27 august 2025

Observed with the 6-inch, pretty good seeing for the aperture, some haze.  I went back to using the zoom eyepiece for the connivence.  

BU  692 AB: 152; 250x: Very close B seen intermittently with seeing, very difficult.  -37% PRO, it is not binary.

21h 50m 05.37s +31° 50' 52.4" P.A. 10.00 sep 2.9 mag 7.47,11.03 Sp K0 dist. 181.16 pc (590.94 l.y.)

BU 1516 AB: 152; 125x: Wide and faint, three similar stars in a wide triangle around the primary.  Lacks parallax data.

22h 41m 27.67s +10° 49' 53.0" P.A. 145.00 sep 57.0 mag 3.38,11.60 Sp B8V dist. 62.66 pc (204.4 l.y.)

ES 1028 AB: 152; 180x: Moderately close B seen with foveal coaxing, large delta mag.  35% PRO, 1,336 AU WS, 2.6+1.2 Msol, but RVD 2.7 > EV 2.2, it is not likely binary.

22h 42m 24.05s +54° 14' 54.3" P.A. 243.00 sep 6.0 mag 7.58,10.57 Sp A0V dist. 208.77 pc (681.01 l.y.)

HJ 1756 AB: 152; 180x: Very pretty, with averted vision the system looks like a planet and moons, one on either side, one close (AB) and other father and off kilter (AD).  Can hold the faint stars better with higher power.  B lacks parallax data, A and D don't overlap.

22h 21m 52.83s +40° 39' 59.1" P.A. 286.00 sep 22.3 mag 6.69,10.49 Sp K3.5III dist. 165.02 pc (538.3 l.y.)

HJ 1791 AB: 152; 125x: Wide, 2 Dm.  43% PRO, 1,016 AU WS, 1.3+0.8 Msol, and RVD 1.9 = EV 1.9, 0.08 PMV, it is possibly binary and needs an orbit.

22h 35m 39.29s +56° 51' 40.2" P.A. 59.00 sep 17.1 mag 7.71,9.69 Sp G0

STF2881 AB: 152; 250x: Close split, unequal.  11% PRO, 194 AU WS, 2.1+1.8 Msol, it is likely binary.  SOC grade 4 orbit, 1345-year period.  

22h 14m 34.67s +29° 34' 20.6" P.A. 75.00 sep 1.3 mag 7.65,8.24 Sp F6III dist. 171.53 pc (559.53 l.y.)

STF2908 AB: 152; 125x: Wide, dull white and light orange, 2 Dm.  4% PRO, 2,139 AU WS, 2.7+1.7 Msol, 0.09 PMV, it is possibly binary, an orbit can be tried.

22h 28m 11.55s +17° 15' 47.9" P.A. 114.00 sep 9.1 mag 7.74,9.68 Sp G9III dist. 462.96 pc (1510.18 l.y.)

STF2948 AB: 152; 250x: Very pretty light white and blue stars, close split, seen with 125x, but nicely seen 250x, 2 Dm.  -18% PRO, it is not binary.

22h 49m 36.21s +66° 33' 13.8" P.A. 3.00 sep 2.6 mag 7.26,8.60 Sp B6Vn dist. 261.78 pc (853.93 l.y.)

STF2950 AB: 152; 250x: Hairline split high power only, very unequal.  73% PRO, 102 AU WS, 1.6+2.2 Msol, but -0.03 PMV.  SOC grade 4 orbit, 817-year history, time will tell.

22h 51m 22.51s +61° 41' 47.9" P.A. 270.00 sep 1.1 mag 6.03,7.08 Sp G8III-IV dist. 72.73 pc (237.25 l.y.)

STFA 58 AC: 152; 70x: Superwide, 2 Dm.  49% PRO, but 11,624 AU WS, 6.7+3.9 Msol, but RVD 3.1 > EV 1.3, it is not binary.

22h 29m 10.25s +58° 24' 54.7" P.A. 191.00 sep 41.0 mag 4.21,6.11 Sp F5Iab+B7 dist. 265.25 pc (865.25 l.y.)

STT 458 AB: 152; 380x: Hairline split, unequal, suspected double with lower powers.  29% PRO, 274 AU WS, 3.1+2.3 Msol, 0.09 PMV, it is possibly binary and needs an orbit.

21h 56m 27.30s +59° 47' 42.4" P.A. 349.00 sep 1.0 mag 7.20,8.41 Sp A0V dist. 346.02 pc (1128.72 l.y.)

STT 467 AB: 152; 250x: Light orange star very wide faint B seen averted vision only with 125x, can hold it with 280x.  RVD 4.7 > EV 1.2, it is not binary.

22h 14m 48.57s +22° 31' 24.3" P.A. 273.00 sep 23.0 mag 6.73,12.20 Sp G8III dist. 220.26 pc (718.49 l.y.)

STT 470 AB: 152; 125x: White and light blue stars, close separation with low power, 3 Dm.  8% PRO, 492 AU WS, 1.9+1.0 Msol, RVD 2.3 < EV 3.3, 0.07 PMV, it is possible to be binary, an orbit can be tried.

22h 20m 57.68s +66° 57' 54.5" P.A. 351.00 sep 4.3 mag 7.37,9.77 Sp A7V dist. 104.82 pc (341.92 l.y.)

STT 480 AB: 152; 125x: Wide near equal pair, near an open cluster, which is a few brighter stars and a glow of unresolved stars.  10% PRO, 1,942 AU WS, 1.4+1.1 Msol, RVD 0.9 < EV 1.5, 0.08 PMV, it is possible to be binary, and needs an orbit.

22h 46m 05.29s +58° 04' 19.6" P.A. 117.00 sep 30.7 mag 7.65,8.64 Sp F8

STT 481 AB: 152; 250x: Lovely close spilt with low through high powers, white and blue, 2 Dm.  4% PRO, 576 AU WS, 2.8+1.7 Msol, 0.07 PMV, there is some chance it's binary, an orbit can be tried.

