Northern Vs Southern Hemisphere.

[interstellar]

Which hemisphere is your prefered hemisphere for Dso's and the M's observing. I know in summertime in the northern hemisphere we have the heart of the milkyway grace our night sky while the southern hemisphere has Orion, Canis Major in their summer night sky. Thats why I ask this question. What are the benifits of each hemisphere and the drawbacks. Seasonal and otherwise.:eyepop::eyepop::eyepop:

[Merlin66]

About 37deg south I think is the optimum!!!!
Clear skies, wonderful climate and you can see everything in the night sky ( and the Sun as well during the day!) that's worth looking at.
I've been back in the UK at 52deg north for the last year or so and could literally count the number of clear days/ nights on both hands. Wet, cloudy, wet, cloudy - repeat ad nausium.
( Not that I'm biased or anything - he says with a sniff! as he wipes away the tears.)

[glenc]

I recently made a list of 352 Messier like objects, 148 were in the north (including 92 galaxies) and 204 were in the south. The center of the Milky Way is overhead at latitude -29 degrees and we have some great DSO objects including omega Cen, 47 Tuc, eta Car, the LMC and the SMC. In NSW and Qld it is clear in winter when the MW is overhead.

[leon]

Yep 37 degrees South is spot on, ;) that is where I live. :lol: :lol:

Leon :thumbsup:

[Bobj]

How about Lat 21 Deg South, Mackay, Qld. Can see most of Ursa Major to Musca constellations. And don't need heavy clothing for winter viewing....:thumbsup:

[Terry B]

Just a raincoat most of summer.:D:D:D

[Paddy]

Ditto!

Ditto also to Glen's post - hard to go past the Magellanic Clouds and the galactic centre overhead in winter.

[wavelandscott]

I've done both...the Southern is better in my opinion...

[robgreaves]

Having lived at 53'N and 33'S, it's actually a tough call.

The quality of the skies is better down here; less LP, and steadier seeing.

However, both hemispheres have their showpiece objects. M101 is stunning. And M31 rises much higher in the N than it does here. Cassiopeia and its myriad clusters and nebulosity is great (and high) to image. For an imager, object altitude wrt to the horizon is so important for good sharp shots.

But there again there are no LMC and SMC up there, or Eta Carina...

Conversely, if you like viewing or imaging Galaxies, the N is the place to be.

Oh, and a quick polar align is a whole lot earier in the North :lol:

Regards,
Rob

[leon]

Oh, and a quick polar align is a whole lot earier in the North http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/../vbiis/images/smilies/lol.gif

Regards,
Rob

Now Rob that is so true, it would make things just that bit easier if we had one of those, down South.

Leon

[ausastronomer]

Hi Rob,

I entertain a couple of dozen visiting US amateurs each year and have done for a few years. You are the first person I have heard say, "it's a tough call". The general consensus amongst the visiting US observers is that the Southern Hemisphere wins by a fair margin. Most of the visitors I help to entertain have now made repeated trips to Australia, some in fact up to 8 times. That must say something. I can appreciate however that for an imager things may be a little different.

I have also travelled to the Northern Hemisphere to observe and personally rate the Southern Hemisphere a good way in front. I am however strictly a visual observer. I will concede that the single best thing I have ever looked at is M51 in Larry Mitchell's 36" Obsession, which is generally considered a "northern" target, notwithstanding it is visible from many parts of Australia.

Cheers,
John B

[hector]

I have observed from both hemispheres and while my exposure to the North is limited, the lack of a prominate Milky Way and the Missing LMC and SMC would have me choosing the South. I like John B have been entertaining overseas visitors for over 20 years now. ALL of the visitors have advised that we have the better end of the stick. in my opinion.
Best Galaxy: Milky Way overhead during winter, or LMC
Best Nebula: Eta Carina
Best Globular: 47 TUC or Omega Cen depending on your preference.
Best Open Cluster: Jewel Box.
Best Variable Star: Eta Carina
Bets Double star: Alpha Cen.
Best Planetarie goes North with either the Ring or the Dumbell both of which we can see anyway.
Even the last great Supernova and Comet were in the South.
My preference is about 30deg south. Clouds up high, Milky Way center overhead, and most of the best northern targets are high enough over the horizon to see properly.

Andrew

[ausastronomer]

Cheers,
John B

[Stephen65]

I've experienced both and in my opinion the south easily triumphs. The fact that the centre of the Milky Way is at 29S makes it hard for the north to compete on anything save galaxies. When I travel to the USA my usual first impression as I get used to everything being upside down is how "empty" the sky looks in comparison.

That said, there are many great things to see in the north and anybody who hasn't experienced both hemispheres is missing out.

[Domol]

I've spoken to a few astronomers from the USA and they dream of the
Centaurus - Carina region........mmm eta Carina!

[Bassnut]

The big diff off course is that most of the uber gurus are in the NH, leaveing us more opportunity to produce gobsmackers in the SH. But the margin is narrowing swiftly, the NH punks are installing rigs in the SH at an alarming rate of nots, we have but a small window of opportunity before the imaging world is swamped by SH images unrepeatable by us colonial convicts :D

[dugnsuz]

Double cluster in Perseus is a lovely Northern object.

