Gorgeous Deep Sky Views Tonight

I just came in to warm up a bit... and thought I'd comment on the nights viewing so far. I hit a few of my favorite fall objects already this evening. Globular star cluster, M15 looked especially fine tonight. I cranked the magnification up to 200x and it was razor sharp. I was able to resolve stars right into its collapsed core. Very impressive.
After this, I hit The Veil Nebula and The Dumbbell Nebula. Both looked sweet as well.... though not as overwhelmingly as M15. I think it has to do with the reduced transparency in the night sky. There seems to be some moisture around that's just not letting all the light shine through.
From here, I went after NGC891... an incredible edge-on galaxy in the constellation Andromeda. Unfortunately, the reduced transparency made this object all but disappear. It reminded me more of a ghost... than a galaxy. I had to use "averted-imagination" to see this tonight :(
Wanting to raise the stakes a bit, I moved the scope a bit to the south and snagged some sweet views of the Andromeda Galaxy.
Finally, I got some early views of the planet Mars. I only hit it at about 100x, but... when skies steadied (briefly) I was able to see some nice detail on the planets surface. I'm hoping to get to at least 200x before calling it quits.

New Moon Weekend Ahead

The coming weekend will take the moon to within a couple of days of new. Tomorrow's moonrise will occur around 3:20am... with an 18% illuminated waning crescent moon rising above the eastern horizon. This late rise and tiny phase will pair up to make this an awesome weekend for deep sky observers. The prime targets of the fall night sky have already moved into position. The Veil Nebula, Globular Star Cluster M15, The Andromeda Galaxy, The Double Cluster in Perseus... to name just a few.

As if that wasn't enough... the planet Mars is at its biggest and brightest for the next 13 years! Skywatchers are encouraged to head out shortly after sunset to see Mars rising a few degrees south of The Pleiades Star Cluster. Those of you with a telescope will definitely want to give Mars a little while to climb into a steadier part of the sky before planning any serious observations. After that, you should be in for quite a treat! Incredible details have been visible on the martian surface for the last several weeks

Under A Clear, Dark Sky

I got out with a couple of neighbors last night to do a bit of observing. They were quite excited about the prospect... having seen the "canon" sitting on the driveway on a few occasions. I was excited, having seen how the sky was setting up for the evening. I saw the first downward pointing flashlight appear almost precisely at 8pm (our scheduled meeting time). Wayne came over looked at the scope... and asked about the size of the mirror. Apparently, he'd been discussing his evening plans with a buddy. He'd told him the scope was pretty big... and his buddy got excited and said... like what.. 10 - 12". When Wayne said 20 or so... his buddy almost pooped his pants. I told Wayne that this was a 25". I could see a smile appear on his face.
We began our night by spining the scope around to the west and snagging M57, The Ring Nebula. Wow! I always enjoy trips to the ring. So did Wayne. I gave a quick explanation about what we were looking at... when the second downward facing light appeared next door. Wayne's wife Susan was on her way over as well. When she got here, it was obvious that she was quite the resourceful woman. She'd been delayed looking for a second flashlight. Not finding one... she grabbed the next best thing... a telephone with an illuminated face. Whenever she hit a button... this thing lit up like a flashlight. We gave Susan a quick view of the Ring... and moved on.
Our next stop was one of my favorite globular star clusters... M15 in Pegasus. They were both impressed with this object... and rightfully so. M15 is an absolutely amazing object to view... especially in a 25" under dark skies. We continued hitting highlights of the fall sky for a little over an hour... when my 2 year old daughter decided that I'd had enough free time. At this point, we did a quick wrap up... of The Pleiades Star Cluster and the red planet, Mars. The Pleiades is actually too big to be viewed in the narrow field of view of the big scope... while Mars looked OK. It was still a bit too low for ideal viewing... but nonetheless showed a decent amount of surface details. All in all... a good night!