22h 43m 50.72s +78° 31' 05.7" P.A. 277.00 sep 2.2 mag 7.46,9.54 Sp A0II-III dist. 390.63 pc (1274.24 l.y.) 

quick observing trip

I decided last minute to head to the "road 6" observing site, on the central coast, on 24 August.  I could fit one quick trip so long as I started driving back at around 4am to get back home and take one of my kids to school after a doctor's appointment.  I planned to have around 3.5 hours of observing, (8:30pm to midnight), 3-4 hours of sleep, and then the 3-hour drive home.  While places like Lake Sonoma and Fremont Peak were shorter drives, their transparency forecasts were poorer.  

This was my first visit to the site, and while the horizons are compromised by trees and hills in multiple directions, it is a large and flat area, peacefully off the main road.  There's a decent view due south through a gap in hills to -43 degrees declination, then on up through Polaris, so at least objects can be observed at culmination.  After setting up I spent some time clearing the area of loaf-sized rocks which were scattered around, to make the area even more drivable.  Once fully dark, my SQML read 21.35 -- not great but around as good as I've had from this area.  Around 11pm I noticed the sky quality had dropped, to 21.2, and I noticed some high puffy clouds surrounding Polaris.  West and south were still clear, so I continued until midnight.  I used my 10-inch f/3.75 Newtonian with a PVS-14 night vision device and an assortment of filters.  Here are some highlights:

M16 Obvious pillars of creation, the two opposite the dark nebula intrusion which points at them -- along with a finger-like pillar to one side.  The nebula was like a shell, the obvious effect of stellar winds blowing gaseous material away.  I traced the wisps of nebula which surround the brightest part to other nearby nebula and was reminded of how connected they all are -- the bright objects like the Eagle, Swan, Lagoon, etc. are simply more visible because stars illuminate them more.  I can't find a good image to show this interconnectedness -- the following, from the MDW Sky Survey, shows the nebula brighter than what I saw, but hopefully conveys what I mean.  

Sh2-12 / NGC 6383 Bright star with a small associated cluster, surrounded by very faint, large, mottled round nebula, larger than the field so I needed to pan around to its irregular edges, nibbled with dark nebula.  Just off the side from it is M6 the butterfly cluster, which when I center in the field, I can see the outer arc of this nebulous sphere.

NGC 6357 Very small intense elongation in the center of a very nebulous field., with many wisps and knots surrounding it, streaked with dark nebula, speckled with spheres, and wisps trailing from it in all directions.

NGC 6302 Bug Nebula.  I can see it unfiltered, but it completely disappears with the 685 longpass filter, best view TriBand filter.  Though at small scale, I can see the two ansae, one longer than the other.

M57: Bright and round.  Due to small scale, I didn't look for detail.  But in a 2-degree field, the goal was not to see particulars of the nebula, it was to see it floating in the myriad of stars the night vision device reveals.

I woke at 3am after a too-short nap in my car and got out to stretch.  Looking up, I could see M31 in between puffs of cloud.  And then I heard the soft leathery flaps of bat wings and looked up to see a very large bat 10 feet above me, quietly making its rounds.  Starting the drive home, listened to Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber's "The Rosary Sonatas," also called "The Mystery Sonatas."  I bought the CDs from Half Price Books out of curiosity a few weeks ago, not knowing anything about the music, and left them in my car.  I was shocked by their beauty and the virtuosity of the playing.  Biber wrote in the late 1600s, and in parts the sonatas sounded like the honed results of his improvisations on the violin.  He was the Jimi Hendrix of his era, finding new sounds and possibilities with his instrument. Travelling through the tunnel of light formed by my headlights, I saw a frog hopping across the road, a few mice, a young bobcat zigzag in front of me.

I don't know if it was my exhaustion, the exhilaration of seeing things in the sky very few humans even know about, or the transcendence of the music, but I was in a mystical state of mind.  Starting on the main road, I felt my tunnel of light was leading me through a sort of hell, at least an astronomer's hell, complete with vapors and fiery lights.  Few of us travel to our observing sites at night, so it was disturbing to see why the sky quality is not as good as the light pollution map would promise, and why we resort to ever larger aperture telescopes or technology (astrophotography, night vision) to enjoy this hobby.  The nearby military base casts its own light dome.  Individual farms blaze with security lights on sheds and barns.  The haze of fog in the Salinas Valley diffuses the light into the sky, rather than blanketing it like a marine layer.  I noticed a pillar of light, like something from the Bible, forming an awful vertical rainbow miles ahead of me before reaching the source: nighttime pickers at their hard labor, following behind the brightly lit sorting machine and tractor.  Multiple buildings along 101 have bright unshielded lights pointed up.  One large multistory building under construction had around 10 floors framed but lacked outer walls.  The entire inside was brightly lit up -- I presume for nighttime construction crews -- it was bright enough to light the interior of my car though it was a quarter mile away, and it formed a sickly glow in the sky above.  One winery had its tank and pump system completely lit up.  I think north of San Francisco is not being developed so much, so places like Lake Sonoma is getting to be darker than sites south -- unfortunately north typically have worse transparency.  In any case, it does not bode well.

Fortunately, the 2 CDs worth of Biber's music carried me home safely. 

august 18 2025, doubles and titan transit

Observed with the 6-inch.  Seeing was slightly better than average, as was transparency.  I observed a number of double stars as I waited for Saturn to rise, with a Titan shadow transit set to begin at 11:30pm.  Fortunately Saturn was placed well enough to observe with my 6-inch before passing behind the meridian tree, and seeing by that time was better.  I saw the shadow, which was a bit blurred by seeing (and the less resolution to be had from a 6-inch scope), but with moments of sharpness.  So that's two Titan shadow transits, with a third opportunity to come during the September new moon.  I did not forget to have a look at small blue-grey Neptune, which was just out of a low power field of view from Saturn.

I used my Baader turret eyepiece set.  The orthoscopic eyepieces are very fine, and it's not too much trouble to move between the eyepieces, though there is a chance the scope moves out of position, and of course one has to take one's eye away from the view.  The zoom is better, but I don't mind the larger range of magnification the turret makes available.

