Monday, November 29, 2021

a new tool

Went to Pinnacles last night where I met up with Jamie and Peter.  Moonrise was around 1am but with darkness by 6:30pm it was still a full night.  I brought the 8-inch bent refractor, this time outfitted with my NV device and its necessary filters in a filter wheel.  Some incredible sights to be seen!

It was fairly cold and not as transparent as predicted.  I only got to 21.00 on the SQML.  It got very cold pre-dawn and I woke while it was still dark.  Rather than trying to continue to sleep I packed up and was gone by twilight.  Peter was still asleep.

I started out with IC 59, a reflection nebula, and IC 63, a HII Ionized region, both near Gamma Cassiopeia.  It took some switching between filters (a really necessary item) in the wheel before finding the 7nm showing the nebulae.  IC 63 was brighter, arrowhead shaped, with two bright streams in its body, with filaments and streamers coming off the wide end.  IC 59 was somewhat fainter and more evenly illuminated, with some mottling, and softer edges.  With the 3nm filter the sky background is darker but the nebulae have more contrast, and I could see the two nebulae are connected by wisps of nebulosity.

Next was the Pacman nebula, NGC 281, anther HII ionized region.  This really looked like an angler fish gobbling the star in its mouth, as a bright loop of nebulosity formed the lower lip and jaw giving a 3-D effect.  There was a prominent dark nebula running E-W, and crenulations along the eastern boarder of the nebula.  Streamers of nebulosity lifted up the north back of the nebula, like evaporating dry ice.

Sh2-176 emission nebula was next.  This one was a no-show in my 10-inch a few weeks ago, and again was very tough.  I was not using enough magnification so I had not enough image scale.  I had Reiner Vogel's Sharpless Observing Guide with me, and spent a good deal of time in the correct star field.  Vogel says this is "a planetary nebula at a distance of about 140 pc. The central star is a blue subdwarf."  After a long while I did have steady views of a thin strip of excessively faint nebulosity forming southern arc of the broken circular nebulosity.   Not bad considering Vogel had a negative observation with his 22-inch.

I moved to Auriga next, to IC 405 and all the surrounding nebula.  This area was heavily clouded with nebula, and is really too much to describe.  IC 405 showed all of its huge comma-shaped form, and tipping the scope a little I could easily see IC 410, IC 417, Sh2-230.  These are all connected with a fainter body of nebula; these appear as brighter knots in the larger structure.  Sh2-230 showed crenellations along its eastern edge.  Tipping the scope a little to the northwest and I saw the relatively bright puffs of Sh2-228 (near a bright star) and Sh2-226.  


I moved on next to the Heart and Soul Nebula.  I had seen bits of these through my 10-inch and other scopes, but nothing prepared me for the spectacle of these through NV.  I used the 4-inch scope as my finder, using no filters, and when I reached the target area proceeded to flip through the filter wheel.  I went through the light pollution reduction filter, and could see faint nebulosity; 610 longpass nearly the same.  3nm Halpha and the sky both darkened and the nebula burst into view, two huge loops meeting in Mel 15 open cluster in the middle; the very bright concentration of NGC 896, and the large diffuse glow of iC1848 on the edge of the field. I called over Jamie and Peter to share the view. 

We proceeded to look at other showpiece objects.  The California Nebula, in-your-face bright, long, with folds and streaks running through it.  The Horsehead and the Flame in the same wide field, where we could see the snout, and I was amazed at how large IC 434 was.  M42, which looked like an opera set in flames, with an amazing 3-D quality to the view.  






After that I went back to challenge objects, starting with Simeis 147.  The large edge of the irregularly round nebula was still fairly easy to pick out, and seemed thicker than what I recall from seeing it in other scopes.  The difference was with NV I could see the smoky, highly mottled cloudiness inside the round shape, which I think is impossible to see without a wide field and NV.  The wisps were not as sharply defined as in the photo, but definitely there.

Sh2-242 was nearby, Vogel says it is and HII region is excited by a B0V star and appears to lie at a distance of 2700 parsecs.  In his 22-inch he observed it "at 100x with either UHC or H beta, an extremely faint glow was suspected. With UHC, glow was suspected mainly E of star, with H beta displaced to SW relative to star. Doubtful observation."  For me it was obvious, a bright round patch with a dark cut-off on the NE rim, just beyond the star.  This shows clearly in the photo.

