[ngcles]

Pt 5 ...

The Saturday morning dawned fine and clear (no I didn’t actually see it) and after a spot of brekky, I had to solve the problem of my voice recorder. There was only one solution I could see, get the laptop out and start typing the obervations in the free up space. I firstly switched the recording mode back to long-play and spent about 5 hrs typing up Thursday nights observations as above and deleting the files.

After this there was just time to wander up to the shed to catch Chris Toohey’s talk on the evolution of the eyepiece – all very interesting and one has to wonder how the early visual astronomers coped with the incredibly narrow fields their simple oculars produced.

After preparing the ‘scope etc for the night it was time for the big barbeque up at the top shed, the obligatory group photo and some more socialising before it was observing time again at 8.15pm under a darkening sky. I took an SQM at 8pm that was 21.28 and by 9.15pm it was 21.58 = +6.42 it was time for Hydra, Corvus and Crater.

The soundtrack for the evening was Meddle: Pink Floyd, Tales from Topographic Oceans: Yes, Incantations Mike Oldfield, Wish You Were Here: Pink Floyd and White Rock: Rick Wakemann.



X185 27’ TF

NGC 3383 Galaxy *
RA: 10h 47m 18.8s Dec: -24° 26' 21"
Mag: 13.5 (P) S.B.: --- B-V: ---
Size: 1.6'x1.1' Class: SB(rs)bc? P.A.: 24
Inclination: --- R.V.: +3380 Source: RC3 *

This is no worse than mod faint, pretty diffuse looking object, found to the NNE of a mag 8 * by about 8' and seems weakly elong in that PA -- about 30? seems about 1.5 x 1' diameter, fairly consistent mod low SB growing azonally slightly to the centre without core or nucleus. There appears to be an extremely faint * or stellaring which is on the W side just inside the halo, only occasionally visible.



x185 27' TF

NGC 3411 Galaxy *
RA: 10h 50m 26.1s Dec: -12° 50' 43"
Mag: 12.9 (B) S.B.: 13.3 B-V: +1.03
Size: 2.0'x2.0' Class: E+ P.A.: ---
Inclination: --- R.V.: +4417 Source: RC3 *

NGC 3402 (PGC 3244) Galaxy *
RA: 10h 50m 05.8s Dec: -12° 40' 31"
Mag: --- S.B.: --- B-V: ---
Size: 0.1'x0.1' Class: E+ P.A.: ---
Inclination: --- R.V.: --- Source: PGC *

This wasn't too hard to see, in a pretty blank, thinly populated field. There is a curved line of 3 *s to the SW of the eg nr the field stop about 11' away. It has diffuse edges and lowish SB, no *s immediately associated, maybe weakly elong in PA 0 and maybe 1' x 50" rising slightly and broadly to centre azonally where there is a small weakly brighter round spot. About 10' NNW is another tiny faint nebulous spot adjacent to a mag 15 * -- NGC 3402 ???

See note from the NGC/IC project:

"Discovered by Common and placed at 10 50 09 -12 40 05 (2000). This places it 10 tsec of RA west but 1 degree north of N3411 at 10 50 26.1 -12 50 43. RNGC identifies N3402 with PGC 32444 at 10 50 05.8 -12 40 32 (J2000). This position is 11' N of N3411 and 0.3 tmin W. See NGCBUGS.- by Steve Gottlieb"

This eg is a very tiny ~ 10" spot of round gossamer next to a mag 15.5 * which is <1' away NE.



x185 27' TF

NGC 3456 Galaxy *
RA: 10h 54m 03.3s Dec: -16° 01' 41"
Mag: 13.2 S.B.: --- B-V: ---
Size: 1.8'x1.2' Class: SB(rs)c: P.A.: 85
Inclination: --- R.V.: +4193 Source: RC3 *

MCG -3-28-17 PGC 32724 Galaxy *
RA: 10h 53m 58.6s Dec: -16° 07' 10"
Mag: 14.5 S.B.: --- B-V: ---
Size: 0.5' Class: Sc P.A.: ---
Inclination: --- R.V.: +4370 Source: RC3 *

NGC 3456 is a very small round eg about 30-40" diameter, round and rises azonally broadly and slightly to centre without nucleus. There are two matching mag 13 *s either side east and west just on the edges of the halo MCG -3-28-17 is to the S by 7' as a very. very faint spot of gossamer about 15" diameter with no apparent central brightening.



x185 27' TF

NGC 4456 Galaxy *
RA: 12h 27m 52.6s Dec: -30° 05' 53"
Mag: 14.1 (P) S.B.: --- B-V: ---
Size: 1.2'x0.5' Class: Sbc P.A.: 150
Inclination: --- R.V.: +6240 Source: RC3 *

