Location: at home in Tomball, TX
Cloud cover: 0%
Transparency: above average (4/5)
Seeing: est. avg (3/5)
Darkness: no moon, city glow
Wind: light, less than 5 mph
Temperature: 65º+
Humidity: 45%-60%
Dew Point: 45º-55º
Time: 9:00 pm – 10:15 pm CDT
OTA: 8″ SC

Started by observing M13. Some faint individual stars appeared in averted vision. Seemed larger apparent diameter than other GCs I recall.

Next stopped at Saturn. Rhea and Titan were easily visible. Two stars (mag 10 and mag 12-13) also in the field that I mistook for Iapetus and Dione (respectively).

I wanted to spend some time observing an airy disk to estimate seeing conditions. I started with Arcturus. Very bright center, yellow-orange color. Ring pattern was usually discernible. Focusing was somewhat challenging due to variations in distortion. Radial streaks or spikes also visible. Needed 7.9mm ep to observe diffraction rings.

Also noticed there was a diffraction line across the entire FOV when using the 45º erecting prism diagonal. Line appeared with different EPs, did not appear with 90º reverse-image prism diagonal.

Finally tried observing airy disk for Spica. Blue color was striking contrast to Arcturus’ yellow-orange. Observed similar variations and distortions of airy disk as observed with Arcturus. Also noticed that the tips of the radial spikes in one direction had an orange tint. I moved the star across the FOV to see if the effect was an off-axis abberation, but the orange tips retained their orientation independent of Spica’s position in the field. Spica was about 45º altitude, so it didn’t seem like it would be an atmospheric effect. My other guess was that Spica might be a double star and that the secondary might be spectral type G or K. A quick google search shows Spica is indeed a binary double, but I haven’t yet found any info on the separation or the spectral class of the companion.

I’d say the seeing was about 4/10 on the Pickering scale, often varying between 3 and 5.

Location: at home in Tomball, TX
Cloud cover: 0%Transparency: average (3/5)
Seeing: poor (2/5)
Darkness: no moon, city glow
Wind: breezy 10-15 mph
Temperature: 70-75
Humidity: 52% up to 64%
Dew Point: 50-60
Time: 8:30 pm – 10:30 pm CDT
OTA: 8″ SC

Used Live cam to image Cor Caroli (DBL) and Saturn. Live cam does not appear to have as much clarity as the NexImage; images are fuzzier. Still post-processing image data for publishing.

Cor Caroli taken with Creative Live Cam through Celstron 8" SCT under poor seeing conditions. 91 total frames aligned and stacked.

Also observed Saturn visually. Titan, Rhea, and Dione formed a nearly equilateral triangle off one limb of the rings, Tethys orbited outside the other limb. Iapetus still at relatively small separation from Saturn.

Saturn and five of its moons taken with Creative Live Cam through Celstron 8" SCT under poor seeing conditions. Two separate exposure settings for Saturn and for its moons. 253 total frames, aligned, stacked, and heavily processed.

M40 DBL in UMa faint and unremarkable, approximately equal magnitudes.

M85 GAL in Com appeared as a very faint fuzzy.

Algorab DBL in Cor – easy split, guessed delta mag 4 or 5. SNP lists Algorab as 2.9, doesn’t show companion or even indicate Algorab is a double.

24 Com – yellow primary, blue secondary. Guessed magnitudes 4 and 5, SNP lists them as 5.0 and 6.6, but online reference listed them as 5.2 and 6.5. In fact, I’ve noticed that researching star magnitudes online there is a lot of variability inthe magnitudes reported for most stars. Not sure what to make of that yet.

Location: at home in Tomball, TX
Cloud cover: none
Transparency: above average (4/5)
Seeing: average (3/5)
Darkness: no moon, city glow
Wind: none
Humidity: 50%-75%
Temperature: low 60’s
Start Time: 8:20 pm CDT
End Time: 10:30 pm CDT
OTA: 8″ SC

Saturn alternately fuzzy & clear; Iapetus “close” to planet, Titan and Rhea distinct, Dione & Tethys occasionally lost in glare and turbulence.

M35 OC was amazing, brought Amanda outside to see. Many, many stars (guide info said 70+) over a narrow magnitude range within 1/2 degree region.