Next was supernova remnant Sh2-224, SNR G166.1 +4.4. 4500 pc distant and 72.0 pc in size.  For Vogel "with OIII filter a faint filament was suspected at the N edge of the SNR. Doubtful observation."  For me it was still a difficult observation with 8-inch and 7nm, but I did see two very weak filaments, the northern which was longer and brighter, and the southern which was a difficult fleck, with a relatively bright field star near the eastern tip of the northern filament.  

Next was Sh2-216, an ancient planetary nebula.  A year ago at Pinnacles with my 10-inch I recorded:  "This night I saw its brighter eastern arc.  At 35x and with OIII, it was a very large, moderately faint arc covering about one quarter of what should be a round nebula.  That quarter filled about one quarter of my field, so it is a very large nebula indeed.  I felt some haze present in the center of the nebula within that arc.  It is the second closest PNe to earth (the Helix nebula is closest, according to the latest Gaia data), which explains its size, and is likely rather old."  Vogel with 14-inch: At 50x with OIII filter, the NE edge could be observed and showed the highest contrast to the background.  The NE edge is also distinct in my 80mm finder equipped with UHC filter, but very difficult in my 22" Dob due to the restricted field."  This night with the 4-inch the nebula was seen quite easily in its full extent when rotating the 7nm filter into place while looking through the eyepiece.  Unmistakable large roundness with a stronger eastern arc.  These features were enhanced with the 8-inch.  What is more, I saw this nebula is in front of a trunk or stream of very faint nebulosity to its east, with a row of stars running N-S defining the nebula's east edge.  I could find this nebula on a wide field from Aladin:   


I ended the NV with an attempt to use the device hand held to have a look at Bernard's Loop -- and I could see it but I could not focus clearly.  But I could see the entire "C" of Bernard's Loop along with the tremendously large Meissa Nebula.  I'll figure out how to focus it for next time.
 



Saturday, November 13, 2021

11 november 2021

Predicted clear with good seeing but middling transparency, and it was with a lot of dew.  I was a bit underwhelmed by the session, and caught myself going after easy pairs I would just as well (or better) go after with my 6-inch.  Still good to be out and using the scope.  At around 11pm the electrical cut out intermittently and the Argo lost it's pointing, and rather than redo a two star alignment, decided to call it a night.  

STF3055 AB: 508; 205x: Easy, wide, 2 delta mag, light yellow A [spectral class F0III yellow].  WDS uncertain, but there is 76% parallax range overlap, 1,076 AU weighted separation, and 2.51/1.19 Msol, so likely gravitational.
00h 04m 00.24s +12° 08' 45.0" P.A. 359.00 sep 5.7 mag 7.28,10.34 Sp F0III dist. 176.37 pc (575.32 l.y.)

STF3061 AB: 508; 205x: Easy wide pair, near equal, very light yellow-white [spectral class F5V+F5V (yellow-white/yellow-white].  WDS calls it physical, but there is no overlap of parallax ranges (-68%), so they are not.
00h 05m 44.45s +17° 50' 25.0" P.A. 149.00 sep 7.8 mag 8.40,8.51 Sp F5V+F5V dist. 128.04 pc (417.67 l.y.)

STF3058 AB: 508; 205x: Easy, wide, 2 delta mag, yellow.  [Spectral class F3V+F6V (yellow-white/yellow-white)].  WDS says physical, but there is barely overlap in their parallax ranges (4%), 1,899 AU weighted separation, 2.01/1.39 Msol, and the radial velocity delta exceeds the escape velocity, so these are not gravitational.  
00h 05m 09.24s +30° 19' 44.5" P.A. 51.00 sep 12.6 mag 7.81,9.21 Sp F3V+F6V dist. 253.16 pc (825.81 l.y.)