Goin' Deep Sky Tonight

Skies are again forecast to be clear and steady tonight. With that said, I'm gonna go deep tonight. Deep sky that is.
My primary objective tonight will be to track down a few of the gems of the fall night sky. Tops on that list is the biggest, baddest galaxy this side of the universe... The Andromeda Galaxy. Andromeda is the most distant object visible to the naked eye... and one of the finest deep sky objects out there. Visible as a faint smudge in smaller binoculars, Andromeda really comes into its own in telescopes of larger aperture... .especially when viewed under dark skies.
After viewing Andromeda, we'll likely hit M15... a beautiful globular star cluster in Pegasus. This is one of the finer globs in the night sky. It's also the best placed glob at this time of the year. I'll be just approaching the zenith as skies are darkening.
After going deep, we'll undoubtedly finish with some views of the red planet, Mars. Mars should be reasonably well placed for viewing by the time we're getting ready to wrap things up. A fitting end to a nice night under the stars. I'll leave the 6" setup on the deck... and set the alarm for about 5am... so as to get a view of Mars under even steadier sky conditions. I'm hoping to be able to hit it at over 300x. That would be a real treat... given its 20+" size.
Finally... there is a shot that the northern lights might show themselves at some point. Nothing's ever sure when it comes to aurora... not down here in Park City, anyway. But... aurora are a possibility... and always a welcome treat when they do show themselves.

Dark, Clear Skies Forecast For Tonight

The evening forecast is looking stellar! As you can see from the accompanying Clear Sky Clock, skies will be crystal clear... and rock steady. Transparency will be a bit low, but... with 2 solid readings and one marginal one... I think it's definitely time to go deep. I may try to snag a few of the summer sky stragglers... like the Ring Nebula and the Veil Nebula. After that, I'll take in the incredible Andromeda Galaxy. This is THE jewel of the fall night sky. It is arguably the finest galaxy visible to northern observers... like me here in Park City. I'll also snag a bunch of other... lesser objects... before the moon rises... by which point... I'll switch my frame of mind to planetary observations... and the red planet, Mars.

The Planet Mars Takes Center Stage

The red planet, Mars has taken over the nigth sky. It's currently at its biggest and brightest for the season... and for the next 13 years in fact. Mars is currently rising around 8pm... and is well placed for viewing by 10pm or so. Check out this sweet image taken by Larry Owens of Atlanta, Georgia, using a 14-inch Celestron. Pretty sweet, huh?
I've been out most clear mornings for the last couple of weeks... and only come close to a view like this once so far. But... I've certainly not given up :) Nope... not me. I'm hoping to get even sweeter views in the days and weeks ahead.
Of particular note in this shot is the visibility of a large dust storm running through the Valles Marineris... a huge canyon on the martian surface that is many times larger than our own Grand Canyon. This storm has just recently appeared... and has caught the eye.. and camera of many of the worlds finest astrophotographers.

Last Night's Conjunction

Skies cleared briefly last night... allowing me to snag a few quick pics of the conjunction between the planet Mars & the Moon.
The accompanying shot was taken with my Sony DSC-F717 digital camera and is actually a composite of two images. The first was a 1/4 second exposure... designed to expose Mars properly. The second was a 1/1000 second exposure designed to expose the Moon properly. The two were then combined using PhotoShop to create the displayed image.
I wish I'd have been able to see the pairing by morning... as they'd have been much closer at that point. Oh, well... I guess I should be happy to have seen any portion of the event... as forecasts were calling for significantly worse weather.

Conjunction Tonight!

Head outside shortly after dark and (if skies are clear) you'll see the red planet Mars rising alongside the waning gibbous Moon. The pair should be visible between 8 & 9pm... depending on your eastern horizon. Watch the pair cross the sky together in an event known as a Conjunction. As the evening progresses, the two will pull even closer.
Skies don't seem like they'll cooperate here in Park City :( So... I hope a bunch of folks around the world take and send in some pics of the event.

So so skies again :-(

I was really psyched for some awesome views this morning. Unfortunately, skies (while clear) were not all that steady. I really couldn't get passed about 200x... and had issues even around this point. Stormy weather is forecast for the later part of the weekend, so... it could be well into the week before I'm again able to try to hit Mars hard.
We'll just have to keep our fingers crossed.

So so skies today... incredible skies tomorrow?

Seeing conditions were marginal this morning... perhaps a 5 out of 10. Tomorrow morning, however... skies are forecast to be absolutely amazing. The Clear Sky Clock for The High Meadows Observatory is calling for crystal clear skies, high transparency... and rock steady seeing. Perhaps a 6-5-6 morning.
At this point, I'm planning to get up a bit early... perhaps 5am... to beat the increasing affects of atmospheric heating & turbulence caused by the approaching sunrise. As an added bonus, The Planet Mars will be sitting just a bit higher in the sky... and closer to the zenith. The combination (I'm hoping) will allow me to push magnification levels a bit beyond Wednesday's 260x levels. In fact, I'm event going to ensure that The ObDob is readily accessible... just in case conditions allow for absurdly high levels of magnification.
With any luck, I'll be able to post tomorrow that my best views of Mars have been surpassed. I'll be keeping my fingers crossed!

