Viewing Galaxies

[Jazza11]

I want to start viewing Galaxies I know the basics like only try if the moon is early or late in its cycle or when it has set but how do I actually find the galaxies, what am i suppost to look for and also what EP's work good for galaxies???

[astro_nutt]

Hi Jazza 11
Need some more info on what kind of scope/bino's you have, etc..size and type of EP's you have.
Cheers!

[Rodstar]

Hello Jazza 11.

To locate some galaxies, you will need some sky maps! There are some nice bright galaxies to be seen in the early to mid evening at the moment in the constellations of Grus, Sculptor and Fornax.

As Astro_nutt has averted to, the size of your scope will dictate how many galaxies you can see, and the extent to which you will be able to perceive any detail. The best thing you can do to improve your chances of seeing some detail in a galaxy is to go away from the city lights to a dark country location. I am sure some of your Queensland compatriat IceInSpacers can give you some suggestions about where good dark skies are.

Good luck with the hunt! It is worth the effort.

[Robh]

Do you have a planisphere? It should have the following galaxies marked on it ...
Local Group: Small Magellanic Cloud near 47 Tuc and the Large Magellanic Cloud with the Tarantula Nebula (NGC 2070).
Then there is the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) and the Sculptor Galaxy (NGC 253).
The SMC, LMC and M31 can be seen naked eye under darker skies and even better with binoculars. NGC 253 can be seen with a decent pair of binoculars and better in a telescope (say 6 inch).

You will need more detailed maps to find fainter galaxies.
I find the lower magnifications (say x50) and wider fields more useful for finding and viewing galaxies. You can always up the magnification for detail on those with an apparent smaller size.

Regards, Rob

[Starkler]

This is the single most important factor in seeing low surface brightness objects like galaxies. At a dark site I can see galaxies in my 50mm finder scope that are hard to see in my 15"er from the suburbs.

[Kevnool]

Agree with you there the finder scope was very important in hunting galaxies before the Argo-Navis came along.
Cheers Kev.

[Shasta55]

Hi all,
I'm fairly new to this hobby. I have a Celestron 4 inch refractor. I've had success at observing planets, nebulae, clusters & C/2022 e3...Now I'm wanting to see some fainter objects. I have 6 good sites ranging from B4 (21.52) to B2 (21.88) within 10 mins to 35 mins away.


So lately I've been trying at a 21.52 sky to find Cen A & Tweezers Galaxies. Using the Ω Cen Cluster as a reference point I've searched with a 20mm wide angle EP & 15mm 70 deg EP. No luck.


With no moon the viewing has been great there lately. I know I can go try in those darker sites but I thought I'd ask advice as to whether my gear should be capable at 21.52. Astronomy Tools site says it should be but without reference to sky conditions.


I could use StarSense Explorer software but I'm pretty keen to learn my own way around.

[taminga16]

Jeremy,

try these links... www.timeanddate.com (this site is interactive and you can set your location.

www.skymaps.com... these maps are published Monthly, be sure to scroll down to the Southern Hemisphere edition.

Greg.

[Shasta55]

Thanks - I'll certainly look that up. But actually that question was from 2009. My blurb below was basically wondering if my gear is capable of observing galaxies.

[The Mekon]

Certainly you can see galaxies in your 4" refractor. See this list that Glen C has compiled. https://www.iceinspace.com.au/63-268-0-0-1-0.html (if link does not work it is in the "projects and articles section).
Your 4' should pick up the majority of those galaxies under magnitude 10.
The difficulty will be locating them. If you have goto - fine. Otherwise you need good charts and a quality finderscope.

[Shasta55]

Many thanks.

[raymo]

Experienced observers use averted vision to locate faint objects. The outer part of the eye's field of view is more sensitive than the centre, so use a low power eyepiece which will give a wider field of view[less chance of passing by Cent A] and slowly sweep toward the expected location of the target, trying to use the leading edge of your view, not peering directly at the centre of the view. It takes a little practice, but is a big help once perfected.
raymo

[Shasta55]

Thanks. Been trying to learn that with nebulae & getting there bit by bit. I'll drive a bit further & try it in darker skies when conditions allow.

[raymo]

Chris, you can assess how you are progressing by using a bright globular cluster, O.Cent or 47Tuc for example. If you put it in the centre of your field of view and look straight at it, try and memorise what you are seeing, and then
slowly move the cluster away from the centre, but don't follow it; keep looking straight ahead so the cluster is moving out of your field of view. As it moves away it should appear a little sharper, and you should see more resolved stars
in its core.
raymo

[Shasta55]

Thank you all for the helpful tips. I'll put them to the test as soon as the moon goes into day mode (advanced years and morning exercise routine don't allow all-nighters these days) :) . I might post an outcome.

[Renato1]

Hi Chris,
I've visually tracked down around 3000 galaxies - mainly using an 8" and a 14.5" telescope. I always used a 2mm exit pupil, as it made the galaxies pop-up easily. But when I used a 4" refractor, on the brightest galaxies, I must say that I was less than impressed with what I saw relative to the other telescopes.

That said, at a really dark site outside Benalla, when Virgo was high in the sky, I swept across it with a pair of 25X100 binoculars - and saw dozens of tiny galaxies on each sweep. And that was with a 4mm exit pupil. Your refractor gathers more light than that pair, and would do a better job at an equally dark site. Virgo is up in the early morning hours now. Perhaps try sweeps across it with eyepieces giving 3mm or 4mm exit pupils. If you find one, increase the power to that of a 2mm exit pupil.
Regards,
Renato