf

http://www.raycash.org/dmcon.htm

http://messier.seds.org/xtra/similar/BElistA.txt

http://www.1000plus.com/2000plus/

Dave Mitsky

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kenrenard
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 12/13/12

Loc: Dunmore, PA

Re: Herschel 400 new

new

[Re: Dave Mitsky]
#5599229 - 01/01/13 09:08 AM

Thanks again. I am going to look for the brighter objects, since they will be easier to start with. I will wait to try the dimmer ones when I get in darker skies and get some more experience.

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killdabuddha
Pooh-Bah

Reged: 08/26/11

Re: Herschel 400 new

new

[Re: kenrenard]
#5599794 - 01/01/13 03:10 PM

I think that I especially like Vic's, for his inclusion of the skies in which he nabbed his targets. Most encouragin to we who suffer under suburban skies.

And the more I look, the more I like the last one,

http://www.1000plus.com/

Now THAT'S what I call a personal website. Are they active here?

Thru his links, there's this...Sky View, The Internet's Virtual Telescope, offerin 5 different spectra by which to see yer favorite targets

http://skyview.gsfc.nasa.gov/

or The Cosmos in Your Pocket: How Cosmological Science Became Earth Technology

http://arxiv.org/abs/0710.0671

or this, The Impact of Recent Advances in Laboratory Astrophysics on our Understanding of the Cosmos

http://arxiv.org/abs/1112.2770

or Introduction to relativistic astrophysics and
cosmology through Maple

http://xxx.lanl.gov/pdf/gr-qc/0103023v1.pdf

and so on and so forth. Nice job.

Edited by killdabuddha (01/01/13 03:59 PM)

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kenrenard
scholastic sledgehammer

Reged: 12/13/12

Loc: Dunmore, PA

Re: Herschel 400 [Re: killdabuddha]
#5599927 - 01/01/13 04:31 PM

I think the more I dig into the list the more I find. Now I just need a cloud filter I have had one semi clear night in about 10. Not looking to good tonight either. I need to come up with a list of brightest to start with.

Thanks for more links.

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