A 1250 AB: 508; 333x: Did not resolve at 205x, needed 333x to split, 2 delta mag.  WDS uncertain, and unfortunately there is no Gaia data on the secondary.
00h 04m 51.96s +30° 05' 09.4" P.A. 41.00 sep 0.9 mag 8.22,9.65 Sp F7V dist. 113.64 pc (370.69 l.y.)

HO 208 AB: 508; 333x: Light orange stars, split with 333x.  WDS calls it physical and even provides an orbit with a 649-year period, but they do not share parallax ranges (-54%), in spite of a very close 154 AU weighted separation, 1.63/1.15 Msol, the radial velocity delta (15.51) greatly exceeds the escape velocity (6.18) -- so these are not gravitational.  
00h 01m 29.19s +30° 44' 08.7" P.A. 185.30 sep 1.0 mag 8.20,9.81 Sp G0IV dist. 117.79 pc (384.23 l.y.)

STF3060 AB: 508; 205x: Light orange stars, near equal, well split.  [Spectral class F8 (yellow-white)].  WDS physical with a 3804-year period.  There is 79% overlap of their parallax ranges, a very close 129 AU weighted separation, 0.75/0.71 Msol, and the radial velocity delta (0.69) is far less than the escape velocity (4.48). so these are gravitational.
00h 05m 55.56s +18° 04' 34.4" P.A. 135.60 sep 3.4 mag 9.32,9.65 Sp F8 dist. 37.15 pc (121.18 l.y.)
HU 401 A twenty thirettn, with seeing, steady split with eight, white near equal.  WDS uncertain, and the parallax ranges don't overlap (-19%) so these are not gravitational.  
00h 06m 09.44s +23° 46' 25.1" P.A. 36.00 sep 0.9 mag 10.57,10.80 Sp G0

KU 3 AB: 508; 333x:  Nice equal white pair, good split.  WDS uncertain, but there is 15% of parallax range overlap, 396 AU weighted separation, 1.85/1.81 Msol, so may be gravitational.  
00h 07m 28.21s +20° 29' 35.7" P.A. 76.00 sep 0.9 mag 10.32,10.40 Sp A2

COU 246 AB: 508; 333x: Good split, unequal around 1 delta mag, light yellow [spectral type G5 (yellow)].  WDS uncertain, yet there is 38% parallax range overlap, 325 AU weighted separation, 1.38/1.16 Msol, so may be gravitaional.
00h 08m 23.08s +18° 43' 09.2" P.A. 252.00 sep 1.6 mag 10.10,10.74 Sp G5

BU 1027 AB: 508; 205x: Easy light orange A and deeper orange B, 3 delta mag, <2".  WDS says physical, but their parallax ranges do not overlap (-84%), so they are not gravitational. 
00h 14m 56.33s +21° 32' 31.6" P.A. 192.00 sep 1.7 mag 7.28,10.54 Sp K2 dist. 238.1 pc (776.68 l.y.)

STF 12 AB: 508; 205x: Very bright A, white, wide, 1 delta mag.  [Spectral type A9V+F3V (white/yellow-white)].  WDS says physical, but the parallax ranges do not overlap (-17%), so they are not gravitational.
00h 14m 58.84s +08° 49' 15.5" P.A. 148.00 sep 11.2 mag 6.06,7.51 Sp A9V+F3V dist. 77.76 pc (253.65 l.y.)

BU 1342 AB: 508; 205x: Bright white A and faint B seen immediately very well separated.  WDS uncertain, and the parallax ranges do not overlap (-13%).
00h 16m 05.39s +08° 06' 56.2" P.A. 146.00 sep 6.1 mag 7.63,12.50 Sp A5 dist. 113.25 pc (369.42 l.y.)

STF 20 AB: 508; 205x: Easy, wide light yellow A and blue B, 1 delta.  WDS says physical, but the parallax ranges do not quite overlap (-2%, with 3% error), these may not be gravitational.  
00h 17m 22.36s +16° 30' 37.5" P.A. 233.00 sep 11.9 mag 8.87,9.67 Sp F9V dist. 125 pc (407.75 l.y.)

A 1803 AB-C: 508; 205x: Wide pair, easy, one delta mag.  WDS uncertain, however there is no overlap of parallax ranges (-94%).
00h 17m 24.50s +08° 52' 34.8" P.A. 234.00 sep 3.9 mag 7.13,7.66 Sp F2V dist. 15.19 pc (49.55 l.y.)