BU   75 AB: 152; 380x: Excellent close split, slightly unequal.  Approaching periastron, where it was at discovery in 1872.  SOC class 2 orbit, 150-year period (and 155 light years away, in a near symmetry).

21h 55m 31.42s +10° 52' 49.5" P.A. 28.00 sep 1.1 mag 8.40,8.56 Sp G5 dist. 47.78 pc (155.86 l.y.)

BU  133 AB: 152; 250x: Hairline split with seeing, unequal, white.  Lacks Gaia parallax data.  Burnhams notes little change in his era.

18h 27m 43.73s -26° 38' 05.6" P.A. 230.00 sep 0.6 mag 6.59,8.48 Sp A8V+F2V dist. 78.12 pc (254.83 l.y.)

BU  276 AB: 152; 250x: 1 Dm well split in choppy seeing.  -59% PRO, it is not binary.

22h 00m 50.24s -28° 27' 13.6" P.A. 113.00 sep 1.9 mag 5.70,6.77 Sp B8Ve dist. 250.63 pc (817.56 l.y.)

BU  369 AB: 152; 180x: Wide B seen with averted vision low and high powers.  93% PRO, 3,746 AU WS, 2.6+0.9 Msol, but RVD 3.7 > EV 1.3, it is not binary.

21h 26m 29.08s +52° 44' 52.7" P.A. 31.00 sep 16.0 mag 7.59,11.80 Sp B9.5V dist. 198.81 pc (648.52 l.y.)

BU  436 AB: 152; 125x: Wide very faint B.  56% PRO, 2,237 AU WS, 1.9+0.7 Msol, but RVD 3.3 > EV 1.4, it is not binary. HO 290 AC, fainter and closer, is also not binary, not sharing any parallax overlap.

22h 10m 54.89s +57° 56' 28.9" P.A. 327.00 sep 19.8 mag 7.42,12.00 Sp A5 dist. 104.6 pc (341.21 l.y.)

BU  694 AB: 152; 380x: Very close split, >1 Dm, suspected with lower powers but only split with very high.  Lacks Gaia data.  

22h 02m 56.68s +44° 38' 59.8" P.A. 8.00 sep 1.0 mag 5.71,7.76 Sp A0IV dist. 151.06 pc (492.76 l.y.)

H 1  48 AB: 152; 250x: Hairline split, unequal, seems light red and blue.  Lacks Gaia data.  SOC grade 3 orbit, 82.76-year period, it is reaching periastron now and will hang nearly in place for another 30 years.  

21h 13m 42.46s +64° 24' 15.1" P.A. 247.00 sep 0.9 mag 7.21,7.33 Sp G2IV+G2IV dist. 42.75 pc (139.45 l.y.)

H N  56 AB: 152; 125x: Very pretty light orange A and light blue B, 1 Dm, good split.  27% PRO, 380 AU WS, 2.4+1.6 Msol, PMV 0.07, it might be binary, an orbit can be tried.

22h 14m 18.02s -21° 04' 28.9" P.A. 112.00 sep 5.2 mag 5.63,6.72 Sp K0III+F2V dist. 71.58 pc (233.49 l.y.)

H N  73 AB: 152; 125x: Faint wide companion to Deneb.  Lacks Gaia data.  Highly unlikely to be binary. 

20h 41m 25.91s +45° 16' 49.2" P.A. 105.00 sep 75.6 mag 1.25,11.70 Sp A2Iae dist. 432.9 pc (1412.12 l.y.)

HJ 1741 AB: 152; 70x: Superwide, B with averted vision only.  -76% PRO, it is not binary. 

22h 11m 09.78s +50° 49' 23.8" P.A. 286.00 sep 37.8 mag 5.40,10.99 Sp A5V dist. 56.15 pc (183.16 l.y.)

HO  178 AB: 152; 125x: Wide faint B with averted vision.  -5% PRO, it is not likely binary.  

22h 11m 28.36s +32° 05' 09.9" P.A. 221.00 sep 3.4 mag 7.40,11.16 Sp F0 dist. 121.8 pc (397.31 l.y.)

HWE  59 AB: 152; 125x: Very pretty large Dm, like a star with a planet, wide.  89% PRO, 1,301 AU WS, 2.4+1.0 Msol, but RVD 3.9 > EV 2.1, it is not binary.

22h 01m 32.85s -15° 36' 43.2" P.A. 270.00 sep 9.2 mag 7.16,10.32 Sp G8IV+F0V dist. 128.04 pc (417.67 l.y.)

SCA 104 AB: 152; 70x; Superwide faint B.  -84% PRO, it is not binary.

21h 52m 21.25s -03° 10' 28.8" P.A. 116.00 sep 63.8 mag 6.59,11.00 Sp A0 dist. 184.16 pc (600.73 l.y.)

STF2819 AB: 152; 125x: Pretty pair, 1 Dm, wide, light orange and dull white.  Also seen with 60mm 40x.  97% PRO, 1,304 AU WS, 1.8+1.4 Msol, 0.07 PMV, it is possibly binary and needs an orbit.

21h 40m 21.45s +57° 34' 53.7" P.A. 59.00 sep 12.7 mag 7.44,8.64 Sp F5V

STF2833 AB: 152; 180x: Faint wide B, direct but brightens with averted vision.  61% PRO, 1,035 AU WS, 1.7+1.0 Msol, RVD 2.2 = EV 2.2, 0.09 PMV, it is possibly binary and needs an orbit.

21h 51m 56.56s +09° 04' 46.0" P.A. 337.00 sep 8.4 mag 7.84,10.20 Sp A5 dist. 118.34 pc (386.03 l.y.)

STF2834 AB: 152; 180x: Large delta, faint B well split.  11% PRO, 374 AU WS, 1.9+0.9 Msol, RVD 3.0 < EV 3.6, PMV 0.05, there is some chance it's binary and needs an orbit.

21h 51m 40.18s +19° 18' 25.0" P.A. 298.00 sep 4.3 mag 6.93,9.89 Sp F5IV dist. 91.91 pc (299.81 l.y.)

STF2836 AB: 152; 180x: Faint, well split B.  -84% PRO, it is not binary.

