Sunday, June 26, 2022

25 june 2022

Observed with the 20-inch last night.  I ran the ServoCat from a battery, and I found the problem of the power cutting out is not from a dirty ground board, but from a kind of power failure in the unit when it tries to draw a lot of power when it starts a fast slew.  It happens in both alt and az.  I think the unit is about to fail.  In any case I will reset the slew rates to be very low, so as not to draw too much power, and hopefully get by using it until the next generation of controller is released.

I also experimented with SkyTools, and had the same problems with Real Time as before.  The object sorting makes no sense.  I will give it another try and see if the software owner can correct the problem.  Otherwise, I'll revert to SkyTools3 or find a different program to use.

I found only two items from the physical pairs list:

STF2106 AB: 508; 500x: Light orange stars, nearly 2 Dm, close but nicely split, PA near due south.  Spectral class F7IV (yellow-white).  WDS grade 4 orbit, 1270-year period.  0.841" now.  There is no overlap of the parallax ranges, -56%, and in spite of a very low 48 AU weighted separation, 1.6+1.3 Msol, it is probable this is not binary.
16h 51m 07.42s +09° 24' 15.5" P.A. 170.20 sep 0.8 mag 7.07,8.20 Sp F7IV dist. 64.23 pc (209.52 l.y.)

HU 580 AB: 508; 600x: With apodising mask and polarizing filter, I see a very weakly notched snowman with best seeing, PA ENE, a mere bump on the bright a star.  WDS grade 1 (definitive) orbit, 21.94-years, 0.154" now.  Unfortunately, there is no parallax data for either star.  It will be at apastron in 2024, so have another go at this soon, then dive to periastron by 2030.  Worth an annual visit.
15h 41m 33.09s +19° 40' 13.8" P.A. 58.50 sep 0.1 mag 5.35,5.22 Sp B9V+A1V dist. 58.28 pc (190.11 l.y.)

Saturday, June 25, 2022

24 june 2022

Seeing was supposed to be better than it was, but after a hot day it's no surprise there was a lot of radiational cooling. I used the 6-inch and continued to observe some Struve pairs.  There was some haze in the sky and seeing seemed to get worse.  I felt tired so only observed to 10:30pm.

STF2381 AB: 152; 125: White A and 2 Dm, well split B.  WDS says it's physical, but there is no overlap -3% of the parallax ranges, and the radial velocity delta 2.8 exceeds the escape velocity 1.7, so it is not likely binary.
18h 45m 30.77s +28° 15' 24.3" P.A. 122.00 sep 8.9 mag 8.27,10.36 Sp G8III/IV dist. 259.74 pc (847.27 l.y.)

STF2386 AB 152; 125x: Faint pair, near equal, wide.  WDS says it is not physical, and there is no -92% overlap of the parallax ranges, it is not binary.
18h 45m 14.35s +35° 32' 21.1" P.A. 18.00 sep 21.1 mag 9.42,10.04 Sp A0

STF2387 AB: 152; 125x: White A and 2 Dm wide B, attractive pair.  No records found in WDS.

STF2390 AB: 152; 125: Very pretty, pure white A, and 2 Dm B, closely split around 4".  WDS uncertain, but there is 59% parallax range overlap, 1,323 AU weighted separation, 3.2+2.2 Msol, so it is likely binary.
18h 45m 49.83s +34° 31' 06.6" P.A. 155.00 sep 4.3 mag 7.37,8.56 Sp A7V dist. 357.14 pc (1164.99 l.y.)

STF2392 AB 152; 150x: Very finely split 2 Dm pair, B is faint but is just detectable with direct vision, suspect at 125x, better view at higher power.  WDS uncertain, but there is no parallax range overlap, -40%, so in spite of the 1,229 AU weighted separation, 2.2+1.6 Msol, and the radial velocity delta 1.4 is less than the escape velocity 2.4, it is not likely to be binary.
18h 45m 09.99s +39° 13' 32.8" P.A. 319.00 sep 2.5 mag 9.25,11.07 Sp A2 dist. 934.58 pc (3048.6 l.y.)

STF2393 AB: 152; 125x: Very much fainter B, around 3 Dm, wide.  WDS says not physical, and there is no -92% parallax range overlap, it is not binary.
18h 45m 10.84s +38° 18' 54.6" P.A. 24.00 sep 18.2 mag 7.80,10.40 Sp K5III dist. 689.66 pc (2249.67 l.y.)

