first galaxies tonight:)

[JJDOBBER79]

Hi there,
I went for a drive to a dark site tonight (new favourite spot) and finally saw another galaxy. I have been trying for 3 months from my back yard and now I realize how impossible it is with even slight light pollution. Anyway, I saw M83, Centaurus A (saw the dark line through the centre) and I think I saw ngc5102.(thanx suzy for the directions to this one):thanx:. A couple of weeks ago suzy informed that it lies within 1 degree (below) from iota centauri. I couldnt find anything close but there was an unusual glow surrounding iota. Is it possible that 5102 is now directly behind iota giving the illusion that the star is giving this glow. I looked at other stars of similar magnitude and they didnt produce this effect. Hence, I think I saw ngc5102. What do you guys think? Anyway, super excited. Planetary nebula may be next, I havent seen one of these yet. Cant wait to get back in the dark:)

[noeyedeer]

I remember when I saw Centaurus A for the first time ... after spending months looking with a smaller scope, I was exciting but no one nearby (sisters kids) would understand.

I was looking for (I forget now) but found the ring nebula near Vega .... and I think was more excited to see a slight blueish/grey hue and a definite ring shape at x208 then finding Centaurus A.

in the northern sky theres a few PNs to hunt down ... good luck :) (probably a lot more but I've been trying for Neptune but have failed miserably)

[Jon]

Hi Jas, good stuff mate. Nothing quite like getting your first eyeful of photons that have crossed 12 million light years, and that started their journey literally when your ancestors were coming down from the trees in Africa. Galaxies are amazing.

NGC 5102 won't have moved, but it is one of those galaxies with a bright central core that looks almost starlike. What you are describing sounds pretty much like NGC 5102 to me. Equally, it's not unusual for stars to be surrounded by reflection nebulosity that only shows up at dark sites. What scope were you using?

[JJDOBBER79]

6" dob. 25mm EP, DGM NPB filter. Any tips for first PN's? I was thinking the blue planetary to start with.

[Jon]

Blue Planetary, Saturn Nebula, Little Gem are all up around now.

[JJDOBBER79]

Thanks Jon. i might try for them tonight weather permitting.

[Jon]

Just had a nice long look at the Saturn Nebula. Amazing green colour!

[JJDOBBER79]

Hey Jon.
I have tried for the saturn nebula for 2 nights and I cant find it. I thought this would be quite easy given the 2 globs next to it (M72 and 73 I think) I couldnt find them either. Do you need super dark skies for this. I did see the helix neb and ring neb from the same sight. The helix was very faint but way bigger than I expected. Interestingly I couldnt see it at all without my NBP filter. It looks like it would be a lot more detailed from a darker site. Ive had a great week, went from zero galaxies and zero PN's to 3 galaxies and 2 Pn's. Im thinking andromeda is the next move, been hanging out to see this since I bought a scope. I might do an early morning session this weekend.

[Jon]

Jas, if you could see the Helix (which is huge!) then the Saturn should have been a beacon. M72 is a faint, sparse globular cluster while M73 is just a litte triangle of stars - you won't see these unless you know exactly what you are hunting for.

Better to star hop fom Sadalsuud to get the Saturn Nebula. Remember, you are looking for an elongated grey smudge. The colour's not obvious, particularly at first.

[JJDOBBER79]

I finally found it and now I feel stupid for not finding it earlier given how easy it is. It was from a semi dark site so I think I probably saw a watered down version of it. It appeared to be about twice the size of centaurus A. I have read that it should appear to have an "edge on" look but I just saw a large round fuzzy grey blob. Maybe just the core, probably not dark enough to see the rest. Still cant find that saturn nebula??? Maybe I will try another star map, I have been using the one on eyes on the sky's. Must have been really good seeing this morning about 3am coz I saw orion neb and it was HUGE!!!! I have seen this plenty of times but never like this. Also tarantula was bigger and more detailed than normal but not as big as orion. I could see the bands on jupiter easier than ever as well. A good morning, makes me wish I had a AP setup:(. Its pretty cool seeing andromeda and thinking "this is the furthest object in the sky that the human eye can see. AWESOME!!!! Not many people can say theyve done that. Hey, I thought to myself "I wonder if anyone is standing on a planet in andromeda with a telescope looking at the milky way and wondering what is in it:question::question::question::qu estion:

[mark3d]

It sounds like it's unlikely to see a galaxy from light polluted skies. Are there any galaxies, now or at another time of year, that one could hope to find with a 10" dob in suburban Adelaide?

[JJDOBBER79]

Hi Mark,
I cant see any galaxies from my backyard and I am on the outskirts of a smallish town. The suburbs of a capital city sounds unlikely but im far from an expert, only saw my first one last sunday. Having said that, I have a 6" so it will no doubt be better with a 10". Anyway, if you can get away from town a bit you should have no probs with a 10". Try looking for camp grounds in the area coz they tend to be pretty well removed from anything else, national parks etc. You dont need to camp if thats not your thing. Just pull up for a couple of hours and observe. you will be glad you did. dark sky is a different ball game. Try for no or little moon too.

[JJDOBBER79]

Hey Mark, just found this on another site. The 70mm urban view looks like what I saw and probably what you would see from light polluted skies. Have a look at the 7" suburban view (I think they mean dark) Imagine what you will see in a 10" from a dark site. worth doing:eyepop:
http://mysite.verizon.net/imagelib/sitebuilder/layout/spacer.gif http://mysite.verizon.net/imagelib/sitebuilder/layout/spacer.gif



http://mysite.verizon.net/imagelib/sitebuilder/layout/spacer.gif http://mysite.verizon.net/vze55p46/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/m31.gif
These pictures show M31 and M32 at identical magnifications through two different telescopes at two different levels of light pollution. The magnification is nearly optimal for the smaller scope, but a higher magnification brings out somewhat more detail in the bigger scope. However, even at this fairly modest magnification, M31 is spilling out of the NE corner of the field as seen in the suburbs.

As you can see, M31 is affected much more by light pollution than by aperture; this is typical of galaxies. Under urban skies, only the bright core is clearly visible, although the 178mm Dob brings out a faint extension to the SW. A considerable portion of the disk is visible under good suburban skies, although this is still only a tiny fraction of the entire galaxy. Under dark skies, M31 fills more than half the field from top to bottom, and extends far out of the field on the SW and the NE.

[JJDOBBER79]

oops try this
http://mysite.verizon.net/vze55p46/id3.html

[Jon]

You could have a crack at Centaurus A. I can see it in a 10" from suburban Canberra.