2 august 2020

This was a short night.  Seeing was ok but did not support high powers.  Transparency was the main issue, with a haze of both marine vapor and smoke from wildfires in the north causing problems.  So I only observed a few stars.  However, I did document KUI 79 short period, and re-observed curious HU 66.

STF 2163 AB: 508; 205x: White stars, nice split .1", near equal

17H 23M 21.04S +42° 09' 03.2" P.A. 73 SEP 1.4 MAG 10.25,10.49 SP F8

A 1880 AB: 508; 205x: At the end of an arc of three stars.  B is blue and faint but easily seen, well separated ~3" from bright white A, ~2 delta mag.

17H 38M 11.57S +52° 36' 22.8" P.A. 114 SEP 2.7 MAG 9.20,11.20 SP K0

ES 1743 BC: 508; 205x: AB is obvious, bright A with the faint B well separated.  BC is the tougher pair, faint blue stars ~3", ~1 delta mag.

17H 45M 34.09S +59° 14' 05.2" P.A. 76 SEP 2.5 MAG 11.40,12.40

MLB 1077 AB: 508; 205x: B seen faintly with direct vision, brightens with averted vision, ~5" separated & ~2 delta mag

17H 47M 57.47S +57° 06' 40.0" P.A. 213 SEP 4.5 MAG 9.24,11.10 SP G5

STT 351 AC: 508; 333x: Orange stars, noticeable magnitude difference ~0.5, separated just less than ~1".  What's curious is the AB pair is HU 66 AB listed as 7.90/8.40 0.1" currently, with HU 66 BC as 8.40/8.25 0.9".  So my question is, if AC is physical, and if BC are physical too, why is AC uncertain?  It would seem they should all be sharing orbits?  Perhaps it just cries out for additional measures -- AB is grade 4 and BC is grade 5, so they are confident of physicality but there's not enough data to nail it down.

18H 25M 18.20S +48° 45' 42.5" P.A. 29 SEP 0.8 MAG 7.90,8.25 SP G5 DIST. 144.72 PC (472.08 L.Y.)

KUI 79 AB: 508; 333x: Re-observed this pair in order to sketch its position after finding it is a short (13 year!) period.  It should be very easy to track the progress of this one.

17H 12M 07.78S +45° 39' 57.6" P.A. 280.8 SEP 0.76 MAG 10.02,10.25 SP K5 DIST. 5.98 PC (19.51 L.Y.)

The last couple of days have had some dramatic prominences on the sun, and I've been tracking them with my PST.  One very large spike, with an arch at its bottom, turned into a bright arch.  I wonder if the top lifted off.

(image Ted Dobosz)

The night of the 29th I used the 6-inch on the moon, and then Jupiter, and was able to see Io emerge out of Jupiter's shadow -- a dim point, growing brighter in less than a minute.  Comparing to views through my 8-inch masked reflector last night, I would say for sure the refractor is better (more contrasty) than the reflector.  Though, the mirror needs a cleaning.

Seeing was not very good last night, about 5-6/10, and transparency was poor with the usual haze.  Marine layer fog started to drift in around 11:00pm, so I packed it in. 

STF 2323 AB: 203; 205x: 39 Dra.  Brilliant white A and slightly ruddy B, ~3 delta mag, ~4" sep.  3962.5 year period.  It's all about that half year!

18H 23M 54.65S +58° 48' 02.1" P.A. 348 SEP 3.74 MAG 5.06,8.07 SP A1V DIST. 56.47 PC (184.21 L.Y.)

ES 187 AB: 203; 205x: Near equal, ~2", slightly ruddy stars.  Nice pair 

18H 23M 45.03S +51° 38' 55.8" P.A. 207 SEP 2.5 MAG 9.32,9.43 SP G5 DIST. 61.31 PC (199.99 L.Y.)

STT 351 AC: 203; 305x: Split, better with seeing, light orange stars, significant mag difference.  Did not notice HU 66 AB, 7.9/8.4 0.1" or HU 66 BC, 8.40/8.25 0.9 -- need to go back to this one!

18H 25M 18.20S +48° 45' 42.5" P.A. 29 SEP 0.8 MAG 7.90,8.25 SP G5 DIST. 144.72 PC (472.08 L.Y.)

TDT 896 AB: 203; 205x: Faint but easy pair, wide, <1 delta mag.  Not physical. 

18H 28M 16.85S +49° 30' 16.0" P.A. 152 SEP 8.8 MAG 10.57,11.41

HU 932 AB: 203; 205x: B appears with foveal coaxing, but can hold it direct.  ~3 delta mag to bright light yellow A, ~2"

18H 31M 19.01S +62° 32' 16.8" P.A. 76 SEP 2 MAG 7.26,10.85 SP F2 DIST. 131.06 PC (427.52 L.Y.)

ES 784 AB: 203; 205x: ~1 delta mag, fairly wide white stars.  Not physical

18H 31M 51.82S +51° 10' 47.8" P.A. 65 SEP 7.2 MAG 10.00,10.50

STF 2357 AB: 203; 205x: Wide ~1 delta mag white 

18H 32M 53.86S +63° 42' 33.0" P.A. 271 SEP 4.7 MAG 9.32,9.89 SP K0 DIST. 90.58 PC (295.47 L.Y.)