STF2394 AB: 152; 125x: Faint pair, fairly well spilt, 1 Dm.  WDS says parallax indicates physical, but in fact Gaia DR3 indicates there is no overlap of the parallax ranges, -63%, they are not binary.
18h 45m 28.48s +42° 02' 07.4" P.A. 203.00 sep 6.9 mag 9.61,9.96

STF2395 AB: 152; 125x: 2 Dm, B is quite faint but can see with direct vision, well split, looks like a planet in relation to A.  WDS says this is physical, but there is no overlap of the parallax ranges, and the radial velocity delta 2.1 exceeds the escape velocity 1.8, it is not binary.
18h 45m 03.66s +46° 08' 07.5" P.A. 308.00 sep 8.5 mag 7.89,10.49 Sp A0 dist. 236.97 pc (773 l.y.)

STF2397 AB: 152; 125x: Light yellow A and 2 Dm B, fairly closely split around 4".  WDS is uncertain, but there is 14% overlap of the parallax ranges, 1,098 AU weighted average separation, 3.2+1.8 Msol, so this is likely binary.
18h 47m 13.09s +31° 24' 20.2" P.A. 269.00 sep 3.9 mag 7.47,9.08 Sp G3III dist. 271 pc (884 l.y.)

STF2406 AB: 152; 125x: Comparatively bright white A, B is very faintly visible with foveal coaxing but it fades quickly, cannot hold it direct.  WDS says this is physical, but there is no overlap of the parallax ranges, -25%, and in spite of the small 690 AU weighted separation, 2.3+0.9 Msol, and nearly equivalent radial velocity delta 2.9 vs. 3.0 escape velocity, it is not likely binary.
18h 49m 55.77s +26° 25' 30.6" P.A. 4.00 sep 4.6 mag 7.12,11.21 Sp A3V dist. 118.34 pc (386.03 l.y.)

Tuesday, June 21, 2022

20 june 2022

Observed with the 20-inch, as seeing was supposed to be above average. But with the surroundings needing to cool off after a long hot day, there was still a lot of disturbance in the air, so I masked down to 7-inches. The powered ground board on this scope is still giving me trouble, and it seems there are more sections which are losing power. I have no choice now but to tear the whole scope down. It will be for the best because it needs maintenance.

Another frustration is SkyTools4. It eliminated the ability to sort columns within Realtime observing, making it much more difficult to narrow an observing list (like the long-term project lists I use). I checked on their website and the comments from the owner were really condescending, saying he removed the function because, in his opinion, an object not in optimal position is not worth observing. What an ass. I wanted to join his discussion forum to tell him off, but resisted. Who the hell is he to tell us how to observe? I found a rough work around but it is not to my satisfaction. I will probably shop for a different software.

I observed a few Struves but became increasingly frustrated with the scope power interruptions, and ended at 11pm. Very little darkness this time of year.

STFA 26 AB: 178; 125x: White stars, wide 3 Dm B.  WDS says proper motion indicates physical, and there is only (given their closeness to us) 6% parallax range overlap, 1,144 AU weighted separation, 1.8+0.8 Msol, so this might be binary.
14h 16m 10.07s +51° 22' 01.3" P.A. 33.00 sep 39.0 mag 4.76,7.39 Sp A7IV+K0V dist. 29.07 pc (94.83 l.y.)

STF1806 AB: 178; 125x: Faint stars, significant delta, pretty wide.  WDS says parallax indicates physical, but in fact there is no -10% parallax range overlap, it is not binary.
14h 08m 44.98s +48° 30' 24.5" P.A. 173.00 sep 13.1 mag 10.08,11.03 Sp F8

STF2093 AB: 178; 125x: A quick tumbling satellite went through the finder field as I was centering this star, like a dash line.  Pale yellow and bright A, and faint wide B.  WDS says not physical, and there is no -64% parallax range overlap, it is not.
16h 42m 53.76s +38° 55' 20.1" P.A. 266.00 sep 116.4 mag 3.58,11.72 Sp G8IIIb dist. 33.31 pc (108.66 l.y.)

STF1961 AB: 178; 125x: Very wide equal magnitude.  WDS says not physical, and there is no -97% parallax range overlap.
15h 34m 35.33s +43° 31' 28.6" P.A. 20.00 sep 28.6 mag 10.07,10.17 Sp K2

STF1920 AB: 178; 125x: Wide near equal.  WDS says proper motion indicates physical, but there is no -81% parallax range overlap, it is not binary.
15h 10m 48.36s +46° 51' 00.6" P.A. 109.00 sep 18.7 mag 9.92,9.98 Sp K0+K0 dist. 73.1 pc (238.45 l.y.)

STF1874 AB: 178; 125x: Light orange stars, wide, 2 Dm.  WDS uncertain, but there is no -87% parallax range overlap, it is not binary.
14h 42m 09.70s +49° 07' 27.4" P.A. 289.00 sep 27.2 mag 8.82,10.17 Sp G5 dist. 448.43 pc (1462.78 l.y.)

