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I had a chance to observe this galaxy group last night in very good seeing and transparency; my first observation of any members of the Dorado Galaxy Group.
I agree, it is a fine sight in a 2 degree fov. I was using a Pan 24 giving just over a 2 degree FOV and 4.2mm exit pupil. The three galaxies were reasonably bright and were accompanied by some companion stars around mag 8 which added to the fov. Best individual views on the night were with an LVW13 giving 62X and a 2.3mm exit pupil.
1566 showed slight condensation and an increase in brightness to the centre. There was a very faint foreground star embedded in the east-south-east (I think!!) quadrant.
1549 appeared diffuse and quite irregular in shape with a slightly brighter core. Three nearby stars accompanied the galaxy.
1553 is very close to 1549 with a mag8 star between them. 1553 was the most “oval” in appearance, was slightly brighter than the others and showed hints of structure/mottling without giving up it’s actual structure. Higher magnification at 100X did not reveal any more detail on the night.
Scope: Vixen NA140SS on TRex mount.
Thanks for the lead John. I could image this would be a quite memorable sight through your 18” SDM.
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