STF 2368 AB: 203; 205x: Brilliant white near equal stars, nicely separated ~2" 

18H 38M 51.27S +52° 20' 38.2" P.A. 321 SEP 1.9 MAG 7.63,7.77 SP A3 DIST. 263.16 PC (858.43 L.Y.)

A 1379 AB: 203; 205x: Faint pair, resolved with seeing, B is flickering between direct and averted vision. 

18H 38M 43.02S +52° 43' 27.6" P.A. 210 SEP 2.1 MAG 9.71,10.26 SP A3

ES 787 AB: 203; 205x: V410 Dra. B noticed with averted vision then held direct as a faint point, ~3 delta mag and wide, white stars.  Not physical 

18H 39M 56.26S +51° 05' 34.1" P.A. 37 SEP 8.2 MAG 8.93,11.69 SP G5 DIST. 117.51 PC (383.32 L.Y.)

HU 754 AB: 203; 205x: Very fine B, a tiny point outside brilliant white A's diffraction.  ~3 delta at least.

18H 41M 44.99S +51° 07' 33.6" P.A. 93 SEP 1.3 MAG 8.36,11.53 SP A2 DIST. 318.47 PC (1038.85 L.Y.)

STF 2398 AB: 203; 205x: Very light orange stars, ~1 delta mag, wide.  408 year period

18H 42M 46.69S +59° 37' 49.4" P.A. 181.6 SEP 11.04 MAG 9.11,9.96 SP M4+M4.5 DIST. 3.57 PC (11.65 L.Y.)

STI2383 AB: 203; 205x: Faint near equal stars, wide, seems to be in a small cluster.  Physical pair.

18H 43M 19.16S +56° 36' 55.8" P.A. 343 SEP 14.5 MAG 11.06,11.19

STI2384 AB: 203; 205x: Very faint, barely there, averted vision hardly helps, but there are two hazy points, wide ~4".  Not physical 

18H 43M 58.14S +55° 58' 31.3" P.A. 142 SEP 3.8 MAG 11.80,11.80

STF 2403 AB: 508; 333x: Very tough.  B is a brightening or condensation on A's diffraction ring, when A settles down with seeing. 

18H 44M 18.25S +61° 02' 53.3" P.A. 278 SEP 1.1 MAG 6.25,8.35 SP G8III DIST. 109.53 PC (357.29 L.Y.)

MLB 1079 BC: 508; 205x: A-BC is relatively bright white A, wide separation.  The B of BC is easily but C is more difficult, fainter, but yet a steady point with seeing 

18H 45M 49.76S +59° 22' 27.2" P.A. 279 SEP 7.4 MAG 11.20,12.50

MLR 7 AB: 508; 333x: Extremely fine, ~1 delta, ~1" separation, resolved only with seeing when stars harden to points.

18H 46M 07.33S +61° 21' 10.6" P.A. 303 SEP 1.1 MAG 9.91,11.00 SP F5

HU 937 AB: 508; 333x: Hairline split at 205x, more definite split with 333x, ~1 delta mag.  A is yellow-white, B is a deeper yellow-orange.  225.53 year period

18H 46M 13.38S +64° 11' 44.4" P.A. 333 SEP 1.06 MAG 8.85,9.90 SP F8 DIST. 97.75 PC (318.86 L.Y.)

STF 2410 AB: 508; 205x: White, ~1 delta mag, well split ~2" 

18H 46M 56.67S +59° 19' 52.0" P.A. 86 SEP 1.7 MAG 8.59,8.85 SP F8 DIST. 144.09 PC (470.02 L.Y.)

STI 865 AB: 508; 205x: Faint but well seen, nicely split ~4", nice hard points 

18H 51M 54.46S +59° 48' 56.6" P.A. 179 SEP 3.7 MAG 11.61,12.10

ES 1746 AB: 508; 205x: Fairly faint, slight mag difference, well split ~2" 

18H 52M 50.17S +58° 14' 48.9" P.A. 114 SEP 1.8 MAG 10.52,11.09

TDS 955 AB: 508; 333x: Very fine, resolved with seeing, ~1 delta mag ~1", pretty difficult.

18H 56M 21.13S +58° 54' 26.1" P.A. 146 SEP 0.9 MAG 10.50,11.11

STF 2438 AB: 508; 333x: Hairline split, white stars, near equal.  261.6 year period, look how fast it will move in the years 2150-2160!

18H 57M 28.47S +58° 13' 30.0" P.A. 357.1 SEP 0.86 MAG 7.01,7.44 SP A2IV DIST. 125.16 PC (408.27 L.Y.)

TDT 1168 AB: 508; 205x: Nice white and blue pair, easily seen, ~2 delta ~2" 

18H 59M 17.70S +59° 28' 45.5" P.A. 250 SEP 1.8 MAG 9.56,11.47 SP F8

ES 1844 AB: 508; 205x: Faint pair, significant mag difference, B noticed with averted vision before holding direct, well split ~3" 

18H 59M 30.05S +63° 47' 34.5" P.A. 20 SEP 3 MAG 9.60,10.50

A 1387 AB: 508; 667x: Notched elongation, white stars.  Seeing not good enough to split 

18H 59M 20.43S +54° 50' 12.5" P.A. 351 SEP 0.3 MAG 9.05,10.02 SP A0

ES 1748 AB: 508; 205x: Easy ~1 delta mag wide pair 

18H 59M 44.10S +55° 43' 25.9" P.A. 55 SEP 6.6 MAG 9.45,10.80 SP G5

ARG 33 AB: 508; 205x: BH Dra.  White stars, ~1 delta mag, wide 

19H 03M 39.54S +57° 27' 25.9" P.A. 57 SEP 10.6 MAG 8.46,9.25 SP A0 DIST. 211.42 PC (689.65 L.Y.)