Thursday, November 4, 2021

3 november 2021

Last night was something of a gift, as I was not expecting to observe. We've had rainy and cloudy weather all week, but it cleared up in the afternoon tolerably well. After work and family obligations were over, I looked outside at 9pm and saw it was still clear, so I took the tarp off the 6-inch f/15 refractor and started probing some double stars. Transparency was not very good but the seeing was ok. Even in mediocre conditions this telescope will perform well, which is why I am so glad I made the effort to set it up.  At around 11:30pm I felt tired, so I put the tarp back on and went inside -- and it started to cloud up just then so I didn't regret going inside.  In the morning I found it had rained overnight, so things worked out just fine.

BU 396 AB: 152; 285x: Subtly notched snowman, unequal.  Burnham discovered with the 6-inch at 1.2", obviously on a better night.  WDS uncertain, no Gaia data on the secondary.
01h 03m 37.01s +61° 04' 29.4" P.A. 67.00 sep 1.3 mag 6.06,8.62 Sp F0II dist. 613.5 pc (2001.24 l.y.)

BU 513 AB: 152; 285x: Overlapping disks at all powers, 1 delta mag.  Burnham says: "This most interesting binary was discovered with the 18.5-inch, but at that time it was easily seen with the 6-inch.  It is now (1898) a very difficult object, and only measurable with a large aperture under the best conditions."  1.0" at discovery, it is now 0.4" and found to have a 61.14-year period and will continue to tighten until the 2040s.  I don't find Gaia data on the secondary.
02h 01m 57.55s +70° 54' 25.4" P.A. 14.10 sep 0.4 mag 4.65,6.74 Sp A3V dist. 35.26 pc (115.02 l.y.)
STF 191 AB: 152; 175x: Ice blue A and light orange B, 2 delta mag, well separated. A seems out of round.  WDS asserts it's physical however there is -1% parallax overlap, 603 AU weighted separation, 2.48/1.23 Msol.  Only time will tell.
02h 03m 10.45s +73° 51' 02.1" P.A. 196.00 sep 5.3 mag 6.20,9.10 Sp A5III dist. 118.62 pc (386.94 l.y.)

STF 185 AB: 152; 285x: Very close hairline with 175x, about 2 delta mag, steady split with 285x.  WDS uncertain, however there is -83% parallax range overlap, so it cannot be.
02h 02m 09.27s +75° 30' 07.9" P.A. 9.00 sep 1.1 mag 6.77,8.58 Sp A0 dist. 191.94 pc (626.11 l.y.)

STF 170 AB: 152; 175x: Nice and clean split, light blue A and light orange B, 1 delta mag.  WDS uncertain, but there is some chance it is binary: 16% parallax range overlap, 559 AU weighted separation, 2.36/1.97 Msol. 
01h 55m 27.35s +76° 13' 28.4" P.A. 244.00 sep 3.2 mag 7.49,8.24 Sp A5 dist. 157.98 pc (515.33 l.y.)

STF 114 AB: 152; 175x: Light orange A and very light orange B, 2 delta mag.  WDS uncertain, but there is -42% parallax range overlap, so it cannot be.
01h 24m 08.14s +72° 50' 49.6" P.A. 356.00 sep 3.7 mag 7.23,9.74 Sp A0 dist. 568.18 pc (1853.4 l.y.)

STF 13 AB: 152; 175x: Equal white stars, hairline split.  Nice!  Physical with a 1245-year period.  69% parallax range overlap, 173 AU weighted separation, 2.63/2.47 Msol.
00h 16m 14.02s +76° 57' 03.0" P.A. 47.60 sep 1.0 mag 7.03,7.12 Sp B8Vnn dist. 192.31 pc (627.32 l.y.)
HN 122 AB: 152; 175x: Bright yellow-white A with faint companion.  

STF 48 AB: 152; 175x: Near equal white, well separated.  WDS uncertain, but there is 58% parallax range overlap, 1,493 AU weighted separation, 2.62/2/47 Msol, so it's probable they are gravitational.
00h 42m 40.01s +71° 21' 57.3" P.A. 333.00 sep 5.4 mag 7.80,8.05 Sp ApSi dist. 277.01 pc (903.61 l.y.)

