| Observer: | Tom Campbell |
| Location: | College Station, Texas (Long: 101°56'W Lat: 33°47'N) |
| Telescope: | Zhumell 12" f/5 Dobsonian (Biggie Z) |
| Eyepieces: | 1.25" - 15mm 82° Erfle (100X) |
| Lenses: | Celestron Luminos 2.5x Barlow |
| Seeing: | Stable (7/10) |
| Transparency: | Clear |
| Weather: | Mid 60s, with a slight breeze, turning colder and windier as the night progressed. |
Today was clear and warm. I came home from work excited, knowing the clear sky and nearly new Moon would be great for observing. I set up my telescope in my back yard and waited for darkness to fall.
When I went back outside, however, I was dismayed to see that nearly every neighbor of mine had either porch lights or security lights shining brightly. I lugged the Biggie Z to the darkest section of my yard, but knew that any hopes of viewing galaxies or nebulae were gone.
While I was deciding what I wanted to do, the song "That's Amore" came into my head and I began quietly singing some made-up lyrics:
When folks shine their porch light
And you can't tell it's night,
That's a bummer.
You want to give them a shot
But you know you'd get caught.
That's a bummer.
...
Okay, enough of the bad lyrics - I had my plan. Not to be one to waste a clear night, I went back inside and printed out a Plan B observing list, consisting of double stars and planetary nebulae. Armed with this new list, I began my session in earnest.
| 17 CMa | Canis Major | Multiple Star | 7:50pm CST |
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This is an interesting quadruple star. At 250X, it looks great, with a wide separation. The primary is a creamy white, forming a nice triangle with two fainter stars. The faintest member is blue-white, and the third member is slightly brighter and deep orange. The fourth white star is a larger distance away, making a crooked kite formation. |
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| ν1 CMa | Canis Major | Double Star | 7:55pm CST |
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This is a pretty double at 100X. It looks like a slightly paler version of Albireo. The primary is yellow-white, and its pale blue companion is about a magnitude fainter. |
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| ShJ 49 | Orion | Double Star | 8:10pm CST |
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This double is along the upper part of Orion's bow. It is a triple star in the shape of the constellation Aries. The middle star is the brightest. All three stars appear white, but the brightest member has a yellowish cast. |
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| Σ627 | Orion | Double Star | 8:15pm CST |
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This double system consists of two white stars of almost equal brightness, staring back at me like glowing eyes in the darkness. |
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| IC 2165 | Canis Major | Planetary Nebula | 9:10pm CST |
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I spent several minutes trying to track down this planetary nebula, but with no luck. I was using a large arc of stars in Lepus as a starting point for locating it, and knew I was in the right general area, but still couldn't seem to find it. The wind was starting to get stronger, and it was turning cold, so I headed back inside for a short break to put on a heavier jacket and to print out some more detailed charts. Starhopping again with the new charts, I was able to track down the right field stars. This planetary nebula is tiny. I had to bump it up to 250X to get it to appear non-stellar. Even at that magnification, no details were visible - it appeared as a round, fuzzy star. The wind was beginning to jiggle the telescope a bit, which wasn't helping. |
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The wind was showing no signs of getting better, and it was starting to cool off quite a bit. I decided to call it quits earlier than I had planned. Still, five new objects tonight in less than ideal conditions made for a successful evening. |
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