TDS 970 AB: 508; 333x: Hairline split, near equal.  Not in WDS 

28 july 2020

Spent some time looking at the moon with the 6-inch last night with binoviewers.  Seeing was pretty good and I could comfortably view at 365x.  I'm planning to adjust my eyepiece collection to fit with binoviewers using this scope--the viewing is so comfortable and contrasty, surely due to the small exit pupils, that I want a good range to view.
 
After dark, 10pm, I viewed with the 20-inch and seeing was good enough to use full aperture, but not so good as to get me over 533x.  Good pairs, in Lyra.  Many Espin pairs, he was very busy in this part of the sky.  Most of the fields were rich in stars.  Many of these are on the faint side for the typical observer, and I suspect not a lot of measures or research has been done because they are uncertain pairs.

ES 1424 AB: 508; 205x: A is a light orange & bright, B seen easily as a dull pin point, wide ~5", large delta mag.
18H 44M 57.58S +44° 21' 32.5" P.A. 90 SEP 7.9 MAG 8.36,13.00 SP F5 DIST. 128.7 PC (419.82 L.Y.)

ROE 50 AB: 508; 205x: A is a light blue and B is much fainter orange color, wide ~5"
18H 45M 19.87S +40° 04' 58.4" P.A. 282 SEP 4.7 MAG 10.80,11.70

STF 2394 AB: 508l 205x: Easy white near equal wide.  Physical.
18H 45M 28.48S +42° 02' 07.4" P.A. 203 SEP 6.9 MAG 9.61,9.96

BU 51 BC: 508; 205x: A is light orange & bright, BC is and obvious blue pair ~1 delta mag between B and C, wide ~3-4".  Nice!  Burnham: "Unimportant triple a short distance from Epsilon Lyrae, noted with 6-inch."
18H 45M 39.17S +39° 40' 45.9" P.A. 297 SEP 6 MAG 11.95,12.90

TDT1049 AB: 508; 333x: Faint pair split with seeing at 205x, more definite with 333x.  Slight mag difference.
18H 46M 29.75S +44° 16' 01.8" SEP 1.3 MAG 11.17,11.47

COU 1153 AB: 508; 533x: Snowman at best moments, slight mag difference.  Seems more difficult than a typical 0.4"
18H 46M 34.77S +34° 14' 58.0" P.A. 118 SEP 0.4 MAG 10.40,10.70

ES 2023 AB: 508; 205x: Bright white A, B is seen with averted vision and then can hold direct, ~7"
18H 48M 24.10S +36° 11' 41.8" P.A. 246 SEP 6.4 MAG 8.73,12.00 SP K0

COU 1311 AB: 508; 333x: Very faint, B needed foveal coaxing to come out then I could hold it, very tough.  Suspected at 205x.
18H 52M 18.70S +37° 13' 21.1" P.A. 223 SEP 1.3 MAG 11.69,12.40

TDT1116 AB: 508; 333x: Notched elongation only.  Seeing not supporting more.
18H 53M 38.40S +40° 28' 13.1" P.A. 330 SEP 0.6 MAG 11.10,11.28

ES 2028 BC: 508; 205x: Delta 2 Lyr.  ! Very cool.   A is bright light orange, and BC are blue pinpoints, ~2" with a slight mag difference.  Clearly and cleanly seen.
18H 54M 28.99S +36° 55' 20.1" P.A. 135 SEP 2.1 MAG 11.20,11.60 SP G2IV

HO 270 AB: 508; 205x: ! Bright yellow A and very faint B seen with averted vision then held direct, with another faint star one ninety degrees different PA and three times farter out (this is AC).  There is a streak of grainy stars across the field, very rich.
18H 54M 52.18S +41° 36' 09.8" P.A. 300 SEP 8.4 MAG 5.44,12.60 SP K0III DIST. 81.97 PC (267.39 L.Y.)

COU 1932 AB: 508; 333x: Suspect at 205x, nice clean split with 333x. white stars, slight mag difference
18H 54M 51.24S +44° 36' 56.2" P.A. 295 SEP 0.9 MAG 10.28,10.38 SP G0

ES 1657 AB: 508; 205x: White A and light red B, ~1 delta mag, wide ~4"
18H 55M 22.99S +40° 52' 12.0" P.A. 355 SEP 3.9 MAG 10.40,11.00

STF 3130 AB-C: 508; 205x: Very nice bright white A and slightly red B well split from A, three delta mag.  Did not notice the 0.4" AB pair STT 365
18H 55M 57.14S +44° 13' 41.9" P.A. 258 SEP 2.7 MAG 6.97,10.52 SP A2 DIST. 186.57 PC (608.59 L.Y.)

