Quote:
Originally Posted by FJA
 
Sounds like a lovely session. What were the little galaxies you saw?
NGC 253 is one of my favourite binocular targets. It's quite low in the south from here, just clearing the trees on a nearby hill, so it's easier to look at with binoculars than the scope.
47 Tuc is one of my favourites from my visits to Australia, Omega Cen rules the roost in terms of size but I like 47's compact core and symmetrical appearance. I've not seen NGC 362, so that's on my observing list for my next trips.  |
Hey Faith,
The galaxies were NGC 7083 on the border of Pavo and Indus, NGC 7090 in Indus, NGC 7205 on the border of Indus and Tucana, and the patch of galaxies in the vicinity of theta Gruis.
We are very lucky in the south to have 253 rise so high in the sky. It is one of those targets which looks like a cosmic city...the spiral arms are able to be discerned notwithstanding the awkward angle of this galaxy vis-a-vis the Earth, and there is nice mottling. It takes up the whole diameter of the visual field in my 20T5, and is too large for my 13E. When am under dark skies, it looks AMAZING in my 31T5.
Yes, we southerners are divided on whether we prefer 47Tuc or Omega Centauri. Omega needs a huge FOV to do it justice. I prefer to use my 31T5 under a dark sky for best results. It is coarse and "out there". 47Tuc is more subtle, more woolly, more concentrated at the core, and more beautiful in my opinion. In smaller instruments I think Omega has more impact, but the larger the aperture, the more wonderous 47Tuc becomes.
Hope you can come to Australia as planned in the next year or two!