Doug

[Smirnoff]

The south, hands down. Sure, the NH has some fine showpieces, but most of those are visible even from southern Australia, whereas our finest stuff are largely invisble from temperate north latitudes, and the center of the milky way is hopelessly low from lats about 45º north and above.

E.G.

from 35ºS, one can easily see: M57, M13, M45, M31, M33, M27, All of the Virgo + Coma galaxies, and all of the Leo Galaxies. The only objects that escape our grasp are M101, M51 and M81/82.

By contrast, those at 35ºN cannot at all see: The LMC / SMC, 47 TUC, Eta Carina, while Omega Centauri is hopelessly low (M13 is actually 10º closer to the celestial equator giving us better access to it than what the northerners have to Omega).

M42 is actually itself a southern object, which, at -5º dec, appears 10º higher in the sky from a certain southern lat than from the corresponding northern lat.

[glenc]

OC: NGC457, M103, NGC869-84, M52, NGC7789
GC: None
Neb: NGC281, NGC7023, NGC7538
PN: M76, M97, NGC6543
Galaxy: M81, M82, M101, M108, M109, NGC2403, NGC6946
The rest are visible from latitude 30 south.

[Enchilada]

Northern Hemisphere is better because it does have southern observers bragging how much better their skies actually are... Also;

1) Northern Hemisphere (NH) has the Andromeda Galaxy, and some bright and large nearby independent galaxies
2) The NH has better planetary nebula Ring Nebula, etc.
3) Less stars making it easier to find you way around without confusion.
4) The best open cluster is Double Cluster in Perseus
5) Better Double Stars, and more colourful ones - due to the proximity of one of the Milky Way Galaxy's spiral arms.
6) A decent pole star
7) Constellation with a classical history
8) Has the best Constellation in the sky - Cassiopeia
9) Most variable stars have the class of variable named after them. I.e. Cepheus - Cepheid variables. Gamma Cas variables, etc.
10) Patrick Moore

What else do you need?

[toryglen-boy]

After moving to Australia at the grand old age of 36, i can confirm the following :

Both are different, but just as interesting.

I have loads of experience with the NH, and i can tell you its pretty kewl, the winter has some great views (with Orion being the right way up, in a dignified manner) and there are some nice things to see, the Perseus double cluster, M31, M15, The Crab Nebula, the Ring Nebula etc, although i know you can see some of these from here, in the height of summer you can see some of the Sagittarious region, although only from the south of England, not Scotland, and from Glasgow, i have only ever seen Antares twice really close to the horizon. Although i have some great memories of seeing the Northern Lights several times from Scotland, specially from a night spent near Glencoe, in the Highlands.

The SH, well where do i start !! ... quite frankly, i dont know, and i am hoping to get some guidance on this, as it does genuinely seem harder to get to know my way around, that said, even through my modest "grab and go scope" (an 80mm F11 refractor) the overhead view is stunning, the 32mm eyepeice was rammed with stars and objects, and things that i didnt know what they where, and quite frankly, took my breath away.

so, both are very different, although equally as good.

:)

[erick]

The Northern Lights! That's my dream. I have two ambitions left in life - To see the Northern Lights in all there splendour from Scotland and to get close to a large Blue Whale! :)


OK, and to see a few more things in the sky at night! :D

[toryglen-boy]

well, lucky for me, from Scotland i have seen them several times, sitting outside, wrapped up, with a bottle of Glenmorangie

oh...

and my ex girlfriend was rather big, and cold outside, so thats that covered.



:D

[MrB]

I would love to see the NL too, and hear them hum.

[Glenn Dawes]

Hi guys,

This isn't the first time I've heard people wishing to see the Northern Lights. The reality is they shouldn't be any better than the Southern Lights - remember it takes two poles to make a magnet, and why should the north get preference? I think you might find its because the UK and Europe in general are further north and closer to the magnetic pole (being further north also means they see less of the southern stars - too large a sacrifice if you ask me!)

I have seen some great pictures of aurorae taken in the south - mostly from Tasmania and New Zealand. The descriptions of the phenomena, such as shifting curtains, that went with them were pretty impressive as well.

Regards

Glenn

[erick]

It's not as convenient to get close, south of the equator. Hence the preference for North. :)

[Barrykgerdes]

Hi toryglen boy

I lived just out of Glasgow at Houston for 2 1/2 years back in the mid seventies and I can't remember ever looking at the stars. Although I think I saw the Northern Lights a couple of times. In fact I did not even have a pair of binocculars let alone a telescope. Don't blame the weather. There was as much clear fine weather there as we have in Sydney

In those days my hobby was Ham radio GM8LQR and played golf in the rest of my spare time. My work was easy and generally only took about an hour a day so I had plenty of spare time to pursue other interests.

Barry

[toryglen-boy]

yeah, i just had a spell of online research, they are easier to see in the north, only due to a closer landmass location to the pole, they can be seen in the south, but i guess it requires more effort, such as a boat in the middle of nowhere !!