A 587 BC: 508; 205x: Excellent 2+1 pair, bright A, BC wide and 1 delta mag, well split ~2"
18H 57M 55.98S +44° 07' 00.0" P.A. 188 SEP 1.8 MAG 10.61,11.54 SP F8

AG 366 AB: 508; 205x: Near equal yellow-white easy split
18H 58M 03.46S +47° 11' 30.1" P.A. 185 SEP 1.4 MAG 8.54,8.67 SP G0 DIST. 49.55 PC (161.63 L.Y.)

COU1797 AB: 508; 205x: Easy close split, ~1 delta.  Nice
18H 58M 28.31S +42° 14' 34.1" P.A. 180 SEP 1.2 MAG 10.14,11.83

TDT1161 AB: 508; 205x: In same field as COU 1797 and with a similar PA. Faint, near equal, easy split
18H 58M 52.26S +42° 18' 25.4" P.A. 1 SEP 1.5 MAG 11.43,11.56

COU 1798 AB: 508; 333x: Hairline split at best moments, noticeable mag difference.
18H 59M 59.58S +41° 00' 54.0" P.A. 349 SEP 0.6 MAG 11.50,11.80

ES 1326 AB: 508; 205x: Nicely split pair, noticeable mag difference ~1", white
19H 00M 21.32S +44° 59' 51.8" P.A. 228 SEP 2.4 MAG 9.30,10.40 SP G0

ES 1429 AB 508; 205x: Easy wide ~2 delta mag light yellow pair
19H 00M 29.30S +43° 13' 14.1" P.A. 12 SEP 6.1 MAG 9.70,11.10 SP M2

ES 1430 AB: 508; 205x: Delicate pair, good with seeing, >0.5 delta mag. 
19H 02M 23.15S +42° 30' 26.4" P.A. 109 SEP 1.6 MAG 10.68,11.65

A 589 AB: 508: 533x: ! Exceedingly fine pair, split with seeing, ~1 delta mag, white A and blue B.  In the same field with ES 1430.
19H 03M 01.81S +42° 32' 45.8" P.A. 6 SEP 0.7 MAG 9.52,10.10 SP A2

DA 9 AB: 508; 205x: Used apodising mask to clean up A's disk image.  B appears as a light blue disk nicely separated, diamond ring to white A.  Nice
19H 04M 15.72S +43° 52' 49.5" P.A. 172 SEP 2 MAG 7.05,10.22 SP A0V DIST. 233.64 PC (762.13 L.Y.)

STF 2463 AB: 508; 205x: Light orange-yellow A and light blue B, wide, ~1 delta.  Not physical
19H 06M 01.16S +45° 48' 50.5" SEP 9.7 MAG 9.07,10.80 SP G5

A 704 AB: 508; 205x: Very fine split, white near equal, ~1"
19H 07M 53.09S +46° 52' 06.0" P.A. 280 SEP 1.1 MAG 10.35,10.48 SP A0

TDT1246 AB: 508; 333x: Same field as A 704.  Very fine B seen and split with seeing as a fine point, ~1 delta mag
19H 08M 30.59S +47° 27' 36.4" P.A. 97 SEP 0.7 MAG 11.15,11.61

COU 2279 AB: 508; 333x: Nice firm split with seeing, white near equal. 
19H 10M 01.22S +42° 24' 37.8" P.A. 125 SEP 0.7 MAG 10.34,10.58 SP F5

WFC 218 AB: 508; 205x: Nice near equal white
19H 12M 29.46S +44° 47' 18.2" P.A. 352 SEP 9.5 MAG 9.85,10.16 SP A5

BRT1923 AB: 508; 205x: Near equal white, ~4".  Not physical
19H 15M 21.46S +43° 21' 31.8" P.A. 187 SEP 3.8 MAG 10.20,10.30 SP A2

ES 1562 AB: 508; 205x: Easy wide ~6", ~1 delta

19H 19M 16.98S +42° 17' 02.3" P.A. 325 SEP 6.2 MAG 9.39,9.80 SP G

27 july 2020

Had an ok night last night.  I pointed away from the quarter moon to the north, in Draco, but the seeing was not very good -- probably roof currents -- so while I started at 20-inch I masked down to 8-inch.  A couple nice finds.  I started at 10:00pm and was shut down early due to marine fog at 11:30pm

STF 2128 AB: 508; 205x: Wide stars, light orange, ~2 delta mag.  1200 year period

17H 03M 18.66S +59° 35' 07.3" P.A. 45.4 SEP 12.13 MAG 8.76,10.34 SP K4V DIST. 24.04 PC (78.42 L.Y.)

STF 2155 AB: 203; 205x: Light yellow and blue, wide, ~3 delta mag 

17H 16M 04.88S +60° 42' 49.7" P.A. 113 SEP 10 MAG 6.93,9.97 SP F3III DIST. 182.48 PC (595.25 L.Y.)

BU 1249 AB: 508; 333x: Hairline split, very fine, nearly the same PA as the AB-C very wide pair.  Discovered with 12-inch at Lick at 0.44"

17H 22M 02.41S +53° 51' 01.9" P.A. 82 SEP 0.6 MAG 10.08,9.90 SP G0

HU 672 AB: 203; 205x: GQ Dra B comes forth with foveal coaxing and I can hold it steady direct, a pin point ~4" from bluish A.  A is an eclipsing binary variable 8.98-9.42 with a mere 18.38 hour period! 