STF1843 AB: 178; 125x: Ice blue-white A, wide 2 Dm B.  WDS says proper motion indicates physical, and there is 52% parallax range overlap, 1,909 AU weighted separation, 1.7+1.1 Msol, so it is likely binary.
14h 24m 38.91s +47° 49' 50.0" P.A. 186.00 sep 19.8 mag 7.68,9.23 Sp F4V dist. 92.08 pc (300.36 l.y.)

STF1826 AB: 178; 125x: Light yellow stars, well separated, about 1 Dm.  WDS says not physical, but there is 62% parallax range overlap, only 802 AU weighted separation, 1.7+1.4 Msol, and the radial velocity delta 0.8 is less than the escape velocity, 2.6, so it certainly is binary.
14h 15m 12.13s +46° 58' 26.6" P.A. 310.00 sep 4.5 mag 8.94,9.69 Sp F8 dist. 176.99 pc (577.34 l.y.)

STF1809 AB: 178; 200x: Very faint B needed foveal coaxing to detect and hold, closely separated around 4", almost 3 Dm.  WDS uncertain, but there is 58% overlap of the parallax ranges, 1,199 AU weighted separation, 1.9+1.1 Msol, and the radial velocity delta 2.1 is equal to the escape velocity, so chances favor this being binary.
14h 08m 54.59s +46° 08' 03.4" P.A. 196.00 sep 4.3 mag 9.42,11.98 Sp G0 dist. 353.36 pc (1152.66 l.y.)

STF1815 AB: 178; 125x: More than 1 Dm, wide.  WDS says it's physical, but there is no overlap -89% of the parallax ranges, is it not binary.
14h 12m 36.22s +45° 11' 52.5" P.A. 151.00 sep 9.0 mag 9.58,10.92 Sp K0 dist. 170.07 pc (554.77 l.y.)

STF1814 AB: 178; 125x: White stars, significant delta, fairly wide.  WDS says parallax indicates physical, and there is 89% overlap of the parallax ranges, 1,304 AU weighted separation, 1.3+1.1 Msol, and the radial velocity delta 0.6 is less than the escape velocity 1.8, it is very likely binary.
14h 11m 00.99s +50° 15' 08.3" P.A. 256.00 sep 11.2 mag 9.25,9.83 Sp G5+G5

STF1929 AB: 178; 125x: Faint pair, 2 Dm, well separated.  WDS uncertain, but there is no -51% parallax range overlap, it is not binary.
15h 16m 38.79s +33° 39' 07.2" P.A. 8.00 sep 6.5 mag 9.79,11.80 Sp G5

STF1901 AB: 178; 125x: White and very wide 2 Dm B.  WDS says not physical, and there is no -91% overlap of the parallax ranges, it is not binary.  
15h 00m 57.70s +31° 22' 38.2" P.A. 184.00 sep 19.0 mag 8.71,10.55 Sp M dist. 1754.39 pc (5722.82 l.y.)

Thursday, June 16, 2022

14 june 2022

Clear night, fairly good seeing though it became worse after 10:30pm.  Observed Struves in Lyra with the 6-inch f/15 refractor.  I noticed Gaia DR3 is now published on VizieR, so that is what I will use going forward.  

STF2304 AB: 152; 150x: Very lovely faint pair, very light orange A and light blue B, about 6" separation, about 1 Dm.  WDS claims it's physical, and there is 5% parallax range overlap, 1,780 AU weighted separation, 2.6+1.9 Msol, and the radial velocity delta 1.7 is less than the escape velocity 2.1, so it very likely is binary.
18h 17m 06.98s +40° 15' 21.2" P.A. 69.00 sep 5.1 mag 8.75,9.75 Sp K0 dist. 275.48 pc (898.62 l.y.)

STF2327 AB: 152; 150x: Nice pair, wide, large magnitude difference, B needs averted vision, white.  WDS asserts it's physical, and there is 6% parallax range overlap, 10,164 AU weighted separation, 3.5+1.6 Msol, however the radial velocity delta 4.0 exceeds the escape velocity, so it is not likely binary.
18h 29m 10.63s +29° 55' 24.9" P.A. 314.00 sep 19.6 mag 8.49,12.20 Sp K0

STF2328 AB: 152; 200x: Close pair around 4", less than 1 Dm.  WDS says parallax indicates physical, but in reality there is no overlap of their parallax ranges, -78%, so it is not binary.
18h 29m 27.87s +29° 55' 27.2" P.A. 72.00 sep 3.7 mag 9.00,9.50 Sp A2

STF2333 AB: 152; 150x: Slightly unequal white stars widely separated.  WDS uncertain, and there is no overlap -12% of the parallax ranges, it is not likely binary.
18h 31m 06.94s +32° 14' 43.4" P.A. 333.00 sep 6.3 mag 7.82,8.57 Sp B9IV dist. 216.92 pc (707.59 l.y.)