21h 49m 08.12s +66° 47' 31.9" P.A. 155.00 sep 11.7 mag 6.53,10.36 Sp F4V dist. 98.04 pc (319.81 l.y.)

STF2845 AB: 152; 280x: Closely split near equal white.  -52% PRO, it is not binary.

21h 52m 20.95s +63° 06' 04.5" P.A. 173.00 sep 2.0 mag 8.07,8.20 Sp B2V dist. 746.27 pc (2434.33 l.y.)

STF2869 AB: 152; 125x: Wide B seen with averted vision only.  -78% PRO, it is not binary.

22h 10m 22.02s +14° 37' 47.7" P.A. 254.00 sep 20.8 mag 6.33,12.40 Sp K0III dist. 135.69 pc (442.62 l.y.)

STF2873 AB: 152; 125x: Well separated near equal white stars, seen with 60mm 40x too.  84% PRO, 567 AU WS, 1.3+1.1 Msol, but PMV is -0.13, it is not likely binary.  SOC grade 5 orbit 6581-year period.

21h 58m 13.53s +82° 52' 10.8" P.A. 65.00 sep 13.7 mag 7.00,7.47 Sp F8V dist. 29.9 pc (97.53 l.y.)

STN  56 AB: 152; 125x: Faint wide b wide can hold with direct vision, brighter averted.  57% PRO, 796 AU WS, 1.6+0.7 Msol, but RVD 2.8 > EV 2.2, it is not likely binary.

21h 59m 34.75s -27° 37' 49.8" P.A. 36.00 sep 11.3 mag 7.26,10.48 Sp F0V+K3V dist. 75.59 pc (246.57 l.y.)

STT 437 AB: 152; 180x: Very pretty close split pair with low power, nicely seen higher powers, pale yellow-white, very slightly unequal. 13% PRO, 168 AU WS, 1.5+1.7 Msol, but low 0.03 PMV, there is a small chance it is binary.  SOC grade 4 orbit 1218-year period.

21h 20m 50.12s +32° 27' 10.2" P.A. 17.00 sep 2.5 mag 7.15,7.42 Sp G4V dist. 65.62 pc (214.05 l.y.)

STT 457 AB: 152; 250x: Fine split, large delta, white and blue, only split with high powers.  28% PRO, 614 AU WS, 5.2+3.1 Msol, PMV 0.08, it is possibly binary and needs an orbit.

21h 55m 30.99s +65° 19' 14.9" P.A. 246.00 sep 1.4 mag 6.01,8.17 Sp B2.5Ve dist. 314.47 pc (1025.8 l.y.)

STTA225 AB: 152; 70x: Superwide, >1 Dm.  91% PRO, 7,513 AU WS, 1.9+1.3 Msol, RVD 1.6 > EV 0.9, it is not binary.

21h 57m 30.97s +04° 09' 27.8" P.A. 287.00 sep 75.2 mag 7.10,8.57 Sp F5 dist. 97.28 pc (317.33 l.y.)

STTA226 AB: 152; 70x: Superwide, 1 Dm.  -28% PRO, it is not binary.

21h 53m 08.19s +68° 06' 26.9" P.A. 245.00 sep 76.3 mag 7.52,8.91 Sp G8II dist. 421.94 pc (1376.37 l.y.) 

8 august 2025

Another night of predicted good seeing, which was more or less correct.  Observed with the 20-inch again from 10:30pm to midnight.  I observed one super close CDSA piar, but have exhausted my CDSA and movement pair lists for this part of the sky -- fall weather usually being the clearest and with best seeing -- so I observed from a red star list.  Most appeared light yellow or orange to me, though the color was stronger with more magnification.  I used the 7-inch mask for most of these as the star images were much cleaner.  While the colored stars are pretty to look at, my descriptions are a rather uninspired record of their color only.

AGC 10 AB: 508; 1270x: Light orange unequal stars, hairline split 1016x and up.  Wide fainter blue star nearby to west (STF 2570 AB-C).   No Gaia parallax data for the primary but given their closeness an orbit can be tried.

19h 44m 56.78s +10° 46' 30.6" P.A. 137.00 sep 0.2 mag 8.43,8.42 Sp B3IV-V dist. 170.94 pc (557.61 l.y.)

36 Aql: bright light yellow 

BLL  37: light orange 

BLL  38: light yellow orange 

HD 181330: light orange 

HD 183868: white 

HD 186548: must be the fainter star in between two brighter white stars, since it's the only one with color, light orange

HD 187150: light yellow orange 

HD 187238: very light orange 

HD 189114: pale orange 

S  Vul: faint pale red, color shows a little better with magnification 

STF2521: fairly bright light orange, wide companion 

STF2532: light orange easy wide faint companion 

STF2566: very pale yellow 

T  Sge: faint light orange 

V1293 Aql: light yellow 

V342 Sge: pale orange 

V389 Vul: pale orange 

5 august 2025

Predicted above average seeing so I opened the 20-inch and observed from 10:30pm-12:30am.  Seeing was pretty good, so I went for some movement pairs, but rather than improving through the night seeing became choppier.  So, I switched back and forth with the 7-inch mask.  Transparency was poor, and a haze slowly grew thicker as the night continued, with some dew.

B 430 AB: 508; 1270x: Single all powers.  No Gaia parallax data.  SOC grade 2 orbit, now at periastron 0.197", not in my reach.

19h 15m 32.40s -25° 15' 23.8" P.A. 104.00 sep 0.2 mag 5.50,5.70 Sp A8V+G8III dist. 91.49 pc (298.44 l.y.)

STFA 38 AD: 178; 140x: Zeta 2 Lyr.  1 Dm, wide, slight green tint.  83% PRO, 2119 AU WS, 2.5+1.8 Msol, RVD 1.2 < EV 1.9, and 0.05 PMV, it is possibly binary and needs an orbit.  All the Burnham faint stars in this family have vastly differing parallax, they are not binary.

18h 44m 46.36s +37° 36' 18.4" P.A. 150.00 sep 43.7 mag 4.34,5.62 Sp F0IVv dist. 47.69 pc (155.56 l.y.)