17H 25M 29.43S +51° 29' 35.0" P.A. 59 SEP 4.2 MAG 9.16,10.97 SP A3 DIST. 512.82 PC (1672.82 L.Y.)

ES 2659 AB: 203; 205x: B seen with foveal coaxing.  A is light orange, B is wide and blue due to faintness. Not physical

17H 31M 52.17S +56° 55' 07.9" P.A. 215 SEP 11.8 MAG 8.63,11.15 SP K0 DIST. 409.84 PC (1336.9 L.Y.) 

STF 2225 CD: 203; 205x: Wide near equal.  Did not notice AB 11.9th mag pair

17H 44M 47.57S +51° 55' 17.2" P.A. 296 SEP 8.7 MAG 10.20,10.56 SP G5+K8

ROE 17 AB: 203; 205x: Slight mag difference, wide, white.  Physical pair 

17H 51M 22.27S +59° 38' 24.6" P.A. 54 SEP 9 MAG 9.71,10.43 SP F5

STF 2261 AB: 203; 205x: White A and slightly ruddy B, wide.  Physical

17H 58M 05.37S +52° 13' 06.0" P.A. 261 SEP 9.6 MAG 7.56,10.02 SP A2 DIST. 113.64 PC (370.69 L.Y.)

HO 563 AB: 203; 333x: Snowman is best I can get, equal mag. 

17H 59M 49.98S +53° 03' 50.4" P.A. 184 SEP 0.7 MAG 10.17,10.46

A 1886 AB: 203; 205x: ~1 delta mag, wide, ~5"

17H 59M 58.93S +53° 16' 16.3" P.A. 341 SEP 4.8 MAG 9.40,10.50 SP G0

STF 2271 AB: 203; 205x: Dull white A and pale yellow B, ~1.5 delta mag, wide ~4"

18H 00M 18.74S +52° 51' 15.4" P.A. 268 SEP 3.4 MAG 8.17,9.24 SP G0 DIST. 60.42 PC (197.09 L.Y.)

ES 640 AB: 203; 205x: ~1 delta mag, wide ~4". 

18H 00M 42.85S +54° 52' 38.1" P.A. 77 SEP 8.4 MAG 9.51,10.10 SP F2

STF 2278 AB: 203; 205x: Pretty white-blue stars, in a 2+1 set.  Not physical

18H 02M 52.88S +56° 25' 40.3" P.A. 30 SEP 35.9 MAG 7.78,8.14 SP A9V DIST. 137.74 PC (449.31 L.Y.)

STF 2279 AB: 203; 205x: Near equal, wide, white.  Physical 

18H 04M 33.72S +50° 52' 48.0" P.A. 180 SEP 13.3 MAG 9.86,10.27 SP F8

HU 926 AB: 203; 205x: Nice equal mag, wide ~4", white.  Not physical 

18H 09M 31.81S +64° 14' 02.9" P.A. 265 SEP 3.9 MAG 9.88,9.93 SP F0

BU 1274 BC: 508; 333x: Super challenging.  A-BC is bright white A and BC is blue widely separated.  Near to BC is BD, which is near equal to BC and ~6".  BC is faint and split with seeing, hairline, significant mag difference.

18H 14M 31.41S +56° 34' 26.9" P.A. 144 SEP 1 MAG 9.80,10.60

STF 2305 AB: 508; 205x: Blue-white A and >1 delta mag ruddy B, wide 

18H 16M 13.17S +51° 19' 46.2" P.A. 334 SEP 5.1 MAG 9.16,10.81 SP G5

26 july 2020

Started out trying to get easy track to work on the 6-inch, but it wouldn't, so I give up.  I need a real equatorial mount.  The Berry mount is ok but it's a bit shaky after slew or focus adjustment, or if there's a breeze.  I need something better, that will track.  I did look at the moon through bino-viewers and am thrilled by the view.  However I did have a mishap when I was trying to adjust balance where the scope slid backwards out of the rings and hit the ground.  No damage done but it made me basically give up on the mount.

I switched over to the 20-inch and had a good night from 10:30pm to 12:30am.  Seeing was variable, 6/10 mostly but there was a streak of ~7/10 and I went after close pairs.  I stayed at 20-inch, with the apodising mask, throughout since I was a bit tired of the 8-inch mask. 

The 20-inch still kills the 6-inch and is the better scope.  But what the 6-inch is for -- solar, lunar, planetary -- it does very well.

STT 524 AB: 508; 533x: Suspected hairline with 333x, nice clean split at 533x, white stars, significant magnitude difference, ~0.5".  686 year period.
18H 07M 29.52S +19° 39' 59.1" P.A. 205.4 SEP 0.49 MAG 7.89,8.87 SP A3V DIST. 225.73 PC (736.33 L.Y.)


STF 2289 AB: 508; 333x: Nice pale yellow stars, ~1 delta mag, >1" separation.  3040 year period
18H 10M 08.69S +16° 28' 35.0" P.A. 215.3 SEP 1.24 MAG 6.65,7.21 SP A0V+G0III DIST. 263.85 PC (860.68 L.Y.)