STF2338 AB: 152; 150x: Fairly bright white A, and well separated very faint B.  WDS says not physical, but there is 21% overlap of the parallax ranges, 6,406 AU weighted separation, 2.4+2.3 Msol, is it is very likely to be binary.
18h 30m 54.75s +38° 39' 33.8" P.A. 301.00 sep 12.1 mag 9.30,11.20 Sp K2

STF2340 AB: 152; 150x: Widely separated 1 Dm faint stars.  WDS says not physical, and there is no overlap -97% of the parallax ranges, so it is not binary.
18h 33m 01.30s +31° 35' 43.0" P.A. 105.00 sep 25.1 mag 9.21,10.24 Sp F2 dist. 423.73 pc (1382.21 l.y.)

STF2349 AB: 152; 150x: Excellent pair.  Blazing white A and a very faint B, around 7" separation, around 5 Dm.  WDS uncertain, but there is 48% parallax range overlap, 1,188 AU weighted separation, 3.6+1.2 Msol, so it is likely binary.
18h 36m 37.34s +33° 28' 08.5" P.A. 204.00 sep 7.2 mag 5.39,9.40 Sp B8II-IIIp dist. 154.56 pc (504.17 l.y.)

STF2351 AB: 152; 150x: Near equal white stars, well separated around 5".  WDS uncertain, but there is no overlap -15% of the parallax ranges, is it not likely binary.
18h 36m 12.00s +41° 16' 41.2" P.A. 160.00 sep 5.0 mag 7.60,7.64 Sp A1V+A0V dist. 206.61 pc (673.96 l.y.)

STF2352 AB: 152; 150x: White A and nearly Dm B which can been seen with direct vision, but brightens with averted vision.
18h 36m 57.43s +34° 51' 59.0" P.A. 287.00 sep 15.9 mag 8.06,10.63 Sp K0

STF2354 AB: 152; 150x: Very close to Vega, in its glare.  Faint stars, A is seen well, B is on the edge of direct vision, better seen with averted vision, widely separated.  No results found in WDS. 

STF2356 AB 152; 150x: Faint pair, just barely split with seeing, about half a magnitude difference.  WDS uncertain, and there is no overlap -33% of the parallax ranges, so it is not binary.
18h 38m 22.51s +28° 41' 49.7" P.A. 63.00 sep 1.0 mag 8.79,9.23 Sp F0 dist. 598.8 pc (1953.29 l.y.)

STF2358 CD: 152: 150x: Very closely split, half delta mag, nice.  In a triangle of three similar magnitude stars.  WDS uncertain, but there is no overlap -12% of the parallax ranges, it is probably not binary.
18h 38m 35.04s +30° 43' 20.1" P.A. 224.00 sep 2.5 mag 9.81,10.19 Sp F8

STF2359 AB: 152; 150x: In the same FOV as STF2358, one of the triangle stars.  A 9th magnitude A star with a very wide, 3 Dm B star which appears with averted vision only. 
18h 38m 35.50s +30° 45' 37.2" P.A. 293.00 sep 24.5 mag 9.06,11.70 Sp A

STF2362 AB: 152; 150x: Lovely, well separated 1 Dm, white stars.  WDS is uncertain, but there is 27% overlap of the parallax ranges, only 428 AU weighted separation, 1.7+1.3 Msol, so it is likely it is binary.
18h 38m 25.70s +36° 03' 11.3" P.A. 187.00 sep 4.4 mag 7.53,8.72 Sp A5 dist. 105.26 pc (343.36 l.y.)

STF2371 AB: 152; 150x: Near equal white stars, faint, wide.  WDS uncertain, but there is 34% parallax range overlap, 6,674 AU weighted separation, 2.8+2.6 Msol, and the radial velocity delta 0.2 is less than the escape velocity 1.2, so it is most likely binary.
18h 42m 12.44s +27° 38' 32.3" P.A. 56.00 sep 10.0 mag 9.68,9.96 Sp A0

STF2372 AB: 152; 150x: Bright white and very wide 2 Dm B, in a rich field.  WDS says parallax indicates the components are non-physical, and there is 1% parallax range overlap but with a 52% error, and 11,995 AU weighted separation, probably not binary.
18h 42m 08.09s +34° 44' 46.7" P.A. 82.00 sep 25.0 mag 6.45,7.73 Sp B5V dist. 456.62 pc (1489.49 l.y.)

STF2374 AB: 152: 150x: Faint stars, very slight delta mag, wide.  WDS says not physical, and there is no overlap -96% of the parallax ranges, so indeed not binary.
18h 43m 27.56s +27° 42' 54.6" P.A. 40.00 sep 13.4 mag 9.64,10.43 Sp F2

STF2376 AB: 152; 150x: Wide near equal.  WDS says it is physical, and there is 85% overlap of the parallax ranges, 7,173 AU weighted separation, 2.4+2.0 Msol, and the radial velocity delta 0.7 is less than the escape velocity 1.0, so it is binary.
18h 43m 42.26s +30° 24' 16.9" P.A. 63.00 sep 22.3 mag 8.66,9.31 Sp A0 dist. 202.84 pc (661.66 l.y.)