38 Gem DBL, could not see color difference. Guessed delta mag between 3 and 4; SNP lists them as 4.7 and 7.8.

β Mon TRIPLE, split with 12.5mm Plossl, appeared DBL in 25mm.

NGC 2392 (eskimo nebula) appeared as a fuzzy disk with a distinct central star. No detail visible.

ζ Can DBL/QUAD (tegmen); ζ1 and ζ2 easily split, close binaries beyond ability of 8″ SCT.

ι Can DBL; blue and yellow easy split. estimated yellow about 1.5 mag brighter than blue. SNP actually lists them as 4.0 and 6.6, so more like 2.6…

NGC 3242 PNEB, also called “Ghost of Jupiter”. Appeared as a fuzzy disk with no detail and no central star. Seems smaller than Jupiter (in arcsec).

location: Tomball, TX
time: 800pm-930pm
cloud cover: 0%, gradually increasing
transparency: 100%
seeing: poor (2/5)
darkness: city sky glow, just past quarter moon
wind: gusty 10mph+
temperature: low 60’s
humitidy: 35%
dewpoint: 31F

barely able to discern tiny black gap between rings and planet. Titan, Dione, and Tethys formed a nearly equilateral triangle to the left of the rings. Rhea about 2 ring diameters to the right.

54 leonis, double star. I guessed difference of 1 mag, SNP lists them as 4.3 and 6.3. primary appeared white with blueish fringe, secondary subtle light blue. close pair but definitely not a hard split.

location: Tomball, TX
time: 730pm-900pm
cloud cover: 0%
transparency: 100%
seeing: average (3/5)
darkness: city sky glow, 1st quarter moon
wind: 5-10mph

lunar terminator crossed montes apenninus, mountain peaks were outstanding. high contrast thin fissures in SE mare vaporum: rima hyginus and rima ariadaeus. long parallel hills near rima hyginus seem un-crater-like, perhaps formed by tectonic activity?

rings of Saturn appeared as a line segment through the planet’s disc. Rhea and Dione out to the left of the rings. Tethys beyond the right edge of the rings, sometimes swallowed by bad seeing. Titan bright about 4x ring diameters from Saturn, Iapetus approx, 4x farther than Titan and surprisingly off the “line” of Saturn’s rings, probably due to orbital inclination.

location: Tomball, TX
time: 830pm-1130pm
cloud cover: 0%
transparency: 100%
seeing: poor (2/5)
darkness: city sky glow, 1st quarter moon
wind: 2-5mph n
humidity: 40% up to 60%
temperature: 65F-52F
dewpoint: 40F-43F

ξ UMaj – slightly yellow, could not split with 7.9mm

ν UMaj – golden primary, could not split, used SNP to verify that nearby star was not secondary

Mizar – nearly identical, bright pair with a touch of blue hue, close but easily split

Englemann 43 – easily split even with 25mm. SNP lists these stars as HIP50505 (primary) and TYC3007-899-1 (secondary). I can’t find a reference to this star anywhere except the Sky & Telescope article.

Saturn – seeing varied from 3/5 to 1/5, usually 2/5. ring shadow inside ring edge; south equatorial belt occasionally visible. Titan clear but could not discern color. Rhea mostly visible but occasionally obscured. Tethys near rings faint and rarely visible. several stars visible nearby, including mag 7 HIP50473.

M3 – faint but unmistakable. in good seeing individual stars visible both fringe and interior.

Measured true field width of 25mm using dec readout. Star at left edge (58′ 38″) and right edge (22′ 54″) indicates true field with is 35′ 44″. SNP calculated the field at 37′, so I feel confident that the view in SNP matches the actual field during observation.

location: Tomball, TX
time: 830pm-1030pm
cloud cover: 0%
transparency: 100%
seeing: avg (3/5) to poor (2/5)
darkness: city sky glow, full moon
wind: 5-10mph nnw
humidity: 30% up to 50%
temperature: 59F-53F
dewpoint: 31F-39F

M42 in 25mm. Less nebulosity discernible than normal presumably due to full moon.

Observed iota cancri; color of primary (reddish) not as distinct as nights past.

No detail visible in Mars.