A 2901 AB: 152; 285x: Seems a very subtle out of round, but not certain.  Physical with a 1517-year orbit, will not significantly widen in my lifetime.  Discovered at 0.2", 0.4" now.  No Gaia data
01h 01m 30.15s +69° 21' 30.7" P.A. 66.60 sep 0.4 mag 7.12,7.84 Sp B9 dist. 273.97 pc (893.69 l.y.)

STF 65 AB: 152; 175x: Near equal, white, well separated.  WDS uncertain, but they probably are gravitational with 73% parallax range overlap, 656 AU weighted separation, 2.22/2.24 Msol.  
00h 52m 45.61s +68° 51' 59.3" P.A. 221.00 sep 3.2 mag 8.00,8.02 Sp A2 dist. 255.75 pc (834.26 l.y.)

STF 26 AB-C: 152; 175x: White A and 3 delta mag, fairly wide B.  Component of STT 6, which is 7.54/8.77 0.7" 335-year period -- I did not notice any misshape in A, it should be easy in the 20-inch.  No Gaia data on A or B so sadly can't calculate.
00h 21m 22.17s +67° 00' 19.5" P.A. 115.00 sep 13.1 mag 7.54,9.92 Sp B8.5V dist. 165.56 pc (540.06 l.y.)

STT 1 AB: 152; 175x: Nice to have the first in Otto's catalog.  Hairline split white A and blue B, 2-3 delta mag.  WDS uncertain, and there is -15% parallax range overlap, despite 509 AU weighted separation and 3.17/1.97, it is not gravitational.
00h 11m 50.44s +66° 07' 34.8" P.A. 212.00 sep 1.6 mag 7.45,9.47 Sp A0 dist. 255.1 pc (832.14 l.y.)

STF 136 AB: 152; 175x: White, 1 delta mag, very wide.  WDS says physical based on proper motions, but they do not share their parallax ranges (-53%), so are not binary.
01h 34m 51.61s +12° 33' 31.2" P.A. 77.00 sep 15.6 mag 7.33,8.33 Sp A6V dist. 231.48 pc (755.09 l.y.)

BU 4 AB: 152; 175x: Very subtle out of roundness.  There is another very faint wide B (AC, 7.12/13.60 29.3").  Discovered at 0.5" with his 6-inch, so Burnham must have had a great night.  WDS says physical, but not Gaia data on the primary.
01h 21m 19.23s +11° 32' 12.3" P.A. 106.00 sep 0.6 mag 7.12,8.86 Sp F1III dist. 206.61 pc (673.96 l.y.)

STT 22 AB: 152; 175x: White A and very faint wide B.  B is on edge of detectability.  WDS uncertain, but they likely are binary: 74% parallax range overlap, 754 AU weighted separation, 1.75/0.83 Msol. 
01h 07m 03.98s +11° 33' 07.5" P.A. 202.00 sep 7.6 mag 7.26,10.49 Sp A9V dist. 79.68 pc (259.92 l.y.)

STF 88 AB: 152; 175x: Spot-on equal white stars, wide.  WDS says physical, and they likely are binary: 29% parallax range overlap, 2,704 AU weighted separation and 2.76/2.52 Msol.
01h 05m 40.93s +21° 28' 23.6" P.A. 159.00 sep 29.9 mag 5.27,5.45 Sp B9.5V+A0V dist. 84.32 pc (275.05 l.y.)

STF 73 AB: 152; 175x: Superfine near equal yellow-orange stars, nice!  Binary with 167.5-year period.  It is nearly at apastron and will widen very slightly by 2040.
00h 54m 58.02s +23° 37' 42.4" P.A. 335.60 sep 1.2 mag 6.12,6.54 Sp K1IV dist. 37.98 pc (123.89 l.y.)
BU 303 AB: 152; 175x: Notched elongation all powers.  Burnham discovered with the 6-inch at 0.6" so it was a little easier!  WDS uncertain, lacking Gaia data.
01h 09m 39.15s +23° 47' 39.3" P.A. 295.00 sep 0.5 mag 7.32,7.56 Sp F0IV dist. 121.95 pc (397.8 l.y.)

