Well it's good that all this cloud has cleared up a bit in recent nights and I've been doing a fair bit of looking. I even got up at 1am on Sunday and had a a squiz at Saturn - obviously I hadn't drank nearly enough on Saturday night!
So I've decided to start looking for specific targets and I've found John Bambury's Southern Skies observing list. I can't begin to explain how helpful this is and I'm sure I'm going to have years of fun working my way through such a comprehensive list but...
... I'm Struggling! I spent a good hour this evening looking for the Rosette Nebula, to no avail.
Firstly, I sorted the spreadsheet by the best viewed month, then Vmag, then type. I decided to look for the Rosette Neb. as it's a dark Neb. like Orion, has a decent magnitude and therefore should be fairly easy to find, right?
Well I couldn't find the blasted thing, maybe it's not there
I set my declination through Orion's belt as it's similar to the Rosette Neb (according to Stellarium) then I worked my way round to what I thought was the right right ascension but nothing.
Any tips?
Thanks in advance
P.S. I've had a good look at the Orion Nebula and I want some more!!!
The Rosette is very big and quite faint. The OC in the middle is easy enough but teasing out the nebulosity is hard work. I have only ever managed to see some parts in my 12"
The Rosette Nebula will be a challenge, as it has a very low surface brightness over a large area. You will probably require a dark sky site to see this one, but may depend on your local light pollution.
It, the OC, can (apparently) be seen with 10x50mm bins under favourable conditions. You may need a decent aperture to view the nebula, with a good wide-field eyepiece. I haven't seen it yet, although I have tried.
Good luck! Others will advise you on this target.
Cheers
John
Edit: Malcolm beat me to it!
Last edited by Scorpius51; 12-02-2013 at 12:34 PM.
Yes, the Rosette is quite an enigmatic nebula. It is huge, actually, but very faint, with no real prospect of been seen from urban areas - it really needs a dark site.
However, you don't need a big scope to see it. Binos will show its smokey ring around the cluster Malcom describes.
But with a scope, there's a few things that help. Low power, and a nebula filter. Rich field scopes tend to work best. A rich field scope is one that's f/5 or faster. A nebula filter will cut down the background sky glow and allow the wavelengths of light that the nebula glows at to be transmitted to our eye.
The larger the aperture the more detail will be revealed. In my big dob and using an OIII nebula filter, it somewhat resembles the iris of a giant eye with the cluster sitting within the dark "pupil". Quite beautiful. But like I said, faint.
That explains a lot then, i'm sure I read on here that mgnitude is measured collectivey but can be spread over a large object -well that's how I interpreted it.
I'm in central Brisbane and have bad light pollution. Sounds like a nebula filter will be a good investment and a decent set of binos, which I am on the hunt for.
Any other nebulas, other than Orion, that I'll have a chance of seeing from my location?
I've a 10" dob, only had it two weeks, and just ahve three basic eyepieces. I hear you lot are good at spending other people's money, feel free to suggest although a decent pair of 10 x 5 binos will most likely be my next purchase.
Yep, Eta Carina (NGC 3372), the Tarantula (NGC 2070, and it's not in our galaxy!), Swan nebula (NGC 6618, also called M17), the Lagoon (M8, also NGC 6523) and the Trifid nebula (M20, also NGC 6514). All of these will benefit from an OIII nebula filter for urban viewing, and will do amazing things from a dark site.
Gear wise, stick with what you have for now. Binos though will help you both at home (I use mine from home too), and are FANTASTIC at a dark site. Don't underestimate their potency though they may seem small in aperture!
I suggested an OIII filter, maybe that's the only other thing for now. It will perform very well with the eyepieces you have, and will be your greatest asset to see nebulae from urban skies.
Any other bits of gear can wait. You'll gain a whole lot more by cutting your teeth on the gear you have now,
PS, Malcom, you beat me to it with Eta and the Tarantula!
Last edited by mental4astro; 12-02-2013 at 12:27 AM.
Reason: PS added
Here's a link to the amazing complex that is Eta Carina. With just a little bit of knowledge, this nebula will reveal soooo much more detail and understanding. Your 10" dob will show just about everything that's noted in this link too!
Regarding the Rosette Nebula, as others have well described, it is FAINT.
I only managed a total of 10 minutes on it last year (haven't tried since), and just for giggles, I decided to stretch the data as far as I could (as the nebulosity was barely discernable in the 10 min exposure at ISO 800).So, excuse the colours, bloating etc, as this was actually in my Reject file to be either deleted or used later...
It's grainy, colours maxed out (wrong colouring for the most part) etc. It's been stretched to death, but you can START to see the details.
Don't forget the following around Orion and other parts up now:
Flame Nebula - Easy to moderate, depending on LP.
Horsehead - difficult
M1 - Crab Nebula - Easy
Leo Triplet (M65, M66 and NGC3628)- Moderate, but these are pretty bright
M104 - Sombero Galaxy - easy to see, when you can pinpoint it. (look for 3 stars close together in a line)
Omega Centauri Globular Cluster - Very Easy
NGC 5128 - Centaurus A - Easy to moderate, depending on the LP.
Plus from a light polluted position, open clusters and globulars are all great quick fix targets.
As Cumbrian is in central Brisbane, I thought the Crab, the Flame and definitely the Horsey may be a tough. Also M17, M8 and M20 are not rising until early morning, probably not visible until an hour or two before sunrise?
Omega Cent, the brighter 2 members of the Leo triplet, and M104 should be OK. I think NGC 5128 may struggle with that location.
For Open Clusters M41 and M47 in Canis Major. Even have a crack at M46 very near M47, may be tough. Also lots of open clusters near Eta Carina
It's intestering to compare.
I am sure I was able to see structure (faint circular structure) in the Rosette with no moon and moderate light pollution of the night of the 8th, but only with a UHC filter @ 50x and only by sweeping the scope to be sure of the contrast changes.
I had looked a few times previously (with various level of moon lighting) and seen nothing except the central cluster.
The Flame I have not yet been able to detect with or without the UHC filter despite several attempts over the last 2-3 weeks. Same story for any nebulosity around the Christmas tree cluster.
Tonight is looking good so another attempt maybe before I swing around south.