Saturn’s moons best in 25mm. Titan and Rhea clear, Tethys and Dione occasionally obscured by bad seeing, Iapetus a challenge, often obscured.

Waxing full moon very bright. First time to attempt identification of features. ID’d Tycho, Copernicus, Kepler, Aristarchus, and Mare Crisium.

Location: Tomball
Temperature: upper 40’s
Clouds: none
Seeing: average (3/5)
Transparency: good (4/5)
Instrument: 8″ SCT

First night to observe from Zeke’s place. The sky is slightly darker than home and the area has wider overhead field of view than home.

Observed Saturn in 25mm, several moons visible. Titan, Rhea, and Iapetus were clear. Dione sometimes faded out with bad seeing. Tethys was occasionally visible but quite faint just above and to the left of the rings. Both Dione and Tethys were easier in the 15mm, which developed a smudge.

Also visited a few double stars. Iota cancri was splendid contrast of red and blue.

We observed m42 and discussed the process of star formation within nebulae.

Zeke wanted to see Mars. The “dark” patch of Syrtis Major was visible — an area of just slightly diminished brightness compared with the rest of the planet.

temp: 53F-46F
humidity: 37%-70%
transparency: 4/5 – 5/5
seeing: average 3/5

Attempted M1 (Crab Nebula) with 25mm, 32mm, 10mm, could not discern any nebulosity
using 25mm
M35 – dozens of stars, many bright – bow shape in center
M36 – moderately bright cluster, some linear patterns
M37 – faint cluster, few lines, bright center star
M38 – odd abstract bilateral symmetry of four rays (two short, two long), center star

M41 – behind a tree
M42 – observed to test dark adaptation of my eyes after failing to see M1. region is impressive as a cluster

M46 – wide cluster in 32mm, celestron controller indicated nebula in field of view, but I could not discern any
M47 – several bright stars, prominent lines, one tight pair of similar magnitude
M48 – dozens of similar magnitude stars, no prominent lines, many “wide” pairs
M50 – sparse cluster, wide magnitude range
M67 – dim cluster with pleasing random arrangement

Rigel – companion much fainter, 9.5″ separation
lambda orionis – similar magnitude companion 4″ separation, very close in 10mm but distinct during moments of good seeing
sirius – could not discern companion

Saturn was bright, Titan clear. Dione was dim but distinct. Rhea was very faint, disappearing at times with poorer seeing.

Location: Tomball, TX
Cloud cover: none
Transparency: good (4/5) or maybe excellent (5/5)
Seeing: good (4/5)
Darkness: city sky glow, nearly full moon
Limiting Magnitude: n/a
Wind: mild w/ occasional gusts
Humidity: 60% early up to 75% later
Temperature: 60F to 53F
Start Time: 8:30 pm CST
End Time: 11:00 pm CST
OTA: 8″ SC

aligned on capella, sirius, castor, and ruchbah (celestron spells it rukbah). goto could sometimes put target in 9mm field.

double star night – observed four doubles.

polaris (alpha ursae minoris) – always see polaris/double when aligning, but spent extra time observing. primary is significantly brighter than secondary, but both are clear even in 25mm. would like to learn how to use angle and separation to align scope on true north.

castor (alpha geminorum) – two blue stars with similar magnitudes. easy split in 15mm.

algeiba (gamma leonis) – closest pair of the evening, two red stars with moderate difference in brightness.

iota cancri – widest pair of the evening, red primary moderately brighter than blue secondary.

planetary observations

mars – imaged with and without the bushnell barlow. color and clarity of image both deteriorated. with 7.9mm other pinpoints visible, did not check SNP until later, not sure if one of the points may have been phobos or deimos. despite generally good conditions could not discern much detail except one edge seemed to have a touch of blue/white.

saturn – in high-power ep dione like a chick right under saturn’s “wing”, rhea less than a ring radius away, titan 3-4 ring diameters away. with lower power iapetus seen farther away on the other side of planet from other moons. several other stars also in wide field, required SNP reference to pick iapetus from stars.

photo: Saturn with Dione, Rhea, and Titan (click image to see Titan)

moon – viewed terminus briefly to estimate seeing conditions. very little turbulence in 15mm. still have no idea how to identify what I’m looking at.

view all photos at flickr