This is a very tiny and faint eg that is slightly elong in PA 30, about 30" x 10" with no apparent central brightening. SB is very low. A mag 14 * is just off the W flank and it is 6' E of a mag 9 * which is very distracting.



x185 27' TF

NGC 3404 Galaxy *
RA: 10h 50m 18.2s Dec: -12° 06' 30"
Mag: 14.0 S.B.: --- B-V: ---
Size: 2.1'x0.4' Class: SBab? sp P.A.: 80
Inclination: --- R.V.: --- Source: RC3 *

This is a quite to very elong eg that is quite small, in PA 90, no *s immediately associated. Reasonably low SB 1.25' x 10" as a lens shape growing broadly and slightly to the axis nr centre with a very very tiny weakly brighter spot in the centre. Quite nice.



x185 27' TF

NGC 3483 Galaxy *
RA: 10h 59m 00.2s Dec: -28° 28' 36"
Mag: 13.1 (P) S.B.: --- B-V: --- Size: 1.8'x1.2'
Class: (R')SA(r)0+: P.A.: 105 Inclination: --- R.V.: +3730 Source: RC3 *

This is a fairly small eg that makes a RA tri with a couple of *s to its NE and N maybe 2 & 3' away mags 9 & 11. Fairly small reasonable SB about 40" diameter growing broadly and moderately to centre and at centre is a small weakly brighter spot. There is a mag 14.5 * just off the SW edge.



x185 27' TF

NGC 3479 Galaxy *
RA: 10h 58m 55.5s Dec: -14° 57' 42"
Mag: 13.5 S.B.: --- B-V: --- Size: 1.7'x1.2'
Class: SAB(r)bc P.A.: 12 Inclination: --- R.V.: +4545 Source: RC3 *

This is a pretty small non-descript eg in Hydra, seems to be about 50" x 30" in PA 0, reasonable but low SB with diffuse ill-defined edges growing broadly and slightly to the centre without zones or nucleus. At the N end there is about 1' off the halo is a mag 15.5 *



x185 27' TF

NGC 3514 Galaxy *
RA: 11h 03m 59.5s Dec: -18° 46' 52"
Mag: 13.5 S.B.: --- B-V: --- Size: 1.0'x0.8' Class: SAB(s)c?
P.A.: 115 Inclination: --- R.V.: --- Source: RC3 *

This eg appears about mid-way between two mag 11.5 - 12 *s aligned pretty much N-S about 15' apart. Diffuse looking mod LSB round eg growing broadly and slightly to the centre azonally without apparent core or nucleus. No *s immediately associated.



x185 27' TF

NGC 3571 Galaxy *
RA: 11h 11m 30.3s Dec: -18° 17' 21"
Mag: 13.0 (P) S.B.: --- B-V: ---
Size: 3.0'x1.0' Class: (R')SAB(rs)a: P.A.: 94
Inclination: --- R.V.: +3571 Source: RC3 *

This is quite an attractive EG in about PA 110 appearing pretty much S of a mag 12 * by about 6', Pretty sizable, about 3' x 1' in PA 110, candle-flame shaped with a weak-edged halo growing slightly to centre where there is a small just off-round slightly brighter core zone which grows further to dead-centre slightly. Good SB not hard to see at all.



x185 27' TF

NGC 3660 Galaxy *
RA: 11h 23m 32.3s Dec: -08° 39' 31"
Mag: 14.0 S.B.: --- B-V: --- Size: 2.7'x2.1'
Class: SB(r)bc P.A.: 110 Inclination: --- R.V.: +3678 Source: RC3

This is a fairly bright eg which appears near an I tri made by a bunch of faint *s to its SE. Seems round, 1.75 - 2' diameter, reasonably well defined edges growing broadly and slightly to centre azonally, but with AV there seems to be a substellar slightly brighter spot in the centre.



x185 27' TF

NGC 3617 Galaxy *
RA: 11h 17m 50.9s Dec: -26° 08' 04"
Mag: 13.7 (B) S.B.: --- B-V: +0.90 Size: 1.7'x1.2'
Class: E+ P.A.: 147 Inclination: --- R.V.: +2199 Source: RC3 *

This is a fairly small pretty non-non-descript eg that makes an I Tri 2' x 1' with a couple of mag 13 *s which points eastward. The eg is at the S point. Could almost be thought stellar, about 30" diameter with a small LSB outer halo and a tiny somewhat brighter core/spot. Quite small.

Pt 6 to follow ...