STF2378 AB: 152; 150x: Very slight delta mag, wide.  WDS says parallax indicates physical, and there is 62% overlap of the parallax ranges, 3,228 AU weighted separation, 2.1+1.7 Msol, and the radial velocity delta 1.0 is less than the escape velocity 1.4, so it certainly is binary.
18h 43m 21.93s +35° 32' 55.3" P.A. 190.00 sep 11.5 mag 8.91,9.88 Sp A dist. 153.14 pc (499.54 l.y.)

STF2380 AB: 152: 150x: Light yellow A and 1 Dm wide B.  WDS says proper motion indicates physical, and the parallax ranges overlap 71%, 3,307 AU weighted separation, 2.2+1.4 Msol, however the radial velocity delta 2.2 exceeds the escape velocity 1.4, so it may not be binary.
18h 42m 55.42s +44° 55' 30.9" P.A. 8.00 sep 25.5 mag 7.28,8.70 Sp G8III dist. 138.12 pc (450.55 l.y.)

Tuesday, June 7, 2022

6 june 2022, hercules struves

Observed last night with the 6-inch refractor, in good seeing for it (but not good enough for the 20-inch).  Went Struving in Hercules.  I'm quite happy with the Nexus DSC, I was landing in the FOV all the time last night, which greatly increased the number of observations I could make.  Started at 9:30pm and stopped shortly after 11pm.

STF 1982 AB: 152; 150x: Faint pair, 1 Dm, around 4" separation.  WDS says physical, and there is 78% overlap of the parallax ranges, 1,090 AU weighted separation, 1.5+1.4 Msol, so it is likely binary.
15h 49m 51.25s +42° 47' 19.6" P.A. 299.00 sep 4.8 mag 9.95,10.12 Sp F8 dist. 270.27 pc (881.62 l.y.)

STF 1991 AB: 152; 150x: Close split around 3", faint, 1 Dm.  WDS says it is physical, but there is no overlap of the parallax ranges -14%, in spite of the low 627 AU weighted separation, it is not likely to be binary.
15h 57m 26.92s +41° 39' 42.9" P.A. 195.00 sep 3.0 mag 9.45,10.41 Sp F5 dist. 178.89 pc (583.54 l.y.)

STF 2001 AB: 152; 150x: Faint pair, 1Dm and very wide companion.  WDS uncertain, however there is 90% overlap of the parallax ranges, 2,315 AU weighted separation, 1.4+1.1 Msol, and the radial velocity delta 0.9 is less than the escape velocity 1.4, so this is almost certain to be binary -- need plenty of future measures to confirm.
16h 01m 13.23s +41° 50' 01.7" P.A. 168.00 sep 11.6 mag 10.01,10.98 Sp G

STF 2010 AB: 152; 150x: Very pretty goldenrod colored stars, 2 Dm, wide.  Spectral class G7III+K0I (yellow/yellow-orange).  WDS says proper motion indicates non-physical, but more telling is there not being any overlap of the parallax ranges, -40%.
16h 08m 04.55s +17° 02' 49.2" P.A. 14.00 sep 26.8 mag 5.10,6.21 Sp G7III+K0I dist. 112.74 pc (367.76 l.y.)

STF 2014 AB: 152; 150x: Faint light yellow A, 2 Dm blue B, widely separated.  WDS says physical, and there is  23% overlap of the parallax ranges, 2,137 AU weighted separation, 2.2+1.4 Msol, so it is likely binary. 
16h 08m 37.85s +40° 03' 11.2" P.A. 91.00 sep 8.4 mag 8.62,10.41 Sp F2 dist. 255.75 pc (834.26 l.y.)

STF 2015 AB: 152; 300x: Blue-white A, closely separated 2 Dm B needed 300x to split.  WDS uncertain, but there is 59% overlap of parallax ranges, only 311 AU weighted separation, 1.5+1.2 Msol, so it is likely binary.
16h 08m 54.75s +45° 21' 11.8" P.A. 159.00 sep 3.0 mag 8.24,9.52 Sp F5 dist. 97.56 pc (318.24 l.y.)

STF 2016 AB: 152; 150x: Widely separated around 6", light yellow stars, 2 Dm.  WDS calls it physical, but there is barely 1% overlap of the parallax ranges, 1,187 AU weighted separation, 1.7+1.4 Msol, so it should be called uncertain instead.
16h 12m 07.05s +11° 54' 39.2" P.A. 147.00 sep 7.5 mag 8.49,9.60 Sp A3 dist. 172.12 pc (561.46 l.y.)

STF 2017 AB: 152; 150x: White stars, wide, half a delta mag.  WDS says it is not physical, and there is no -88% overlap of the parallax ranges, confirming it is not binary.
16h 12m 08.39s +14° 32' 56.0" P.A. 258.00 sep 29.9 mag 8.60,9.13 Sp K2 dist. 322.58 pc (1052.26 l.y.)

STF 2021 AB: 152; 150x: Brilliant white near equal pair, closely split around 3".  WDS grade 4 orbit, 949-year period.  There is 22% overlap of the parallax ranges, only 101 AU weighted separation, 0.9+0.9 Msol, and the radial velocity delta 0.7 is less than the escape velocity 5.6, so it is certainly binary.
16h 13m 18.45s +13° 31' 37.2" P.A. 358.40 sep 4.0 mag 7.43,7.48 Sp G9V dist. 23.58 pc (76.92 l.y.)

STF 2023 AB: 152; 200x: Very closely separated, 1 Dm white stars.  WDS uncertain, but there is 18% parallax range overlap, only 216 AU weighted separation, 1.4+1.2 Msol, so it is likely binary.
16h 14m 30.89s +05° 31' 21.0" P.A. 222.00 sep 1.8 mag 8.70,9.38 Sp F5

STF 2024 AB: 152; 150x: Bright light orange A star, and 5 Dm faint blue B star, wide.  An unusual large delta mag pair from Struve.  WDS says it's physical, and there is 25% overlap of the parallax ranges, a large 5,377 AU weighted separation, 4.3+1.2 Msol -- given the large mass of the primary is it possible this is binary.  
16h 11m 47.60s +42° 22' 28.2" P.A. 44.00 sep 23.6 mag 5.86,10.73 Sp K4III dist. 193.8 pc (632.18 l.y.)

STF 2025 AB: 152; 150x: Nice!  White A, very faint B closely separated around 3".  WDS says it's physical, but there is borderline 0% overlap of the parallax ranges, only 386 AU weighted separation, 1.9+1.1 Msol, so it is possible it is binary. 
16h 11m 11.71s +47° 33' 36.1" P.A. 164.00 sep 2.6 mag 8.03,9.75 Sp F0 dist. 141.64 pc (462.03 l.y.)

STF 2026 AB: 152; 150x: Faint stars, near equal, around 5" separation.  WDS grade 3 orbit 433-year period.  There is 34% overlap of the parallax ranges, only 89 AU weighted separation, 0.6+0.6 Msol, and the radial velocity delta 0.9 is less than the escape velocity 5.0, so it certainly is binary.  
16h 15m 57.07s +07° 21' 24.8" P.A. 15.90 sep 3.6 mag 9.48,9.86 Sp K5 dist. 26.04 pc (84.94 l.y.)
STF 2027 AB: 152; 200x: Faint stars, slightly unequal, very closely separated.  WDS uncertain, yet there is 22% parallax range overlap, only 373 AU weighted separation, 1.8+1.8 Msol, so it is likely binary.
16h 15m 16.64s +04° 15' 46.6" P.A. 81.00 sep 1.9 mag 8.77,8.86 Sp F0 dist. 271 pc (884 l.y.)

STF 2030 AB: 152; 150x: Around 3 Dm wide faint companion to the primary.  WDS calls it physical, and there is 27% overlap of the parallax ranges, 1,088 AU weighted separation, 2.2+1.2 MSol, so it is probably binary.
16h 12m 43.21s +40° 46' 54.1" P.A. 239.00 sep 5.7 mag 7.91,10.16 Sp A0 dist. 139.47 pc (454.95 l.y.)

STF 2035 AB: 152; 200x: Nice close pair, B is 2 Dm, split with 150x but better view at 200x.  WDS says it's physical, and there is 19% parallax range overlap, 711 AU weighted separation, 1.8+1.4 Msol, and the radial velocity delta 0.6 is less than the escape velocity 2.6, so it is binary.
16h 18m 09.39s +25° 51' 41.2" P.A. 36.00 sep 2.7 mag 9.71,10.90 Sp F5

STF 2037 AB: 152; 300x: Very faint pair, nearly 1 Dm, very closely split around 1" separation.  WDS uncertain, and surprisingly there is no overlap of the parallax ranges -62%, so it is not binary.
16h 18m 49.03s +17° 23' 58.3" P.A. 256.00 sep 1.1 mag 9.82,9.86 Sp G5 dist. 167.5 pc (546.38 l.y.)

STF 2038 AB: 152; 200x: B is very faint, at the edge of detection, very wide.  WDS uncertain, and there is no overlap -88% of the parallax ranges, it is not binary.
16h 23m 31.48s +02° 12' 52.5" P.A. 213.00 sep 17.6 mag 9.10,11.30 Sp K0 dist. 416.67 pc (1359.18 l.y.)

STF 2040 AB: 152; 150x: White A and 2 Dm wide B.  WDS uncertain, but there is 62% overlap of the parallax ranges, 1,201 AU weighted separation, 2.0+1.2 Msol, so it is very likely binary.
16h 23m 05.73s +13° 50' 23.3" P.A. 313.00 sep 7.0 mag 8.11,10.14 Sp F2 dist. 195.69 pc (638.34 l.y.)

STF 2042 AB: 152; 150x: White A, 3 Dm wide B.  WDS uncertain, but there is no -94% overlap of the parallax ranges, it is not binary.
16h 25m 50.78s +05° 42' 07.1" P.A. 134.00 sep 9.7 mag 8.59,11.40 Sp F0 dist. 180.83 pc (589.87 l.y.)

STF 2043 AB: 152; 150x: White and extremely fine faint B, well separated.  Quite an extraordinary match.  WDS says it's physical, but surprisingly there is no parallax range overlap -18%, so it is not likely binary.
16h 25m 26.90s +17° 18' 10.6" P.A. 85.00 sep 10.0 mag 8.03,11.44 Sp G0 dist. 107.07 pc (349.26 l.y.)

STF 2047 AB: 152; 200x: Exquisite pair, near equal, closely split with 150x, better view 200x.  WDS says it's physical, and there is 10% parallax range overlap, only 250 AU weighted separation, 1.6+1.6 Msol, so it is likely binary.
16h 23m 08.85s +47° 37' 48.4" P.A. 325.00 sep 1.8 mag 8.54,8.65 Sp F8 dist. 185.53 pc (605.2 l.y.)

STF 2049 AB: 152; 300x: Beautiful pair, cream white A and light blue B, 1 Dm, closely split.  WDS uncertain, and there is no parallax range overlap -33%, so it is not binary.
16h 27m 54.63s +25° 59' 03.4" P.A. 195.00 sep 1.1 mag 7.33,8.10 Sp A2.5V dist. 132.8 pc (433.19 l.y.)

STF 2051 AB: 152; 150x: Pretty pair, white A and light blue wide B.  WDS says it's physical, but there is no parallax range overlap -72%, it is neither physical nor binary.
16h 29m 25.06s +10° 35' 31.4" P.A. 19.00 sep 13.8 mag 7.68,9.42 Sp G5III dist. 218.82 pc (713.79 l.y.)

STF 2052 AB: 152; 150x: Very nice light-yellow stars, near equal, around 3" separation.  WDS grade 2 orbital solution 229-year period.  38% parallax range overlap, only 40 AU weighted separation, 0.8+0.7 Msol, certainly binary.  
16h 28m 52.67s +18° 24' 50.6" P.A. 117.60 sep 2.5 mag 7.69,7.91 Sp K1V dist. 19.66 pc (64.13 l.y.)

STF 2053 AB: 152; 150x: Faint stars, 1 Dm, wide.  WDS says they're physical, and unfortunately there is no Gaia parallax data for the secondary.
16h 28m 21.06s +31° 08' 08.9" P.A. 351.00 sep 21.6 mag 9.95,10.84 Sp G0

STF 2056 AB: 152; 150x: White A and light yellow B, 1 Dm, wide.  WDS says it's physical, but there is no overlap of the parallax ranges, -57%, so it is not binary.
16h 31m 38.54s +05° 26' 01.3" P.A. 313.00 sep 6.9 mag 7.76,9.22 Sp A3 dist. 118.34 pc (386.03 l.y.)

STF 2057 AB: 152; 150x: Faint pair, near equal, well split.  STF 2058 in the same field.  WDS says proper motion indicates physical, and there is 23% overlap of the parallax ranges, 535 AU weighted separation, 0.9+0.9 Msol, but the radial velocity delta 5.5 exceeds the escape velocity 2.5, so it is not, or will not remain, binary.
16h 31m 34.41s +19° 16' 37.9" P.A. 269.00 sep 4.9 mag 10.49,10.63 Sp K0

STF 2058 AB: 152; 150x: Faint stars, more than 1 Dm, B seen with averted vision only, closely split.  STF 2057 in the same field.  -49% parallax range overlap, it is not binary.
16h 31m 43.32s +19° 18' 36.5" P.A. 352.00 sep 1.8 mag 10.37,10.55 Sp K0

STF 2059 AB: 152; 600x: I want to say I see an elongation, but it is not certain.  WDS grade 4 orbital soltuion, 955-year period, and frustratingly there is Gaia data for the B star.  
16h 30m 55.71s +38° 03' 52.6" P.A. 173.60 sep 0.2 mag 8.75,8.79 Sp F5 dist. 203.25 pc (663 l.y.)

STF 2061 AB: 152; 300x: Nice!  3 Dm B appears with foveal coaxing only, then can hold direct, very much fainter and closely separated.  WDS says it's physical, but surprisingly there is no parallax range overlap -84%, so it cannot be binary.
16h 33m 12.49s +30° 54' 27.0" P.A. 29.00 sep 2.4 mag 7.92,10.44 Sp F2 dist. 121.21 pc (395.39 l.y.)

STF 2062 AB: 152; 200x: Excellent pair, 2 Dm, very closely separated.  WDS uncertain, and the parallax ranges just barely touch 0% overlap, but there is only 411 AU weighted separation, 1.6+1.1 Msol, and the radial velocity delta 0.1 is less than the escape velocity 3.4, so it is very likely binary.
16h 34m 44.14s +08° 45' 54.2" P.A. 109.00 sep 2.5 mag 9.07,10.61 Sp G0
 
STF 2063 AB: 152: 150x: Bright white A and light blue B, 2 Dm, wide.  WDS says it's physical, and there is 37% parallax range overlap, 1,156 AU weighted separation, 2.2+1.1 Msol, so it is very likely binary.
16h 31m 47.23s +45° 35' 53.8" P.A. 195.00 sep 16.3 mag 5.69,8.70 Sp A2V dist. 69.3 pc (226.06 l.y.)

STF 2064 AB: 152; 150x: Faint stars, very wide, 1 Dm.  WDS uncertain, but there is no -96% parallax range overlap, it is not binary.
16h 34m 34.57s +16° 12' 01.6" P.A. 312.00 sep 70.5 mag 10.76,11.21

STF 2065 AB: 152; 150x: Faint stars, near equal, wide.  WDS uncertain, but there is no -95% parallax range overlap, it is not binary.
16h 32m 40.81s +39° 59' 14.1" P.A. 215.00 sep 32.0 mag 9.16,9.68 Sp F2 dist. 389.11 pc (1269.28 l.y.)

Wednesday, June 1, 2022

31 may 2022, more close pairs

Another pretty good night, good enough for the 20-inch. I took some extra time sorting out my new computer, but I can successfully drive the scope with it. The intermittent power problem to the ServoCAT is getting worse, I may need to tear down the scope to clean the powered ground board (or at least run off batteries for a while). Fairly good seeing, enough to go after some close pairs on the physical binary list.

HU 739 AB: 508; 300x: Light orange star, with a quite faint but directly seen companion, fairly well separated, PA southwest.  WDS grade 5 orbit, 307-year period.  There is 37% overlap of the parallax ranges, only 23 AU weighted separation, 0.5+0.3 Msol, so it is highly likely to be binary.  It will widen to 2.5" and lie closer to due south by 2042.
13h 06m 15.40s +20° 43' 45.1" P.A. 197.00 sep 1.8 mag 9.72,12.11 Sp K4V dist. 18.8 pc (61.33 l.y.)
HU 640 AB: 508; 400x: Excellent pair, nicely split, light orange stars, slight delta mag, WSW. 0.442" now.  WDS grade 3 orbit, 124.28-year period.  Unfortunately, there is no Gaia parallax data.  The companion may make one quarter turn to due north by 2038.
12h 50m 41.87s +20° 32' 04.9" P.A. 262.80 sep 0.4 mag 10.19,9.91 Sp K5 dist. 38.27 pc (124.84 l.y.)

A 1851 AB: 508; 600x: Hairline split with seeing, very slight delta magnitude, very light orange stars, very fine, PA just south of east.  Spectral class K4V (yellow-orange).  WDS grade 2 orbit, 61.3-year period, 0.306" now.  Unfortunately, no Gaia data for the secondary.  A rapid mover, it will be due south by 2030 and southwest by 2040.
12h 42m 10.75s +26° 21' 39.5" P.A. 96.20 sep 0.3 mag 10.09,10.08 Sp K4V dist. 44.01 pc (143.56 l.y.)

A 570 AB: 508; 1000x: Using an apodising mask and a polarizing filter to dim the bright stars, I had very fleeting glimpses of a hairline split, but it mostly appears as a strongly notched elongation with PA to the southwest.  WDS grade 1 (definitive) orbit, 29.9-year period, it is currently 0.214" and will make a quarter turn to east by 2035, and north by 2042.  No Gaia parallax data for either star.
14h 32m 20.27s +26° 40' 38.4" P.A. 217.50 sep 0.2 mag 6.61,7.08 Sp A6V dist. 73.64 pc (240.21 l.y.)
COU 100 AB: 508; 600x: Extremely difficult, need best seeing, only a momentary hairline split, very noticeable difference in magnitude, PA to the northeast.  WDS grade 4 orbit, 78.21-year period, currently 0.339".  No Gaia data for the companion.  If binary, it will be due north by 2038 at the same separation, then tighten to the northwest by 2048.
14h 45m 53.04s +23° 43' 38.2" P.A. 13.20 sep 0.3 mag 9.20,9.90 Sp G0+G5