GII 110 CD; 508; 533x: With seeing, very significant delta mag ~2 delta mag, white stars, very tight but split.  Suspected @ 333x.  [Discoverer is amateur Rene Gili, who observes with the large refractors at the Nice Observatory, this pair was discovered in 2016 via CCD-- the discovery measure is the only one in WDS so far]
18H 14M 37.03S +23° 35' 01.6" P.A. 301 SEP 0.9 MAG 9.40,11.90 SP A3

STT 346 AB: 508; 205x: Nice pale yellow-white stars, >1 delta mag, >4" separation
18H 15M 25.05S +19° 46' 13.4" P.A. 329 SEP 5.2 MAG 8.33,9.01 SP F2 DIST. 113.64 PC (370.69 L.Y.)

STF 2309 AB: 508; 205: Wide ~4", white stars, ~1 delta mag.  Not physical
18H 20M 06.84S +25° 31' 53.0" P.A. 352 SEP 3.6 MAG 9.31,9.95 SP A0 DIST. 180.51 PC (588.82 L.Y.)

STF 2310 AB: 508; 205x: Bright white A and faint dull wide B, ~3 delta mag, wide ~6"
18H 20M 38.67S +22° 47' 50.7" P.A. 235 SEP 5.1 MAG 6.83,9.98 SP B8III DIST. 302.11 PC (985.48 L.Y.)

STF 2312 AB: 508; 205x: Very fine white stars, >1 delta mag, ~1.5"
18H 21M 09.08S +28° 20' 03.5" P.A. 341 SEP 1.7 MAG 9.28,9.91 SP A0 DIST. 404.86 PC (1320.65 L.Y.)

COU 505 AB: 508; 333x: Very faint pair, ~1 delta mag, split firmly with seeing, ~1" separation
18H 21M 16.17S +24° 09' 06.1" P.A. 318 SEP 1.1 MAG 11.02,11.29 SP F8

HO 430 AB: 508; 205x: Blue-white A and dull white B, ~2 delta, wide ~2".  Nice looking pair [not physical]
18H 21M 37.31S +20° 30' 11.5" P.A. 194 SEP 2.5 MAG 9.62,10.73 SP A5

BU 641 AB: 508; 533x: V989 Her.  Seen as a snowman dot to bright white A @ 333x, split with 533x, inside first diffraction ring.  Need A's disk to be perfectly tight for B to resolve with seeing.  Very nice.  1" at discovery 1878 with Dearborn 18.5-inch
18H 21M 48.44S +21° 30' 27.9" P.A. 341 SEP 0.8 MAG 7.03,8.66 SP B9.5II DIST. 264.55 PC (862.96 L.Y.)

STF 2314 AB: 508; 205x: Fine pair, wide ~2.5", ~1 delta mag
18H 23M 25.75S +23° 27' 19.1" P.A. 331 SEP 2.7 MAG 9.02,10.31 SP G5 DIST. 76.45 PC (249.38 L.Y.)

STF 2315 AB: 508; 533x: Barely split with seeing, resolves to two disks, more than hairline but almost 2 delta mag, very tough, need perfect seeing.  2094 year period
18H 24M 58.46S +27° 23' 41.3" P.A. 115.3 SEP 0.6 MAG 6.57,7.77 SP A0V+A4V DIST. 117.51 PC (383.32 L.Y.)

AG 361 AB: 508; 205x : Near equal white stars, wide ~4", in a busy field [not physical]
18H 25M 07.89S +26° 54' 09.6" P.A. 13 SEP 3.8 MAG 10.65,10.97 SP G5

STF 2317 BC: 508; 533x: Very challenging.  AB is obvious, A a bright light orange, B is blue and faint -- with careful examination I do get a scintillating small balls separated ~1" and near equal -- averted vision brightens these to pinpoints but I can't hold that resolution direct.  Stelle Doppie says first measure of this pair is in 1901, so it's not a Struve discovery, likely Aitken or Hussey with the Lick 36-inch.
18H 25M 19.45S +26° 04' 45.9" P.A. 315 SEP 1.4 MAG 12.50,12.70 DIST. 269.54 PC (879.24 L.Y.)

STF 2319 AB: 508; 205x: Yellow-white near equal wide stars, in a plus one which is ~1 delta fainter wide perpendicular PA (this is the AC pair)

STT 359 AB: 508; 333x: Light yellow near equal split, very close.   219 year period.
18H 35M 30.40S +23° 36' 19.9" P.A. 3.7 SEP 0.75 MAG 6.35,6.62 SP G9III-IV DIST. 144.3 PC (470.71 L.Y.)

STF 2345 AB: 508; 205: V998 Her.  Wide one delta [The A star is variable is an eclipsing binary but the eclipsing component is apparently only detectable with speckle interferometry; the Struve pair is not physical]
18H 35M 31.17S +21° 04' 27.1" P.A. 226 SEP 12.3 MAG 9.08,10.48 SP G DIST. 121.36 PC (395.88 L.Y.)

STT 358 AB: 508; 205x: Yellow-white stars, half delta mag, well split.  380 year period
18H 35M 53.22S +16° 58' 32.5" P.A. 144.3 SEP 1.49 MAG 6.94,7.08 SP F8V DIST. 32.88 PC (107.25 L.Y.)

A 249 AB 508; 333x: Fine pair, equal white, nicely split ~1"
18H 36M 03.12S +24° 51' 49.3" P.A. 275 SEP 1.1 MAG 10.14,10.20 SP F5

STF 2360 AB: 508; 205x: White, ~2 delta mag, wide ~3"
18H 39M 19.16S +20° 55' 58.9" P.A. 358 SEP 2.4 MAG 7.97,9.16 SP B5IV DIST. 2500 PC (8155 L.Y.)

