The Solar System Sweep

[andyc (Andy)]

An unusual opportunity exists in the next week or two - to image and/or observe a great range of the Solar System in a single session between dusk and a little after midnight...

The five bright planets are in the evening sky, with Mercury about as high as it gets. Looking a little deeper, you can add dwarf planets Pluto and Qaoar hidden in the winter Milky Way (imaging required for Qaoar). Pallas and Neptune get high in late evening, and by about 1am, Uranus, Ceres and Eris are up in the east not too far from one another (imaging required for Eris).

For an even greater challenge, you could try adding moons of some of the planets

How many Solar System bodies can you catch photons from?

[Atmos (Colin)]

Not much behind the perpetual cloud cover!

[sil (Steve)]

Originally Posted by Atmos

Not much behind the perpetual cloud cover!

same here, who made a large scope purchase? ;p

[SamD (Sam)]

Here's Eris from last night (40 mins exposure was enough on an 8 inch reflector to pick out VMag 18.7). I won't be imaging its moon, Dysnomia, though !

[sil (Steve)]

cool! I got my first shot of Neptune the other night (just a dot but i got it Eris is out there though!

[SamD (Sam)]

Quaoar is more difficult to image and to spell !

Not pretty, but I've got it blinking here, about Vmag 18.9.