STF 99 AB: 152; 175x: Light orange A and very faint, 4 delta mag B.  WDS uncertain, but they are likely binary: 45% parallax range overlap, 922 AU weighted separation, 3.89/1.13 Msol.  
01h 13m 44.94s +24° 35' 01.6" P.A. 227.00 sep 7.5 mag 4.65,9.11 Sp G8III dist. 136.8 pc (446.24 l.y.)

STT 26 AB: 152; 175x: Light orange A and 4 delta mag B, wide.  WDS claims physical, but there is -4% parallax range overlap, so they are likely not binary.
01h 12m 59.47s +30° 03' 51.2" P.A. 258.00 sep 10.7 mag 6.34,10.54 Sp G9III+G1V dist. 116.01 pc (378.42 l.y.)

HJ 636 AB: 152; 175x: Very faint wide B needs foveal coaxing and then can hold direct.  WDS claims physical, however they don't share parallax ranges (-15%) and there's a quite far 4,521 AU weighted separation 2.62/1.13 Msol, so they likely are not binary.
01h 14m 20.83s +30° 32' 31.6" P.A. 288.00 sep 20.4 mag 7.36,11.75 Sp B9.5IV dist. 269.54 pc (879.24 l.y.)

STF 98 AB: 152; 175x: Light yellow A and blue B, wide, 1 delta mag.  WDS uncertain, but they do not share parallax ranges -78%.
01h 12m 52.98s +32° 04' 31.7" P.A. 250.00 sep 20.0 mag 7.02,8.14 Sp A0V+A3IV dist. 131.58 pc (429.21 l.y.)

S 393 AB: 152; 175x: Light orange and very wide, faint B.  WDS says not physical, and they're correct, -94% parallax range overlap.
01h 06m 11.20s +32° 10' 53.3" P.A. 295.00 sep 60.0 mag 6.42,10.61 Sp K0 dist. 172.71 pc (563.38 l.y.)

STF 464 AB: 152; 175x: Really nice.  With the refractor, the bright primary star does not flare too much and the very faint B hangs outside the diffraction, a firm fine point.  WDS claims physical, and there is 56% parallax range overlap, 3,450 AU weighted separation, and a heavy 8.15/1.93 Msol.  
03h 54m 07.92s +31° 53' 01.2" P.A. 208.00 sep 12.8 mag 2.86,9.16 Sp B1Ib dist. 230.41 pc (751.6 l.y.)

BU 535 AB: 152; 285x: Strong sense of out of roundness at all powers, but not certain.  Burnham discovered with the 18.5-inch at 1.0".  WDS uncertain, and I don't find Gaia data for the secondary.
03h 44m 19.13s +32° 17' 17.7" P.A. 20.00 sep 1.1 mag 3.91,6.70 Sp B1III dist. 343.64 pc (1120.95 l.y.)

BU 533 AB: 152; 285x: Excellent!  Near equal light yellow-orange stars, hairline at 175x and close clean split at 285x. Burnham discovered with the 18.5-inch Dearborn refractor at 0.4".  WDS has medium confidence of binarity with a 463-year period, currently coming off apastron.  However there is no shared parallax range (-12%), despite only 103 AU weighted separation and 1.63/1.68 Msol.  This may turn out not to be binary.
03h 35m 37.81s +31° 40' 48.7" P.A. 220.60 sep 1.0 mag 7.55,7.74 Sp F4V dist. 85.98 pc (280.47 l.y.)
TOK 13 AB: 152; 175x: UX Ari.  Light orange A and wide, 3 delta mag B.  Spectral class G5IV-V (yellow).  WDS claims physical, however they do not share their parallax ranges (-27%) and the weighted separation (4,893 AU) is very far for the light mass 1.60/0.75 -- they are not binary.
03h 26m 35.36s +28° 42' 55.2" P.A. 129.00 sep 95.6 mag 6.59,10.00 Sp G5IV-V dist. 51.63 pc (168.42 l.y.)