Object nominations for July's Challenge

[mental4astro]

Hi all,

The last few Challenge's has been object type specific, maybe a mixed kettle again?

I've got four nominations for this month.

Naked Eye: Like a couple of Corona's during a night's viewing? There are a few constellations that have Northern and Southern counter parts, including Pisces and Piscis Austrinus, Triangulum and Triangulum Australe, and this month's nomination- Corona Australis and Corona Borealis. These a both relatively compact constellations with obvious 'ring' of stars forming the Regal Crowns. Nice thing here is they are fairly close to each other, allowing for direct comparison between the tightness and prominence of the component stars.

Easy Target, with plenty of juice for those who like a challenge: M8 and M20 double in Sagittarius. M8 (the Lagoon Nebula) and M20 (The Trifid Nebula) offer all scope sizes plenty to seek out. M8 is a big nebula with an associated open cluster, is so bright to be a naked eye object too. In a small scope it has a distinct 'hour glass' appearance, and larger scopes can attempt to hunt down its many Bok Globuals. M8 is very close to M20, and serves as a contrast. Even relatively small scopes can make out the 'cris-cross' dark pattern that traverses it.

Challenging fair: NGC 4038 & NGC 4039, The Antennae, in Corvus. These are a pair of tidally interacting galaxies of which the former has an arm quite distinctly 'pull out open' as these galaxies interact gravitationally.

Any other suggestions?

Mental.

[mental4astro]

Hi all,

Here are a few more object suggestions:

Sweep of Milky Way with binoculars from Carina east through to Sagittarius. Almost overwhelming concentration of stars, bright and dark nebulae, open clusters, globular clusters and galaxies. From a dark site the dark dust 'fingers' of the Milky Way can be easily seen by naked eye, with the "Dark Horse of Sagittarius" a feature of the Milky Way, probably second to the Coal Sack as an easily identifiable naked eye dark nebula. The following link showing this dark nebula as Sagittarius sets in the west:

http://imgsrc.hubblesite.org/hu/db/1999/30/images/e/formats/full_jpg.jpg

M104, the Sombrero Galaxy, in Virgo. Mentioned in an earlier Challenge, but with the Antennae Galaxy being offered, the Sombrero is very nearby and is an achieveable target with binoculars too. I've seen the Sombrero in my 50mm binos from my home in Sydney's east, with its quite distinct lenticular shape easy to make out. Stunning to see from binos to as big a scope as you've got. Interesting to note that as far as galaxies are concrened, the Milky Way is a giant, the Sombrero out guns the Milky Way probably by some 30%.

Three more galaxies: M83 in Hydra, not too far from the Sombrero, also observeable with binoculars. NGC 4699 & 5247, both in Virgo, companions to M104 in the Virgo Galaxy Cluster, the former tightly wound and the later with arms visible in scopes around 16".

A final offering- M16, the Eagle Nebula, in Serpens Cauda. A Cluster and Nebula combination similar to the Lagoon Nebula, and very close to the Lagoon too. Together with the Star Cloud M24, they make an almost straight line of naked eye clusters/nebulae.

[ArcaneMagik]

Looking forward to hunting down some of these under better seeing conditions than Western Sydney. Especially Sombrero, as so far I am a galaxy virgin.

A few of them I have only noticed briefly on a starmap and not taken to time to look for.

July is going to be fun hunting them down.

[Paddy]

What about Barnard's galaxy for those with darker skies?

[pgc hunter]

Pease 1 - planetary in M15

[mental4astro]

PGC, can you give us a couple more PN's of your likeing?

[pgc hunter]

I would but it's too cloudy here in the cloudiest torture chamber on earth