STF 2401 AB: 508; 205x: Attractive pale yellow and white stars, wide ~4", ~2 delta
18H 48M 57.83S +21° 10' 01.3" P.A. 38 SEP 4.1 MAG 7.27,9.27 SP B3V DIST. 2941.18 PC (9594.13 L.Y.)

STF 2415 AB: 508; 205x: ~2 delta, ~2", light yellow A
18H 54M 32.84S +20° 36' 55.1" P.A. 290 SEP 2 MAG 7.07,8.73 SP A0IV DIST. 194.93 PC (635.86 L.Y.)

COU 511 Aa-Ab: 508; 533x: ! Wow great pair.  A star rather bright with B very close-in, ~1 delta mag, the tiniest pin prick <1" separated from A. 
18H 55M 23.68S +23° 24' 00.1" P.A. 190 SEP 0.8 MAG 9.73,9.88 SP G0

HU 332 AB: 508; 533x: Beautiful close split, a little more than hairline, light orange stars near equal
18H 59M 03.72S +22° 30' 03.2" P.A. 259 SEP 0.4 MAG 9.72,9.61 SP G0

J 1280 AB: 508; 205x: Faint pair slight mag difference, wide ~3".  Not physical
19H 01M 00.47S +22° 05' 34.5" P.A. 108 SEP 3.9 MAG 11.70,12.00

A 2991 AB: 508; 333x: Suspect elongation with 205x.  B has a significant mag difference than A, maybe half delta, very closely separated <1"
19H 03M 23.53S +25° 11' 19.6" P.A. 82 SEP 0.7 MAG 10.44,10.82 SP F2

STF 2445 AB: 508; 205x: Lovely wide pair, ~2 delta mag, light yellow A and dull B
19H 04M 38.50S +23° 19' 45.5" P.A. 262 SEP 12.4 MAG 7.25,8.57 SP B2VE DIST. 476.19 PC (1553.33 L.Y.)

BU 359 AB: 508; 205x: In the same field as STF 2445, and is a smaller and flipped analog of it.  It's the opposite PA dimmer but with similar mag difference, just smaller scale.  Not physical. 
19H 05M 09.69S +23° 25' 57.0" P.A. 82 SEP 4.7 MAG 8.81,9.79 SP F2

STF 2455 AB: 508; 205x: Wide ~2 delta mag, light yellow-white A and dull B.  Not physical
19H 06M 53.00S +22° 10' 21.5" P.A. 28 SEP 9.6 MAG 7.42,9.44 SP F4IV DIST. 68.59 PC (223.74 L.Y.)

STF 2457 AB: 508; 205x: Wide two delta mag. 

19H 07M 08.02S +22° 35' 03.7" P.A. 201 SEP 10.2 MAG 7.46,9.52 SP A7IV DIST. 95.15 PC (310.38 L.Y.)

23 july 2020

Last night I tried to setup tracking on the 6-inch f/15 but it didn't work out.  A bit frustrating.  It could be the communication cable I'm using is incorrect.  I'll redo the next chance I have.  

On the bright side, I have used the 6-inch the last couple of days to look at a sunspot with the Herschel wedge, and I'm quite pleased.  Plenty of detail to look at, even some surface granulation, when seeing cooperates.  Will keep at it.

I switched over to the 20-inch last night at around 11pm and observed until 12:30am when fog looked like it would shut me down.  I went inside for a snack and some water, and when I came out and looked up I saw marine fog seeming to approach from the west over the yew trees -- so I decided I would pack up.  As it turned out, the fog held back as I packed up, so I could have observed longer -- but I was tired anyway.

Seeing was worse than expected, 5/10 to 6/10, so I started with 20-inch with the apodising mask, but then went down to the 8-inch mask.  Some good pairs observed.

AC 7 BC: 508; 533x: Mu Her. Nice one to star with.  STF 2220 A is a very bright light orange, and BC is widely separated blue, much fainter.  I suspected B was also a pair at 333x, and could get a nice clean split with seeing at 533x, so I could tell an orientation and make a sketch (43-year period).  Indeed it is a short period pair and I should be able to get at least a quarter turn out of it.

ES 469 BC: 508; 205x: Another BC pair, BC is widely separated from ninth mag A star.  C flashes with averted vision, and then I can just hold direct, ~3".  Mu Her is at the edge of the FOV. [not physical]

17H 46M 38.73S +27° 58' 55.7" P.A. 148 SEP 4.2 MAG 11.79,14.80 DIST. 367.65 PC (1199.27 L.Y.)

TDS 881 AB: 508; 333x: Not quite splitting with 205x, faint pair, very tight, tough but resolves clean with seeing at 333x.

17H 46M 59.59S +29° 14' 39.7" P.A. 243 SEP 1 MAG 10.06,11.19

COU 501 AB: 203; 205x: Nicely split, <2", <1 delta mag white stars.   

17H 48M 57.40S +25° 11' 00.4" P.A. 319 SEP 1.9 MAG 10.14,10.24 SP F5

J 754 AB: 203; 205x: Very tight pair, ~1 delta mag, just split, can see B direct but it almost needs averted vision.