BU 1127 AB: 178; 280x: Overlapping disks, 2 Dm.  Currently 0.677", not quite resolvable (should have tried even higher magnification).  No Gaia data for the secondary, an orbit should be tried.

18h 02m 30.89s +44° 14' 02.6" P.A. 39.00 sep 0.7 mag 7.31,9.20 Sp F5V dist. 81.3 pc (265.2 l.y.)

BU 1202 AB: 508; 1270x: Elongated most powers until I can get two photocenters at high power, white stars.  It was 0.656" in 2013, difficult to say it would have closed below my Dawes limit so quickly, unless I observed the wrong star.  An orbit can be tried.  No Gaia data for the secondary.

18h 01m 32.36s +03° 31' 27.4" P.A. 344.00 sep 0.7 mag 8.67,9.69 Sp A0 dist. 246.91 pc (805.42 l.y.)

HU  235 AB: 178; 280x: Very fine close split, 3 Dm.  35% PRO, 121 AU WS, 1.8+1,0 Msol, 0.05 PMV, it is possibly binary and needs an orbit tried.

17h 57m 05.08s +45° 51' 21.4" P.A. 289.00 sep 1.8 mag 6.88,9.04 Sp F7IV dist. 70.03 pc (228.44 l.y.)

 

LDS6413 AB: 508; 140x: Superwide, need to pan the scope.  B is 11-12 mag.  -17% PRO, it is not binary.

18h 00m 38.89s +29° 34' 18.9" P.A. 105.00 sep 88.1 mag 7.08,13.10 Sp G2V+M dist. 28.36 pc (92.51 l.y.)

MLR 571 AB: 508; 1270x: Single all powers.  No Gaia data for secondary.  SOC grade 3 orbit, 71-year period, periastron in 2045 at 0.18"

17h 33m 31.60s +57° 33' 31.4" P.A. 330.00 sep 0.1 mag 7.23,6.87 Sp A5V+G5III dist. 250 pc (815.5 l.y.)

STF2161 AB: 178; 140x: 1 Dm, very slight green tint to each star, well separated. -41% PRO, it is not binary.

17h 23m 40.97s +37° 08' 45.3" P.A. 321.00 sep 4.0 mag 4.50,5.40 Sp B9.5III dist. 120.63 pc (393.5 l.y.)

STF2245 BA: 178; 140x: White, unequal stars, good split.  -74% PRO, it is not binary.  

17h 56m 24.24s +18° 19' 38.1" P.A. 112.00 sep 2.7 mag 7.43,7.55 Sp A0III dist. 240.96 pc (786.01 l.y.)

STF2264 AB: 178; 140x: 95 Her.  Bright well separated, unequal, both light yellow, the fainter star a slightly richer yellow.  95% PRO, 842 AU WS, 3.6+3.6 Msol, RVD 0.6 < EV 3.9, PMV 0.08, it is likely binary and needs an orbit.

18h 01m 30.41s +21° 35' 44.8" P.A. 255.00 sep 6.4 mag 4.85,5.20 Sp A5IIIn dist. 127.88 pc (417.14 l.y.)

STF2282 AB: 178; 140x: Unequal, well split.  Missed opportunity, BC is a 0.2" pair, need to reobserve.

18h 06m 30.47s +40° 21' 39.6" P.A. 83.00 sep 2.7 mag 7.93,9.43 Sp A1V dist. 512.82 pc (1672.82 l.y.)

STF2384 AB: 508; 560x: Fine white pair, 1 Dm, good split at high powers, suspected double at lower powers. No Gaia data for the secondary.  SOC grade 3 orbit 133-year period, it is widening toward >0.8" periastron in the 2070s. 

18h 38m 23.66s +67° 07' 35.6" P.A. 307.00 sep 0.4 mag 8.31,8.95 Sp G5 dist. 53.82 pc (175.56 l.y.)

STF3127 AB: 178; 280x: Light blue-green stars, split low to high, large Dm.  -94% PRO, it is not binary.  It's odd that such disparate stars appear the same odd color

17h 15m 01.92s +24° 50' 22.5" P.A. 291.00 sep 13.8 mag 3.12,8.30 Sp A3IV dist. 23.04 pc (75.16 l.y.)

STF3129 AB: 178; 140x: Easy wide 3 Dm pair.  -14% PRO, it is not binary.

18h 01m 07.16s +45° 21' 03.3" P.A. 168.00 sep 30.8 mag 7.59,10.64 Sp B9 dist. 132.28 pc (431.5 l.y.)

STT 331 AB: 178; 280x: Lovely close split, >1 Dm.  8% PRO, 520 AU WS, 3.6+2.9 Msol, 0.05 PMV, it is possible to be binary and an orbit can be tried.

17h 32m 02.86s +02° 49' 25.4" P.A. 353.00 sep 1.0 mag 7.74,8.82 Sp B5V dist. 476.19 pc (1553.33 l.y.)

STT 341 AB: 508; 560x: Excellent close split, light dull yellow stars, 1 Dm, near a pretty arc of similar magnitude stars.  No Gaia parallax data.  SOC grade 2 orbit 20-year period, it is widening to periastron in 2029, moving from ESE to SE PA.

18h 05m 49.72s +21° 26' 45.6" P.A. 89.00 sep 0.3 mag 7.39,8.82 Sp G0V+G5V dist. 39.45 pc (128.69 l.y.)

STT 344 AB: 178; 390x: Very fine split, large delta, faint B.  -46% PRO, it is not binary.

18h 07m 06.29s +49° 42' 37.6" P.A. 140.00 sep 2.3 mag 6.47,10.31 Sp A2V dist. 221.24 pc (721.68 l.y.)

STT 400 AB: 508; 560x: 1 Dm light orange stars, easy split, suspected low powers, split 280x, nicer view higher powers. No Gaia parallax for the secondary.  SOC grade 2 orbit, 85.61-year period, it is at periastron now and will rapidly close through the 2040s.

20h 10m 13.32s +43° 56' 44.2" P.A. 329.00 sep 0.7 mag 7.60,9.83 Sp G3V dist. 51.33 pc (167.44 l.y.)

