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June 2013 - Picture of the Month A '3' Asterism in Leo Image Courtesy of Prof. Greg Parker, New Forest Observatory, UK
Click on image for a 'high resolution version Greg's Observation Comments: A few weeks ago I was scrolling through the constellation Leo using “the Sky 6″ planetarium program when an amazing numerical asterism flashed into view. It looked quite unreal and I wondered if it would look as impressive in the flesh. We haven’t exactly been blessed with much in the way of decent imaging weather lately, so impatient to see what this region of Leo looked like I downloaded the DSS data for the area. Yep – it was every bit as impressive as it looked on the Sky 6. So now it’s playing the waiting game, waiting for some clear sky. Unbelievably, last night there was a 1-hour break in the clouds. I have never moved so fast, nor been so excited about taking a deep-sky image before – I really wanted this one. And I got it O.K. so it’s not deep enough to show the faint fuzzies in the background, and there’s not enough subs to really clean up the background noise either – but it’s still one of my favourite images of all time. The Webb Deep-Sky Society is pleased to announce that Prof. Greg Parker will be giving a talk at the 2013 AGM on his New Forest Observatory and the images that he has taken using the original Hyperstar/H9C, Sky 90/M25C, Hyperstar III/M25C and the mini-WASP array. For more images from Prof. Greg Parker please visit his New Forest Observatory website Sketches of Abell 2065 and Hoags Object Sketches Courtesy of Dale Holt, UK Click on sketches for larger versions
Dale's Observation Comments: Abell 2065 "All fired up after today's cracking meeting [AGM] and following up on an challenge laid down by Andrew Robertson during the meeting, tied in with Larry Mitchell's talk too I suspect :) Abell 2065, a very busy cluster, or should I say 'swarm' of tiny galaxies in Corona Borealis? Well I got it with my 20" mirror and Watec video camera, far from a great sky tonight, horizons totally obliterated by cloud & murk and zenith reading only 20.05 on the SQM." Hoags Object "With a run of clear skies in the UK this week [6th June 2013] I have been pushing myself to catch that couple of hours between midnight and 2am to pick up a few more Arp peculiars, as an aside I went for Hoags object in Serpens Caput, a ring galaxy discovered by Arthur Allen Hoag in 1950 and designated PGC54559, identified at that time as being a planetary or peculiar galaxy. With a listed visual magnitude of 16 and being an extended object I wasn't sure I would see anything with my 20" mirror and Watec 120N+ deep sky video camera, especially as I had spent 2 evenings trying to tease out decent detail from Arps's 79 & 177 and was feeling everything was hard work at the moment! However when the telescoped stopped slewing, there it was, this perfectly round, surprisingly small and pretty faint ring a lovely thing." Dale More details and preambles on Dale's observations can be seen if you visit his latest blog June 2013 - Double Star of the Month Situated in the north of Bootes STT 298 (15 36 02.59 +39 48 08.7) is one of the more rapid binary systems found by Otto Struve at Pulkovo and it now embarking on its fourth orbit since discovery. Look for the naked-eye pair nu1 and nu2 Bootis some 6° following beta Bootis and STT 298 can be found just south preceding phi Bootis. The star is nearby (the distance is 73 light years) so the orbit is relatively large in angular terms. The stars are almost near peristron and at 182°, 1".18 in mid-2013 they offer a good opportunity to see a pair with a period of only 55.6 years. The system moves across the sky at almost 0".5 per year and is accompanied at a distance of 121" by star C which is mag 7.8 and also a K dwarf. For the telescopic observer there are two fainter but unrelated stars of mags 12.1 and 13.9. DUN 178 (15 11 34.82 -45 16 39.0) is an orange KOIII giant star of mag 6.3 accompanied at a distance of 30".6 by a mag 7.3 white star according to Richard Jaworski using a 100-mm aperture in Australia. Both these stars appear in the Hipparcos catalogue but do not appear to be connected in any way. A is 510 light years away whilst B is 400 light years distant. At discovery in 1826 the pair were separated by 40" so the change is purely due to different proper motions. This pair is located in the heart of Lupus, a constellation rich in visual double stars, and can be found in the same low-power field as lambda Lupi. In 1929 Willem van den Bos, using the 26.5-inch refractor in Johannesburg, found a companion of mag 9.6 some 1".1 distant from A. There has been little change in the position of this star in the intervening 80 years and it offers a challenge to a 30-cm telescope in a good location. Bob Argyle - Double Star Section Director Object of the Season - Spring 2013 & Summer 2013 The Webb Deep-Sky Society Nebulae & Clusters Section Director Wolfgang Steinicke has requested observations for the following deep-sky objects:- Object of the Season (Spring 2013): Globular Cluster NGC 2419 in Lynx Details are published in DSO159 and the results will be presented in DSO 161 Click here for Object Details Object of the Season (Summer 2013): Planetary Nebula NGC 6210 in Hercules Details will be published in DSO160 and the results will be presented in DSO 162 Click here for Object Details