17H 49M 00.69S +24° 50' 19.9" P.A. 49 SEP 1.7 MAG 9.72,10.72 SP A7

STF 2232 AB: 203; 205x: Bright blue-white A and ~3 delta mag dull red B. Wide ~6"

17H 50M 15.00S +25° 17' 27.6" P.A. 140 SEP 6.1 MAG 6.71,8.85 SP A1V DIST. 147.49 PC (481.11 L.Y.)

 

STF 2239 AB: 203; 205x: Nice pair, white ~1 delta mag and ~2-3" separated B

17H 51M 45.34S +28° 14' 16.3" P.A. 319 SEP 2.4 MAG 9.55,10.00 SP F8 DIST. 178.25 PC (581.45 L.Y.) 

AC 9 AB: 203; 205x: ! Wow, very fine near equal split, white stars

17H 54M 08.02S +29° 48' 44.6" P.A. 242 SEP 1 MAG 9.01,9.16 SP F2 DIST. 166.11 PC (541.85 L.Y.)

SEI 552 AB: 203; 205x: Nice well split white stars, ~1 delta mag, ~5".  It lies in a double triangle of stars, it's apex of smaller triangle the one star forming part of another larger triangle [not physical]

17H 55M 49.46S +31° 17' 52.8" P.A. 235 SEP 5.6 MAG 10.57,11.30

COU 999 AB: 203; 205x: Faint tight B brought forth with foveal coaxing, ~1 one delta mag, ~1.5" separation 

17H 56M 38.55S +30° 44' 34.2" P.A. 312 SEP 1.4 MAG 10.03,10.69 SP F8

HO 423 AB: 203; 205x: Very delicate pair, need foveal coaxing to see B (though I suspected it with direct vision).  ~5" and ~3 delta mag.  Really nice and in a rich field [not psychical, unfortunately] 

17H 57M 34.79S +27° 59' 31.5" P.A. 292 SEP 4.7 MAG 8.95,11.47 SP F6V DIST. 215.52 PC (703.03 L.Y.)

HO 424 AB: 203; 205x: ! Extraordinarily fine pair.  Bright white A and very tight B which lies just outside A's first diffraction ring, ~1.5".  Need foveal coaxing to bring out B, which is very much fainter.

17H 57M 44.09S +28° 15' 12.8" P.A. 204 SEP 1.4 MAG 8.45,10.73 SP G8III DIST. 309.6 PC (1009.92 L.Y.)

STF 2263 AB: 203; 205x: Wide ~1 delta mag, white-blue A and dull orange B.

18H 00M 55.43S +26° 32' 57.2" P.A. 158 SEP 7.7 MAG 8.73,9.93 SP F8 

ES 470 AB: 203; 205x: Can hold B direct after foveal coaxing, it's very faint ~1 delta and wide.

18H 03M 15.08S +27° 50' 40.3" P.A. 208 SEP 8.3 MAG 9.45,10.70 SP F8

STF 2280 AB: 203; 205x: 100 Her.  Bright equal wide yellow-white stars. [not physical]

18H 07M 49.56S +26° 06' 04.4" P.A. 183 SEP 14.3 MAG 5.81,5.84 SP A3V DIST. 49.6 PC (161.8 L.Y.)

STF 2292 AB: 203; 205x: Very fine split, white stars, slight mag difference ~0.5 delta.  Very fine at this magnification

18H 12M 06.74S +27° 38' 35.9" P.A. 273 SEP 0.8 MAG 8.30,8.62 SP A2 DIST. 173.31 PC (565.34 L.Y.) 

POU 3366 AB: 203; 205x: Easy near equal wide pair

18H 14M 49.24S +23° 13' 54.6" P.A. 238 SEP 13.7 MAG 10.98,11.00 SP F5 

AG 221 AB: 203; 205x: Fine near equal, split ~2" 

18H 20M 02.24S +21° 20' 00.7" P.A. 12 SEP 1.8 MAG 9.90,9.87 SP F8

neowise

The last couple of weeks comet Neowise has been putting on a better and better show.  I got up early a couple times last week to drive up to Skyline Blvd. for a look.  Also trekked out to the local bike path for a clear view over trees when it became visible in the evening.  Also drove out with the family Sunday evening to Del Valle to have a look, but the view was greatly obscured by wildfire smoke and a lot of cars driving by. 

The coma has since dimmed but the tail has grown ever longer, and it also sprouted an ion tail.  Monday night this week I drove to Pinnacles and observed it with binoculars, my 10-inch, and a 2x56mm photography lens.  All views were really good, through the binoculars provided the most pleasing view.  I could see the ion tail in the scope, faintly, but not the binoculars.  Over the couple hours of viewing, before it sank too low, I observed about 10 degrees of tail length.  The coma was strongly green in the twilight but a more muted green when fully dark.  The comet filter emphasized the green color into the tail.  The west edge of the tail was lightly diffuse but straight, but the eastern faded gradually and was far more diffuse.  I was really glad I went, it was worth the effort.

I only casually observed the rest of the night, mostly scanning about.  With the 10-inch I mainly want to take in the wide expanse of the views; I don't feel motivated to chase challenging and unique objects.  I turned in a bit early, too.

The skies are to be clear tomorrow but there are family commitments.  I hope we can still get out Friday, though the moon will be a bit larger and might damage the view.

This was taken by Michael U. at the Pinnacles the same night I was there.