 

4 august 2025

Some warning weather and with it an offshore wind to keep the marine layer marine.  Seeing was good for the 6-inch so that's what I used.  The sky was still hazy, so fainter stars were more difficult to see.  Only had an hour and a half out, but it felt nice to be back in the habit.  I have already observed almost all the CDSA list in the summer sky, so I switched to the Burnham list for many of the observations. 

BU 56 AB: 152; 250x: Excellent close pair, 1 Dm, just split with seeing.  2% PRO, 101 AU WS, 1.1+1.3 Msol, it is possibly binary and needs an orbit tried.

20h 05m 07.26s -04° 18' 29.3" P.A. 189.00 sep 1.3 mag 8.01,9.10 Sp F5 dist. 77.46 pc (252.67 l.y.)

BU 60 AB: 152; 175x: Bright white A and very faint close B. 60% PRO, 712 AU WS, 4.2+2.0 Msol, but 0.01 PMV.  It might be binary, and orbit can be tried.

20h 27m 19.20s -18° 12' 42.1" P.A. 148.00 sep 3.5 mag 5.13,8.53 Sp B8II-III dist. 167.22 pc (545.47 l.y.)

BU 62 AB: 152; 250x: Very finely split faint stars, near equal.  -18% PRO, 607 AU WS, 2.8+2.3 Msol, it is not likely binary.

20h 28m 00.64s +30° 08' 02.6" P.A. 133.00 sep 1.2 mag 8.70,9.79 Sp A0

BU 67 AB: 152; 250x: Overlapping disks, large Dm.  -8% PRO, 181 AU WS, 2.2+1.1 Msol, low 0.06 PMV, it is not likely binary.

20h 50m 36.05s +30° 54' 45.7" P.A. 311.00 sep 1.5 mag 6.85,9.87 Sp A8III dist. 120.05 pc (391.6 l.y.)

BU 68 AB: 152; 175x: Faint, unequal stars, closely split.  -10% PRO, 352 AU WS, 0.09 PMV, it is not likely binary.

20h 59m 28.27s +50° 12' 41.0" P.A. 149.00 sep 2.0 mag 9.20,9.68 Sp A5 dist. 184.16 pc (600.73 l.y.)

BU 154 AB: 152; 175x: Split with low power, better view higher, unequal, fairly close split.  60% PRO, 527 AU WS, 1.7+1.4 Msol, and RVD 1.0 < EV 3.2, 0.09 PMV.  It is likely binary (as opposed to StelleDoppie) and needs an orbit.

20h 52m 49.68s -16° 09' 54.5" P.A. 61.00 sep 3.0 mag 8.97,9.97 Sp G2V dist. 247.52 pc (807.41 l.y.)

BU  249 AB: 152; 250x: With seeing and high power only, white stars, large delta, very fine split.  No Gaia parallax data for companion.  Given how close it is, an orbit should be tried.

19h 38m 21.68s +00° 20' 43.6" P.A. 106.00 sep 0.8 mag 7.40,9.41 Sp A7IV dist. 106.16 pc (346.29 l.y.)

BU  423 AB: 152; 250x: Very faint, near equal, hazy view, with seeing.  93% PRO, 363 AU WS, 2.2+2.5 Msol, 0.05 PMV, it is possibly binary and needs an orbit.

19h 27m 51.67s -29° 29' 55.3" P.A. 127.00 sep 1.2 mag 8.58,8.89 Sp G0 dist. 251.26 pc (819.61 l.y.)

BU 425 AB: 152; 175x: Very fine split, near equal.  -20% PRO, it is not likely binary.

19h 57m 32.28s +20° 17' 40.1" P.A. 240.00 sep 1.4 mag 9.17,9.24 Sp B9 dist. 540.54 pc (1763.24 l.y.)

BU 442 AB: 152; 125x: Rich field in finder and main scope, arc of three stars.  42% PRO, 8,641 AU WS, 4.7+3.4 Msol, there is some chance it is binary, can orbit can be tried.

20h 16m 29.84s +37° 38' 35.4" P.A. 103.00 sep 18.3 mag 9.72,8.04 Sp B0III

BU 1475 AB: 152; 125x: Light orange A and well split B, 2 Dm.  66% PRO, 6,920 AU WS, 5.2+3.1 Msol, but RVD 2.6 > EV 1.5, it is not binary

19h 57m 53.70s -09° 03' 30.3" P.A. 113.00 sep 10.4 mag 7.77,9.47 Sp K2 dist. 247.52 pc (807.41 l.y.)

BU 1478 AB: 152; 125x: Wide B with averted vision only, compared to bright white A.   -70% PRO, it is not binary.

20h 03m 49.62s +14° 58' 58.8" P.A. 170.00 sep 28.6 mag 7.00,11.43 Sp G0Ia dist. 2380.95 pc (7766.66 l.y.)

H N 119 AB: 152; 125x: Bright yellow A and well split, faint 2 Dm light orange B.  64% PRO, 641 AU WS, 2.7+1.1 Msol, but RVD 3.9 > EV 3.3, and there is a low PMV 0.01, it is not likely binary.

19h 29m 52.18s -26° 59' 08.2" P.A. 144.00 sep 7.5 mag 5.61,8.82 Sp K2III dist. 71.74 pc (234.02 l.y.)

S 715 AB: 152; 125x: Wide 1 Dm white stars, seems to lie on the edge of a star field or open cluster.  55% PRO, 1165 AU WS, 2.3+1.9 Msol, but a slightly negative -0.08 PMV, it is possibly binary and needs an orbit.

19h 17m 39.96s -15° 58' 01.7" P.A. 17.00 sep 8.4 mag 7.07,7.90 Sp A3V dist. 132.8 pc (433.19 l.y.)

SCJ 22 AB: 152; 250x: Split with 125x, better seen with 175x & 250x.  Light yellow near equal close split.  -46% PRO, it should not be binary, but it is only 34 AU WS, 0.9+0.9, and a SOC grade 2 orbit.  Parallax may be error prone at near distances?  167-year period.