More Sweet Planetary Views

I got out early again (6am). Skies were remarkably... and unexpectedly steady. I pushed Mars up to 375x... where views were mostly soft... then dropped back to 257x where they were mostly rock steady. I enjoyed viewing one of the major land masses... and some bluing near the north pole. The bluing is caused by icy clouds converging on the north pole at the onset of winter.
After enjoying some sweet views of the planet Mars, I spun the scope towards the south... and snagged some sweet views of the ringed planet, Saturn.
Tomorrow mornings forecast is calling for even better conditions.... lets hope so!

Morning Views of The Planet Saturn

I got up (and out) early this morning.... setting the Argonaut up around 6:30am. I'd left it sitting by the front door... under the overhang... just in case. As luck would have it, skies were crystal clear... with first light well upon us.
I looked west and saw The Planet Mars... with The Constellation Orion chasing just behind it. I figured that from my vantage point, Saturn offered the best viewing opportunity. So... braving the cold (25* or so) I setup the 6" and my observing chair to the side of the deck... and spun it towards the southeast and The Planet Saturn.
Views of the ringed planet were pretty sweet. I went from 90x to about 225x... before settling back to a nice, comfortable 200x. At this magnification, views were pretty consistently sharp.
I instantly saw The Cassini Division... and the first real steady views allowed me to follow it completely around the exposed portions of the ring. This was already a good morning :-)
My next major observation (major to me, anyway) was when I noticed a tiny portion of the planet's disk visible above the rings. For the last couple of years, this had been hidden from view, due to the amount of tilt in the planet's orbit. But, Saturn is now swinging back in its orbit... and the tilt is declining considerably. It'll still be several more years before the ring is edge on (and hidden), but... it was one of the first times I've been able to see that portion of the planet in a number of years.

Second Light

Skies for first light were less than ideal... so the event turned out to be more of a "shake-out" cruise... with little actual observing. Last night's "second light" event turned out to be a much better event... and truly showcased the skies above The Two Mile Canyon Observatory.
By the time I got outside... around 10pm or so... skies were looking pretty sweet. I ran through the usual suspects for this time of year...
The Andromeda Galaxy looked absolutely stunning... with the first dustlane... and spiral arm clearly in view. I even managed to study a nice nebula/cluster area in the outer arm and seem some detail within in. This was gorgeous... and a true testament of what I had to work with... skies & telescope.

First Light Report

The ObDob saw first light at its new home at the Two Mile Canyon Observatory last night. Skies were... ok. Intermittent clouds randomly dimmed my view from time to time... alternating my views of M15 between nice & not so nice. As the clouds would pass, the view would get dramatically brighter... allowing me to resolve stars right into the core. I made use of a 15mm TeleVue for views to about 200x.
Tonight's forecast is calling for clear, transparent and relatively steady skies. I'm hoping to hit The Andromeda Galaxy and The Planet Mars (among others).

First Light Tonight (sort of)

Tonight, I'll be celebrating a sort of "First Light" event. First light for the ObDob at its new home... The Two Mile Canyon Observatory. Skies are forecast to be clear and fairly steady... with only the tiniest of moons setting shortly after sunset.
No doubt, we'll be taking a good look at the planet Mars as the night progresses. I'll be inviting a few neighbors over to start indoctrinating them on the ways of the sky... and the affects of outdoor lights on the sky. I'm hoping to win them over to the "dark side".
I'm also looking forward to testing out my new skies... and... with plenty of fall deep sky objects overhead... there'll be no shortage of observing targets.

Lowell Observatory Star Party Recap

This past weekend's Lowell Observatory Star Party was a blast. For a host of reasons, my attendance at the event was limited to a few sweet hours, but... how sweet they were! We started with a handful of peeks through a 25" Obsession Dobsonian Reflector in a "goto" configuration. This was very cool! Through this beast, we got to see the wonders of the fall sky... including the Hercules Star Cluster through a Bino-Viewer (binocular). This was really impressive.
The highlight of the evening was (as expected) 90 minutes of time on the 24" Clark Refractor. This 32' tall beast was originally used by Percival Lowell to study the planet Mars. It was quite a treat... and an honor to use the same telescope as this giant of the astronomy world. Views if the red planet were simply stunning. This speaks wonders to the quality of workmanship that went into making this telescope some 110 years ago.
The accompanying shot was taken by Utah Skies member Brian Jolley using a digital camera hooked to the Clark Refractor using a ScopeTronix adaptor.