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Super Seeing
Hi Andrew & All,
Hello mate -- long (long) time no see.
Yep, that Homunculus sure does get a work-out when the seeing is good. I've been keeping tabs on the central star and the shape of the fainter lobe for some time now. I reckon the central star reached a plateau about 18 months ago and is pretty much at stand-still -- at about mag 5.2 - 5.3 it is naked eye visible in a goodish suburban sky. But the brighter spot immediately below the star and the general faintness of the fainter lobe is what I find the most intriguing. The brighter portions of the fainter lobe are now almost "anchor-shaped" with two big bites out of the sides. Those bites though are still faintly nebulous, but much fainter than the main mass.
All-in-all it is still a pretty astonishing object and knowing what is going on (well, we've got a pretty good idea) inside that maelstrom makes it even better.
Good to hear from you!!
Best,
Les D
Contributing Editor
AS&T
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