19h 28m 12.26s -12° 08' 40.7" P.A. 296.00 sep 1.2 mag 8.12,8.69 Sp G8V dist. 36.62 pc (119.45 l.y.)

STF2504 AB: 152; 125x: Lovely well split pair, 2 Dm, white A and light-yellow B.  13% PRO, 542 AU WS, 1.6+1.0, RVD 1.8 < EV 2.9, and 0.06 PMV, it is possibly binary and needs an orbit.

19h 20m 59.85s +19° 08' 43.4" P.A. 282.00 sep 8.7 mag 7.00,9.03 Sp F5V dist. 62.7 pc (204.53 l.y.)

STFB 10 A: 152; 125x:  Altair.  Very wide, need to pan scope.  No Gaia parallax data, anyone's guess.

19h 50m 46.99s +08° 52' 05.9" P.A. 286.00 sep 195.8 mag 0.95,9.82 Sp A7V dist. 5.13 pc (16.73 l.y.) 

28 july 2025

July has been a very poor observing month.  The whole summer has been unusually cool, with the marine layer blowing in each evening.  Good for comfort, bad for backyard astronomy.  This night was clear, but with poor transparency and average seeing.  Nonetheless there were two observations I needed to make, in response to posts I had seen on CN.

HU 575 AB: 508, 564x: A short period pair I've been following in my movement pair list.  This night it was suspected double at lower power but easily split with higher powers.  Unequal light orange stars.  When I compare this sketch to one made in May 2020, I notice considerable change in the PA, and that I needed far less magnification to split it (0.336" PA 71.4 in 2020, and 0.482" 25.4 in 2025).  

Next was the Cygnus Egg, RAFGL 2688, which someone raved how night vision had transformed the view.  Using my 20-inch, I observed it visually and with NV.  

Visually, the nebula appears like two small, faint elongated elliptical galaxies end to end with a small gap between, with the points nearest each other a little brighter.  The "wings" were narrow lines and faded at the opposing ends.  I needed 282x to darken the background sky for the "best view."  Adding a single polarizer, and spinning the eyepiece, helped marginally to bring out more glow.

Using the PVS-14 afocally with the 67mm Plossl+ (38x) and a 685 longpass filter did have a dramatic effect.  It was now a high surface brightness object and appeared like two comets with fan-shaped tails facing each other.  The brighter one appeared slightly larger and seemed to have a star at its inside tip; the other was fainter, with a shorter tail, its inside tip was brighter.  I did not notice any detail; the image scale was small.  I had a similar view unfiltered, but the background sky was brighter, and I preferred the filtered view.

I then used the PVS-14 in prime focus mode -- having removed the 1x objective and using threaded adapters to a 2-inch nosepiece and adding a 2x barlow to reach focus (195x).  Still with the 685 longpass, I had a similar view as afocal but at much larger image scale.  This time, I could see subtle, turbulent dark mottling inside both "wings," but I did not see it as a distinct "X" shape or as concentric rippling (as in the Hubble photos).  I did, however, have the sense of a extremely faint roundish, puffy cloud of nebula, some 3x the diameter of the wings and surrounding them -- but this could have just been background nebulous atmosphere.  Maybe this would show better at a dark site.

27 june 2025, movement pairs

Seeing was not exceptional, but it was good enough to open the 20-inch and go after some movement pairs -- after what seems like a long while.  Got started at 10:00pm and finished at 12:30am.  Seeing did improve through the night, and it felt great to be out observing these pairs no one else tries to see.

HU  481 AB" 508; 847x: Exceptionally fine pair, 2 Dm, PA to the southwest.  SOC grade 3 orbit, 119.5-year period, it will widen slightly in the next 20 years but remain in the southwest.    

16h 21m 14.74s +22° 59' 18.8" P.A. 237.00 sep 0.5 mag 8.21,10.04 Sp F8 dist. 66.18 pc (215.88 l.y.)

KUI  66 AB: 508; 508x: 15 Boo.  Using an apodising mask and viewing through the peephole in my eyepiece cap, with seeing only, I see very small, faint point of light inside the first diffraction ring, ESE PA, closely separated. Interesting the B star has a 10th magnitude companion!  which I did not see, of course.

14h 14m 50.85s +10° 06' 02.2" P.A. 111.00 sep 0.8 mag 5.44,8.43 Sp K1III dist. 81.23 pc (264.97 l.y.)

KUI  79 AB: 508; 508x: Excellent, nicely split, faint, light red-orange stars, near equal, SSW PA.  Split with 282x but better seen 508x.  SOC grade 1 orbit, 12.955-year period (!), it will hang at this separation for a couple more years before diving to periastron, becoming detectible again after 2030.

17h 12m 07.78s +45° 39' 57.6" P.A. 289.00 sep 0.7 mag 10.02,10.25 Sp M3V dist. 5.98 pc (19.51 l.y.)

STF1865 AB: 508; 1693x: With apodising mask and peephole, all powers, elongated N-S.  SOC grade 2 orbit, 125.24-year period, it is coming off periastron now and will be resolvable in a couple years.  Struve was lucky to discover it at apastron. 

14h 41m 08.92s +13° 43' 42.0" P.A. 265.00 sep 0.1 mag 4.46,4.55 Sp A0V+A0V dist. 53.88 pc (175.76 l.y.)

STF1998 AB 508; 282x: Xi Sco.  Nice pair, equal white stars closely split, PA NE.  SOC grade 1 orbit, 45.9-year period, it will close and be due east by 2040.

16h 04m 22.13s -11° 22' 23.2" P.A. 12.00 sep 1.2 mag 4.84,4.86 Sp F5IV+F5IV

STT 341 AB: 508; 635x: Lovely light orange stars, 1Dm, nice separation, PA ESE.  SOC grade 2 orbit, it will head further SE until 2033 when it begins a rapid dive toward periastron, not resolvable again until the 2040s.

18h 05m 49.72s +21° 26' 45.6" P.A. 89.00 sep 0.452 mag 7.39,8.82 Sp G0V+G5V dist. 39.45 pc (128.69 l.y.)