At any rate, i am sure its just as beautiful in the south.


:)

[MrB]

Echo that, plus it'd be a great chance to see Scotland, and catch up with my brother.

Actually, I have seen the SL from right here in Perth, probably around '88 or '89.
Though I was young and didn't really care about being woken up by mum at 2 or 3 in the morning to look at a red patch in the sky, so my memory of it is as hazy as the red patch was.

[erick]

Sometimes we get a bit lucky from mainland Australia (and Tassie!)

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a5/Aurora_australis_panorama_edit.jpg

But I haven't seen it yet and really want to see it swirling over my head and not on the horizon.

(I think this all still fits in the title of the thread :D - except the bit about whales - who brought that up :mad2:)

ps. who can identify the stars in this image???????

[Smirnoff]

^^ that's crux in the centre just above the tree, the bright star smack bang on the horizon between the 2 trees on the left is Canopus.

[Rob_K]

You can see Omega Centauri to the left of the twiggy bush too! :thumbsup:

N v S - never been to the NH so it would be a big call, LOL! There's lots of northern objects I'd like to see, or see better! Imagine the Andromeda Galaxy overhead!! But all in all, I love the Milky Way arching overhead and wouldn't want to trade that for anything! :thumbsup:

Cheers -

[glenc]

On 30/9/98 I saw a very bright aurora from Little Fort in B.C. Canada. The reflection in the North Thompson River was great too.
I had to stay near the car because there were bears around.

[erick]

Thanks for the ID on the stars - I couldn't work them out - a bit poor of me! :ashamed:

[prokyon]

Hi,

very interesting thread!
I am a guy from the northern hemisphere at +47°. I have never seen the wonderful objects of the southern sky. I am dreaming of the MCs and Omega Centauri...and I wanna see the sagittarius constellation high in the sky.

My favorite objects of the northern sky are: M31 (Andromeda Galaxy), M13, M57 (Ring Nebula), M27 (Dumbell Nebula), Cirrus Nebula, h+chi in Perseus, Whirlpool Galaxy in Ursa Major, Galaxies in Coma Berenices....and many more. It depends on the conditions and the equipement.

It would be wonderful for me to be at a star party in Australia. So many objects I have never seen before and....I would not know all the constellations. This would be very exciting!

cheers

werner

postcard from the north, Ursa Major is circumpolar :)
http://www.prokyon.startime.at/Bilder/GrosserWagen_Farben_neu.jpg
(do you saý big dipper?)

[fragchamp]

I almost never look north of Orion because it's inconvenient... but having observed for a year now I suspect I rarely would anyway! Without having experienced what the north has to offer, I doubt I would trade any of 47 Tuc, Omega Centauri, Eta Carina or Tarantula or even Jewel Box for any galaxy. For astronomy purposes I'd probably choose to live right where I am, which is a stroke of luck.

[Smirnoff]

Hey prokyon!

I've never heard of the "cirrus nebula". Where is it located?

[Rob_K]

NGC 6960 - part of the Veil SNR in Cygnus, also known as "Witch's Broom". :thumbsup:

Cheers -

[pgc hunter]

^^ I've also heard/read it being referred to as the "network nebula" or something along the lines of that.

[Spanrz]

Dam, I'm 0.02 of a degree out of the 37 degrees :sadeyes: :sad:

I've been in both Hemispheres. Prefer the south by far!

[Kevnool]

Southern Belles ....opps souhern hemisphere.
Ive seen northern from Minesota 50klm,s from the Canadian Border.
Cheers Kev.

[Geoff45]

Couldn't we organise a few search and destroy missions to slow them down?

[Mars4ever]

Hi everybody!
I'm writing from Italy and I decided to enter in this discussion because last april, after 11 years of astronomy experience, finally I've been for the first time in my life in the SH! :)
I went to Namibia in a "guest astronomy farm" wich rents a large variety of instruments, so I could observe all the previous unseen constellations, with a 50 cm Dobson under a perfect non-polluted sky in the middle of the desert!:eyepop:
The place is this one:
http://tivoli-astrofarm.de (http://tivoli-astrofarm.de/tivoli_astrofarm.htm)
It was my only possibility for having high-quality observations because I already had a good experience of observations under dark skies with telescopes about 40 cm diameter, so I would never go to the SH if I couldn't watch even the southern objects with a large telescope... and unfortunately we can't transport big Dobsons on airplane!!
After that, I wrote a very long report of that amazing holiday, in four parts:
http://visualsky.blogspot.com/2009/05/seguendo-le-orme-di-lacaille.html
http://visualreports.blogspot.com/2009/06/oggetti-australi-ammassi-stellari.html
http://visualreports.blogspot.com/2009/07/oggetti-australi-nebulose_770.html
http://visualreports.blogspot.com/2009/10/oggetti-australi-galassie.html
Sorry if it's in italian language and I don't have time to translate it, but you can try to do it automatically with Google.
What do you think about?
Greetings from a very snowy place! :lol: