27 february 2024

All in all a frustrating night.  Seeing was predicted to be good but it was variable.  It was to be excellent after 1am but I didn't notice a big improvement so wrapped up at 12:30am.  Since I was on the 20-inch I dwelled on the "movement" list, a very challenging list of known binaries which would exhibit movement over the next 20 years.  The are nearly all <0.5", most <0.3".  I could not get good results, and my pointing accuracy was off.  

I spent most of the night though going after Procyon B.  My white whale.  It's supposed to be at 5" separation to the north, and now through 2026 is the prime time to go for it.  I made another occulting eyepiece using a 9mm orthoscopic, and this time I'm happy it has a crisp edge and doesn't flare, though there is one area where it presents a ghost image (but I check for it by rotating the eyepiece).  I looked long and hard with just the 9mm and with a 2x barlow, and checked all quadrants, and nothing.  A couple times I noticed a hard point within one of the spider vane spikes, but after waiting an hour did not see it move off the spike.  The occulting band (a strip of tin foil) has a slightly uneven part which I found useful in hiding the primary behind to show more than 90-degrees of sky -- but no sign of the star.  I hope for a better night.  Perhaps it was the transparency, causing the sky to be too bright to show the faint companion.  It didn't help there was a waning moon rising at around 10pm.

I observed, or tried to, a few items from the movement list, but the conditions didn't support it.  I observed a couple of them which are beyond detectability, only to put a marker in them to compare years from now when they are.

STF1223 AB: 508; 150x: Near equal bright white stars, well separated. -8% PRO, 551 AU WS, 2.4+2.4 Msol, divergent proper motion, it is not binary. 

08h 26m 47.08s +26° 56' 07.8" P.A. 218.00 sep 5.2 mag 6.16,6.21 Sp A3V+A6V dist. 84.53 pc (275.74 l.y.)

STF1171 AB: 508; 300x: Very delicate faint B, closely separated from bright light-yellow A. -18% PRO, and even though there is only 186 AU WS, it is not likely binary.

08h 01m 00.78s +23° 34' 59.2" P.A. 326.00 sep 2.1 mag 6.48,9.95 Sp K1III-IV dist. 87.95 pc (286.89 l.y.)

COU 384 AB: 508; 1200x: Single at all powers.  No parallax data for the companion.  SOC grade 3 orbit, it is now closing rapidly and not likely to be detectible until apastron in 2050.  40.43-year period.

09h 18m 16.92s +18° 46' 51.7" P.A. 56.00 sep 0.125" mag 8.20,8.30 Sp F0 dist. 135.87 pc (443.21 l.y.)

RST3603 AB: 508; 850x: Very barest of splits with seeing, which is stable only in fleeting moments.  No parallax data for the companion.  SOC grade 3 orbit, 99-year period, it is just coming off apastron and will tighten to undetectability by 2040. 

08h 43m 07.66s -12° 25' 19.0" P.A. 317.00 sep 0.353" mag 7.80,9.61 Sp F3/5IV dist. 110.13 pc (359.24 l.y.)

MTG 1 AB: 508; 1200x: Single all powers, will widen rapidly from now to 2030 apastron and should be splitable.  No Gaia data.  Worth an annual look.  16.19-year period, SOC grade 3 orbit.

07h 11m 11.44s +43° 29' 58.1" P.A. 190.00 sep 0.06" mag 9.80,9.90 Sp M6.5+M6.5

KUI  23 AB: 508; 1200x: Single all powers.  SOC grade 2 orbit, it is at periastron now but will rapidly widen to apastron in 2028 and should be splitable.  No Gaia data.

06h 04m 07.22s +23° 15' 49.1" P.A. 358.00 sep 0.093" mag 4.77,5.50 Sp G7III dist. 47.55 pc (155.11 l.y.)

COU 292 AB: 508; 1200x: Single all powers.  No Gaia data.  SOC grade 2 orbit, 25.02-year orbit, it will tighten and not be detectible again until 2045 apastron, and even then it will be ~0.185"

10h 26m 54.22s +19° 30' 44.9" P.A. 50.00 sep 0.173" mag 8.42,8.79 Sp F8 dist. 79.05 pc (257.86 l.y.)

6 february 2024

After more weeks of storms, we had a clear night finally.  Seeing was to be average and transparency poor.  Because of various chores I wasn't free until 9:30pm, and had resigned myself to watching YouTube videos.  But as the computer was turning on, I shamed myself into going outside to observe.  After all, getting a telescope was my way of not wasting my time in the evenings, to be in the world.  So I bundled up and in 10 minutes, after taking the scope's tarp off, I was observing with the 6-inch refractor.  It was dewy, and transparency really was poor, but seeing was ok in the 6-inch and I was even seeing airy disks and nice round diffraction rings with higher powers.  After aligning on Sirius then Dubhe, I proceeded to cover Struves in Ursa Major.  Then a C-shaped cloud, looking a lot like Barnard's Loop, covered that part of the sky, so I swung down to Canis Minor, until the whole sky was cloudy.  So much time has passed between sessions, Gemini is past meridian by the time I started.  I hope there will be a gap in the weather soon so I can go to a dark site.

STF1402 AB: 152; 125x: Wide, 1 Dm, red A.  There is a with a wide third another 1 Dm from B (GIR 2 AC).  -97% PRO, it is not binary.

10h 04m 54.93s +55° 29' 16.5" P.A. 105.00 sep 33.1 mag 7.91,8.92 Sp K5 dist. 520.83 pc (1698.95 l.y.)

STF1425 AB: 152; 150x: Close, faint, unequal white pair, half a delta magnitude, split with 125x but better seen 150x. -4% PRO, 1,395 AU WS, 1.7+1.5 Msol, and RVD 0.6 < EV 2.0.  It might be binary, an orbit should be tried.

10h 21m 34.14s +46° 09' 07.6" P.A. 358.00 sep 4.8 mag 9.89,10.74 Sp F5 dist. 144.51 pc (471.39 l.y.)

STF1427 AB: 152; 125x: Easy near equal, well separated.  PRO 0%, 1,322 AU WS, 1.8+1.6 Msol, RVD 0.4 < EV 2.1, so it might be binary and an orbit should be tried.

10h 22m 00.53s +43° 54' 19.3" P.A. 214.00 sep 9.3 mag 8.18,8.54 Sp F5V dist. 105.04 pc (342.64 l.y.)

STF1428 AB: 152; 150x: Close but not difficult unequal stars, best seen 150-200x.  86% PRO, 226 AU WS, 1.3+1.4 Msol, it is likely binary and an orbit should be tried.

10h 25m 59.00s +52° 37' 18.3" P.A. 88.00 sep 2.8 mag 8.02,8.44 Sp F6V dist. 87.11 pc (284.15 l.y.)

STF1430 AB: 152; 125x: Very faint and wide B seen with averted vision only.  -24% PRO, it is not binary.

10h 25m 41.11s +40° 54' 39.4" P.A. 272.00 sep 21.2 mag 8.20,12.10 Sp G5III dist. 510.2 pc (1664.27 l.y.)

STF1436 AB: 152; 125x: Faint wide B needs averted vision to see, then can hold direct.  81% PRO, 1,300 AU WS, 1.5+1.0, and RVD 1.5 < EV 1.8, it is likely binary and needs an orbit.

10h 30m 22.86s +56° 21' 20.0" P.A. 254.00 sep 10.5 mag 8.78,10.39 Sp F5 dist. 118.48 pc (386.48 l.y.)

STF1460 AB: 152; 125x: Fairly close, but still easy with low power, white, unequal stars.  -14% PRO, 489 AU WS, 1.5+1.5 Msol, it is not likely binary.

10h 40m 35.04s +42° 09' 11.6" P.A. 161.00 sep 3.9 mag 8.72,8.90 Sp F2 dist. 185.87 pc (606.31 l.y.)

STF1461 AB: 152; 125x: Well separated >1 Dm, with STF1463 double in field.  -10% PRO, it is not likley binary.

10h 41m 59.31s +46° 38' 59.7" P.A. 137.00 sep 9.1 mag 8.61,10.31 Sp A5V dist. 423.73 pc (1382.21 l.y.)

STF1463 AB: 152; 125x: 1 Dm, well separated.  In the same field as STF1461 and looks similar to it, a little more closely separated.  These two form an equal triangle with a star of similar magnitude, but which is not itself double. -85 PRO, it is not binary.

10h 42m 54.25s +46° 41' 25.2" P.A. 258.00 sep 7.9 mag 9.30,10.42 Sp G5

STF1462 AB: 152; 125x: B is faint but easily seen with low power, well separated, white.  6% PRO, 904 AU WS, 1.9+1.0 Msol, RVD 2.5 > EV 2.4.  Hard to say it's binary and not just comoving, an orbit should be tried.

10h 42m 52.23s +50° 47' 57.3" P.A. 174.00 sep 8.1 mag 7.41,10.10 Sp A8IV dist. 129.2 pc (421.45 l.y.)

STF1465 AB: 152; 150x: Close near equal light orange stars, can split at 125x but better seen 150x.  23% PRO, 1,884 AU WS, 3.4+3.1 Msol, it is possibly binary and needs an orbit.

10h 43m 13.35s +44° 37' 41.6" P.A. 11.00 sep 2.2 mag 9.79,10.10 Sp K2

STF1467 AB: 152; 125x: Close pair, significant delta magnitude, white.  25% PRO, 1,425 AU WS, 2.8+1.5 Msol, it's possibly binary and needs an orbit.

10h 45m 15.60s +44° 58' 11.2" P.A. 288.00 sep 3.9 mag 8.58,10.76 Sp K0III dist. 239.23 pc (780.37 l.y.)

STF1475 AB: 152; 125x: Very wide, faint B seen with averted vision only.  -93% PRO, it is not binary.

10h 49m 25.90s +41° 23' 24.2" P.A. 186.00 sep 26.6 mag 7.89,11.30 Sp G0 dist. 96.34 pc (314.26 l.y.)

STF1483 AB: 152; 150x: Faint near equal light orange stars.  -31% PRO it is not binary. 

10h 54m 30.84s +47° 29' 35.8" P.A. 243.00 sep 2.3 mag 9.52,9.61 Sp G5 dist. 52.85 pc (172.4 l.y.)

STF1484 AB: 152; 125x: Wide B seen with averted vision.  -93% PRO, it is not binary.  BC is not binary either, -41% PRO.

10h 54m 36.71s +45° 27' 57.3" P.A. 4.00 sep 18.3 mag 10.10,12.60 Sp K0

STF1485 AB: 152; 125x: Wide, faint, needs averted vision. -80% PRO, it is not binary.

10h 54m 37.97s +43° 34' 58.9" P.A. 218.00 sep 18.6 mag 8.74,11.50 Sp K0 dist. 531.91 pc (1735.09 l.y.)

STF1486 AB: 152; 125x: Wide near equal stars.  -81% PRO, it is not binary.

10h 55m 01.14s +52° 07' 18.2" P.A. 100.00 sep 31.6 mag 8.45,9.69 Sp K5 dist. 420.17 pc (1370.59 l.y.)

STF1488 AB: 152; 125x: Wide, faint B, need averted vision to see better.  -30% PRO, it is not binary.

10h 56m 47.77s +52° 11' 00.9" P.A. 214.00 sep 20.0 mag 8.17,11.20 Sp A3 dist. 109.29 pc (356.5 l.y.)

STF1494 AB: 152; 125x: Wide pair, B is faint seen with averted vision then can hold direct.  1% PRO, 520 AU WS, 0.9+0.6 Msol, RVD 1.3 < EV 2.3, it is possibly binary and an orbit should be tried.

10h 58m 25.63s +37° 01' 43.8" P.A. 331.00 sep 10.7 mag 8.85,10.62 Sp G5 dist. 53.73 pc (175.27 l.y.)

STF1525 AB: 152; 150x: Excellent near equal pair, faint, medium power is best since high power blurs the image.  Good close split, with seeing.  65% PRO, 521 AU WS, 1.6+1.5 Msol, RVD 0.1 < EV 3.2, it is probably binary and needs an orbit.

11h 19m 29.37s +47° 28' 12.6" P.A. 173.00 sep 2.3 mag 9.90,9.93 Sp F5 dist. 325.73 pc (1062.53 l.y.)

STF1579 AB-C: 152; 125x: 2 Dm close companion, still split with low power.  -54% PRO, it is not binary (nor is AB-D, only AB is binary).

11h 55m 05.74s +46° 28' 36.6" P.A. 44.00 sep 3.7 mag 6.68,8.32 Sp A3Vn dist. 211.86 pc (691.09 l.y.)

STF1541 AB: 152; 125x: Faint B 2 Dm, well split.  -14% PRO, it si not binary.

11h 27m 39.46s +46° 17' 33.4" P.A. 27.00 sep 7.8 mag 7.97,10.13 Sp F8 dist. 89.29 pc (291.26 l.y.)

STF1542 AB: 152; 150x: Very pretty white and 2 Dm B, close but comfortably split with both 125x and 150x.  -9% PRO, it is not binary.

11h 27m 56.02s +44° 33' 57.0" P.A. 267.00 sep 3.9 mag 6.93,9.65 Sp F2V dist. 88.89 pc (289.96 l.y.)

STF1586 AB: 152; 200x: Excellent!  Split with seeing, a very good close split nearly 2 Dm, faint.  82% PRO, 285 AU WS, 1.8+1.2 Msol, it is very likely binary and an orbit should be tried.

11h 56m 53.86s +40° 21' 21.5" P.A. 255.00 sep 1.5 mag 8.83,10.37 Sp F8 dist. 147.49 pc (481.11 l.y.)

STF1515 AB: 152; 125x: = HJ  494, near equal, wide.  Parallax data missing for the companion.

11h 13m 03.64s +40° 11' 03.9" P.A. 140.00 sep 31.2 mag 10.70,10.85 Sp F8+G0

STF1543 AB: 152; 125x: Yellow-white, 2 Dm, well split.  12% PRO, 362 AU WS, 2.3+1.1 Msol, it could be binary and an orbit should be tried.

11h 29m 04.12s +39° 20' 13.1" P.A. 354.00 sep 5.5 mag 5.35,10.67 Sp A2V dist. 65.23 pc (212.78 l.y.)

STF1569 AB: 152; 150x: Excellent, faint unequal pair, dark yellow.  Close split at 125x & 150x. -7% PRO, it is not binary.  

11h 44m 18.43s +39° 00' 24.5" P.A. 321.00 sep 3.7 mag 8.83,10.59 Sp F0 dist. 307.69 pc (1003.68 l.y.)

STF1533 A-BC: 152; 125x: Easy wide pair, near equal.  -81% PRO, it is not binary.  

11h 22m 07.07s +37° 05' 15.1" P.A. 173.00 sep 23.1 mag 9.25,9.43 Sp G0 dist. 374.53 pc (1221.72 l.y.)

STF1524 AB: 152; 125x: Very unequal, well split. Alula Borealis.  87% PRO, 926 AU WS, 5.4+1.3 Msol, it is likely binary and needs an orbit tried.

11h 18m 28.74s +33° 05' 39.5" P.A. 147.00 sep 7.0 mag 3.64,10.10 Sp K3IIIBaO dist. 122.4 pc (399.27 l.y.)

STF1182 AB: 152; 125x: Unequal, well split.  60% PRO, 1,336 AU WS, 2.9+2.2 Msol, it is likely binary and needs an orbit.

08h 05m 24.43s +05° 49' 38.9" P.A. 75.00 sep 4.9 mag 7.48,8.76 Sp B9 dist. 328.95 pc (1073.03 l.y.)

STF1185 AB: 152; 125x: Faint, slightly unequal, close split.  24% PRO, 348 AU WS, 1.1+0.9 Msol, RVD 0.5 < EV 3.2, it is probably binary and needs an orbit.

08h 07m 07.38s +01° 20' 46.5" P.A. 94.00 sep 3.8 mag 9.59,10.26 Sp K0

STF1198 AB: 152; 125x: Near equal, wide.  -90% PRO, it is not binary.

08h 11m 15.97s +01° 16' 05.5" P.A. 338.00 sep 33.4 mag 8.72,8.77 Sp G0