Click on images for higher resolution versions The complete schedule, including further objects, is published in the Deep Sky Observer (DSO). Observations should be sent to: steinicke-zehnle@t-online.de Wolfgang Steinicke, Gottenheimerstr. 18, D-79224 Umkirch, Germany. |
June 2013 - Galaxy of the Month NGC 5248 in the Constellation of Bootes Image Courtesy of Adam Block, Mount Lemmon SkyCenter, University of Arizona
Click on image for a 'high resolution version NGC 5248 Hunting galaxies in mid northern climes in June is a challenging affair as the skies never really get astronomically dark. For this month’s object then I have chosen the bright galaxy NGC 5248. NGC 5248 is in the constellation of Bootes but is actually part of the Virgo cluster of galaxies. NGC 5248 has its own small group which contains two other faint UGC galaxies and the group itself is part of the Virgo III group. The Virgo III chain consists of at least 8 groups of galaxies stretched into a chain at least 40 million light years long by the intense gravitational pull of the main Virgo cluster. NGC 5248 itself is a spiral galaxy seen at an angle of about 45 degrees. It is classified as a grand design SAB spiral with a short bar. However recent observations in the near infra-red have shown that in fact there may be a much longer bar with intense star formation which may be driving the spiral arms outside it. These spiral arms also appear to have a large amount of star formation going on as can be seen from the numerous HII regions in its spiral arms and the strong blue colour. Interestingly there maybe two spiral patterns, one in the nuclear regions and one in the outer reaches of the galaxy. A detailed Hubble image of the central region can be found here. As perhaps expected NGC 5248 was discovered by the indefatigable William Herschel in 1784. The distance to NGC 5248 is not as well defined as it might be but is at about 55 million light years. At this distance the galaxy itself is perhaps 120 000 light years across, so a bit larger than our Milky Way Shining at 10th magnitude NGC 5248 is visible in small telescopes although it may require a dark sky free from light pollution. A 10-20cm telescope will show the bright core but larger apertures will be needed to show any of the spiral structure. This is due to the fact that although the total brightness is quite high of NGC 5248 its large size means that its surface brightness is quite low. Large telescopes may also be able to pick up the other two much fainter members of its group, UGC 8575 and UGC 8829 which are half a degree east and half a degree south respectively from the NGC 5248.
For more images from Adam please visit the University of Arizona SkyCenter website Owen Brazell - Galaxy Section Director M106 in Canes Venatici
Image Courtesy of Warren A
Keller, New Mexico Click on image for a 'high resolution version
Warren's Observation Comments:
"Here's a new wide field version of M106, taken with a ginormous KAF-16803 sensor. Through the kindness of Moravian Camera owner Pavel Cagas, the G4 Moravian Instruments is on loan to Mike Miller and myself. I am pleased with the result and hope you will be too. Thanks for looking!"
M106 in Canes Venatici was actually discovered by Messier's friend Pierre Méchain in 1781. This beautiful and bright galaxy is about 20,000,000 light-years away and classified as a peculiar 'normal' Sb. The arms form a spiral pattern which can be traced well into its core. M106 has a much larger extent in radio radiation than in visual light. In 1995, evidence that it is the home of a massive dark object was detected. The active center emits jets similar to the central "engines" in other active galaxies such as M82, which can easily be seen in H-alpha light. A supernova (1981K) occurred in M106, August 1981 and reached 16th magnitude. Several neighboring galaxies can be seen here, most conspicuously NGC 4248 just up and left of the main galaxy. At 1 o'clock is the spectacular, golden edge-on NGC 4217. NGC 4220 appears at 10 o'clock, with NGC 4346 below at 5 o'clock. Note also, two tiny face-on spirals just above 4248. These are NGC 4231 and 4232. Thanks to Michael Miller for acquiring this fine data and to Pavel Cagas of Moravian CCD for loaning us the camera."
