15 replies to this topic

[PhilH]

Although the four brightest stars in Corvus, the Crow, shine no more intensely than magnitude 2.6, the constellation's distinctive trapezoidal pattern in an otherwise star-poor region of the spring sky lets it stand out surprisingly well even in moderate light pollution.

 

We will put that to good use here as we probe for one of the best known pairs of interacting galaxies in the sky: NGC 4038 and NGC 4039, the "Antennae."

Click here to view the article

Edited by PhilH, 01 May 2017 - 03:22 PM.

[M13 Observer]

Seven decades ago, while scanning a Palomar Sky Survey plate of the area around brilliant Regulus in Leo the Lion, astronomers Robert Harrington (no relation) and A.G. Wilson noticed a faint blur of light just 1/2° north of the star. They may have thought at first that the glow was just an internal lens flare caused by stray starlight, but it soon became apparent that they had discovered something very real.

Click here to view the article

So, while the title refers to the Antennae in Corvus which the article linked to discusses, the blurb above refers to Leo I just above Regulus in the mane of Leo. Umm, what do the two have to do with each other?

[PhilH]

So, while the title refers to the Antennae in Corvus which the article linked to discusses, the blurb above refers to Leo I just above Regulus in the mane of Leo. Umm, what do the two have to do with each other?

Only thing they share in common is that I wrote about Leo I last month and the Antennae this month.  Blurb corrected.

Edited by PhilH, 01 May 2017 - 03:24 PM.

[scarubia]

One of my favourite objects! Amazing in my 18"!

[nicknacknock]

Phil,

 

While the Antennae are for large apertures as you note, they are still visible from small apertures and were easy to identify with my 3" refractor from a dark site last Friday.

 

The level of image presented in the sketch is of course way beyond a mere 3", but one can tell even with 3" that it is not just one galaxy but two - due to the irregular shape appearing at the eyepiece.

 

As you very well put it, "remember that half of the fun is the thrill of the chase". Thanks for a great article!

[Nile]

I was testing out my C90 (old style) yesterday and decided to give it a shot. I had it in my FOV, I could see the two 8 and 9 mag stars right next to it, but I couldn't see the Antennae. I spent a good 40 minutes trying with a 25 mm and a 14mm ES 82°, but no bueno!

 

I was a little optimistic considering how easily I was able to see almost 10 mag stars in that small little scope. But the faint fuzzies are always tougher. Half moon didn't help, of course, and I was looking towards the city lights too. Gotta try again on a darker night.

 

Thanks!

[Shneor]

I observed this pair last Saturday night at Lake Sonoma with my 22". But my favorite pair is the Siamese Twins in Virgo, NGC4567/68.

[PhilH]

I observed this pair last Saturday night at Lake Sonoma with my 22". But my favorite pair is the Siamese Twins in Virgo, NGC4567/68.

Suggestion noted.  Thanks!

[Luis Gabriel]

http://pollutedskies...html?m=1...some time ago

[faackanders2]

I have looked in the past but never found them in my 17.5" f4.1 dob.  Now with Ethos I should give it a try again.

[CollinofAlabama]

Phil, you're definitely inspiring me to search it out.  Our Club has a couple of southerly dark sky astronomy sites where I might be able to catch this in my 8" dob.  I've never even tried for it, though I have seen it through friends' 12" and 20" scopes.  Always thought it was out of reach, but if you can find it from Long Island, New York in an 8" reflector, I certainly should be able to catch it from West Texas, and almost a kilometer above sea level.  Thanks for the challenge!  This will make a nice coupling with Omega Centauri this time of year.

Edited by CollinofAlabama, 17 May 2017 - 03:41 PM.

[Nile]

Saw this successfully at a dark site. First through my 8" SCT. Then through a 18" Dob and finally through a 40" dob. The difference was pretty clear. The seeing wasn't perfect and couldn't see the flung out spiral arms. Thanks again for an interesting object.

[RalphKan]

I tried seeing this pair a few years back from my light-polluted condo.  I couldn't see anything in a 130mm refractor, 180mm mak or C9.25.  Was I looking in the wrong place?  Finally, I attached my DSLR to the 130mm and the Antennae magically appeared on a short time exposure exactly where I had been looking!!

[JimMo]

I've observed this pair four times now and it's one of my favorites. Once each from Lake Hudson SP in Michigan, Deerlick Astronomy Village in Georgia, the Winter Star Party, and this past February at Chiefland Astronomy Village all using my 14.5" dob. My observation this past February was the best I've seen it. It's much easier down south than in Michigan, but it can be done. I was sitting on the ground and my alt bearing was very near the limit but I could see it just not real comfortably.  

[Chesterguy1]

Saw this pair on 5/18/09 with my 15" according to my journal.  Am anxious to try with my 8" with a very good mirror, but also eight intervening years of progressive light pollution.  It's not terrible in that part of the sky, but may be enough to preclude viewing from my edge of small city location.  I'm finding fainter objects in the Herschel 400 in my backyard, viewing west, but that is definitely a darker part of the sky.  Tomorrow night is supposed to be more transparent with less cloud cover.  Wish me luck.

[Chesterguy1]

Well, I did manage to see it with my 8" last night, but I can't claim anything close to as impressive a view or sketch as the one generated by Mr. Harrington.  Sky conditions weren't bad with a tested SQM of 19.5.  However, my side yard is not protected from nuisance lighting and the woman across the street was having a party and had her garage lights on, which  kept entering my peripheral vision.  Additional magnification did not seem to clarify and the best I could discern was an irregular blob or patch at both 67x and 89x.  Perhaps 145x would have been better.  I could revisit it with the 15" as she doesn't keep the lights on all that often.  Corvus gets obscured by my neighbor's roof and trees by midnight so it has to be an early evening target and it won't be long before it's gone for the season.

 

I'm sure it would worth a jaunt west to a darker site (with unobstructed view of the southern sky) with either scope.  30 minutes will get me to a blue zone.

 

I also looked at two other H 400s in the same vicinity.  NGC 3962, a small elliptical galaxy in Crater that O'Meara lists as more difficult than 4038/39, but it's smaller and more condensed and I found it a bit easier, if quite small in my marginally light polluted neighborhood.  And the there's 4594, better known as M104, which looks good in almost any size scope.

 

Chesterguy