Image Details Date: 2013 Location: Mayhill, NM Software: ACP, MaxIm DL, TheSkyX Mount: Software Bisque Paramount MX Guide: SBIG ST-i and SV60 Optic: SV152 APO Camera: Moravian G4 Filter: Astrodon Tru-Balance I Series Exposure: LRGB all x 900s Process: PixInsight, Photoshop CS6
For more images from Warren please visit his Billions and Billions Astrophotography website |
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DSO 160 - Out Now!
Please Note. A downloadable digital version of DSO160 is not available at this time. Our Publication Manager is currently resolving image resolution and file size problems. A note will be posted on the Bulletin Board and Yahoo Group when a downloadable version is obtainable.
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Deep-Sky Observer (DSO) No 153 - Free Sample
This free journal is DSO 153 from 2010. You can download it as a PDF file onto your computer by right clicking the link below and choosing either 'Save Target As' or 'Save Link As'.... |
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The Witch Head Nebula IC 2118 in Eridanus Image Courtesy of Warren A Keller, New Mexico
Click on image for a high resolution version Warren's Observation Comments "This large and diffuse reflection nebula is illuminated by the bright light of Rigel, the foot-star of Orion the Hunter. The Witch Head lies just over the border in the constellation Eridanus the River at approximately 1,000 light years from Earth. Notice the redder nebulosity surrounding her eye, an indication that star birth is occurring within the nebula. For too long, her enormous structure eluded me. Thanks to the larger field of view of observing partner Mike Miller's refractor, she was acquired in a two-panel mosaic. Looking at the old crone's profile, imagine you can hear the evil cackle of this witchy woman." Image Details Date: 2012 Location: Mayhill, NM Software: ACP, MaxIm DL, TheSkyX Mount: Software Bisque Paramount MX Guide: SBIG ST-i and SV60 Optic: SV152 APO Camera: Apogee Alta U16000 Filter: Astrodon Tru-Balance I Series Exposure: LRGB all x 900s Process: PixInsight, Photoshop CS6 For more images from Warren please visit his Billions and Billions Astrophotography website |
Orion Complex Image Courtesy of Paul A Brierley, Cheshire, UK
Click on image for a high resolution version
Paul's Observation Comments:
"I was very lucky to have a clear sky on Wednesday February 6th. And between 1900hrs and 2100 hrs I was able to image the area around Orion, showing the Horse-Head nebula and M42. Barnard's loop isn't visible. This is one target I hope to capture before we loose Orion next month. I was using my 1000D piggy backed on my Losmandy G11, with a Canon 35-80mm Zoom lens attached. The lens was set to 80mm F6.5. This image is the result of. Sixty times, One minute sub frames. And are UN-guided. Stacked in DSS and processed in CS2."
Regards Observing Co-ordinator Macclesfield AS Blogspot Web Album Peak Star Party |
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Albireo (β Cyg) in the Constellation of Cygnus
Image Courtesy of Prof. Greg Parker, New Forest Observatory, UK Click on image for a higher resolution image Greg's Observation Comments: "[This] was taken with the original Hyperstar (the one with no collimation adjusters) on the Celestron C11 and a tiny little H9C (1.4 megapixel) one-shot colour camera. This would have been around an hour's worth of 60-second subs. One of my very first deep-sky images :)" For more images from Prof. Greg Parker please visit his New Forest Observatory website |
Wide Field Image of the Constellation of Auriga Image Courtesy of Paul Whitmarsh, Uckfield, UK
Click on image for a higher resolution image Paul's Observation Comments: "We have finally had some clear skies :-) when i've not been in the office working! I've been taking some wide field shots. I'm working on one of Orion, but in the mean time I thought I would send this one of Auriga to you. It's a sum of 3 x 300 second exposures, taken with a modified Canon 450D and a 50mm Canon f1.4 lens, used at f4. I also used an Astronomiks CCD CLS filter. The shots were taken on the night of the 2nd Feb 2013. I like these wide field shots as they give a great sense of proportion to the objects included within. The image was taken from my home observatory near Uckfield." |
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The Brightest Planetary Nebulae Observing Atlas - 2nd Edition Courtesy of Massimo Zecchin - Italy Massimo has just completed the 2nd Edition of an atlas of planetary nebulae observed with small apertures and from suburban locations, entitled: "The Brightest Planetary Nebulae Observing Atlas". The atlas is freely available in two versions, Black (for display) and White (printer friendly with the images in negative).
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