17 june 2025

Hopefully our luck is changing weather-wise, as there have been several nights of at least clear skies.  Opened up the 20-inch in case seeing would cooperate, but it was poor at full aperture, so I masked down to 7-inches for the session.  I've run out of targets in the 13-15h range on the CDSA list, except for the closest splits which would require better seeing.  I'll spend some time learning how to use my Questar and trying to use the NV device on my 20-inch (more in-focus needed, so might need to rebuild the focuser board).

BU 1443 AB: 178; 140x: 3 Dm, very wide.  20% PRO, but a very wide 11,730 AU WS, 3.9+1.2 Msol, and RVD 5.6 > EV, it is not binary.

14h 30m 45.39s +04° 46' 20.2" P.A. 195.00 sep 55.7 mag 6.17,10.62 Sp gK4 dist. 212.77 pc (694.06 l.y.)

HLD  18 AB: 178; 280x: 3 Dm, difficult, can just detect B with direct vision, close to A, need magnification to separate. 16% PRO, 570 AU WS, 2.2+1.1 Msol, it is possibly binary and needs an orbit.

14h 19m 25.83s -18° 31' 25.0" P.A. 355.00 sep 3.6 mag 7.35,10.68 Sp A3m+A8/F2 dist. 127.06 pc (414.47 l.y.)

STF1523 AB: 178; 200x: Alula Australis. Light yellow unequal stars, well split.  No Gaia parallax data.  SOC grade 1 orbit, 59.89-year period, currently apastron to the south east, it will be due east in 2045.

11h 18m 10.90s +31° 31' 45.0" P.A. 152.00 sep 2.3 mag 4.33,4.80 Sp F9V+G9V dist. 10.42 pc (33.99 l.y.)

STF1852 AB: 178; 140x: 3Dm, very wide. 48% PRO, 1,567 AU WS, 1.5+0.6 Msol, but RVD 3.2 > EV 1.6, it is not binary.

14h 30m 00.14s -04° 14' 49.9" P.A. 267.00 sep 24.9 mag 7.09,10.60 Sp F2V dist. 56.92 pc (185.67 l.y.)

STF1870 AB: 178; 140x: White, 2 Dm, well split. -5% PRO, it is not likely binary.

14h 42m 55.10s +08° 04' 34.3" P.A. 229.00 sep 4.8 mag 7.46,9.98 Sp F2 dist. 198.02 pc (645.94 l.y.)

STT 209 AB: 178; 140x: 3 Dm, well split.  64% PRO, 1,012 AU WS, 2.8+1.2 Msol, but RVD 3.7 > EV 2.6, it is not binary.

09h 53m 17.23s +50° 37' 16.3" P.A. 309.00 sep 4.9 mag 7.41,10.31 Sp G8IV dist. 196.85 pc (642.12 l.y.)

STT 258 AB: 178; 140x: Wide 3 Dm.  1% PRO with 0.8% error, 1,899 AU WS, 2.7+1.1 Msol, but RVD 4.2 > EV 1.9, it is not binary.

12h 54m 13.34s +82° 31' 03.8" P.A. 71.00 sep 10.5 mag 7.25,10.59 Sp K0 dist. 166.94 pc (544.56 l.y.)

STT 281 AB: 178; 280x: Very fine light orange stars, very closely split, 2 Dm, B is a fine point of light.  No Gaia parallax data for B, but an orbit should be tried.

14h 20m 20.85s +08° 34' 56.3" P.A. 166.00 sep 1.5 mag 7.71,9.69 Sp G5

STT 305 AB: 178; 140x: Bright pair, 2 Dm, well split, yellow-white stars.  90% PRO, 1,123 AU WS, 3.5+1.2 Msol, but RVD 4.6 > EV 2.7, it is not binary.

16h 11m 39.60s +33° 20' 33.8" P.A. 263.00 sep 5.7 mag 6.44,10.17 Sp K2III dist. 154.56 pc (504.17 l.y.)

STT 522 AB: 178; 140x: Faint and wide B with averted vision only.  40% PRO, 3,604 AU WS, 3.0+0.9 Msol, with a strong PMV, it is likely binary and needs an orbit

09h 53m 54.04s +64° 47' 20.2" P.A. 124.00 sep 14.5 mag 7.50,12.10 Sp K0 dist. 219.78 pc (716.92 l.y.)

Titan shadow transit of Saturn

It's been a frustrating observing season, with hazy skies, poor seeing, and marine layers rolling in every night.  The night of 6/15-16 was to feature a rare shadow transit of Titan across Saturn.  This happens every 18 years or so, and there will be several more transits in the coming months, but since we're heading into fire season, I wanted to be sure to see this one.  For this transit the shadow would move close to the middle of Saturn, while the others would be more toward the polar region and be somewhat more difficult to see.

I drove up to Henry Coe in the late evening, intending to get above the Bay's marine haze and to have a good view to the east.  I emailed the rangers a couple days in advance, but the gate was locked when I arrived, and there weren't any rangers at the visitor's center.  I parked outside the gate and carried all my gear to the other end of the lot, with a view of the eastern horizon.

I used my C8 on the G11 mount.  The mount is overkill but was actually a good decision since it remained windy all night.  Transparency was on the poor side and seeing was atrocious.  I had some pointing problems with the mount (I'm not used to it yet), so I didn't bother with any purposeful observing.  I brought my night vision device and am very pleased I can reach focus with it in prime configuration in the C8, achieving a nicely illuminated image at a "normal" image scale of around a half degree.  I made a round of various Messier & NGC globular clusters in Sagittarius -- all of which I've seen before, so I didn't take notes.  All the globular were resolved to their cores, bright, and the star fields were very rich.  The views are at least as good as my 20-inch would be visually in a dark site.  I'm very happy to have the versatility of using the device for more than just large nebula.

But I did view some large nebula all the same.  I scanned around using Ha and the 3x objective looking many things I've seen before.  The sky was washed out and the nebula were not as bright or detailed as they would be from a darker site.  All the same, I noticed to the far southern horizon Gum 53, below Sivan 8.  It was very large, fairly bright (even considering it was in Gilroy's light dome), and dual fan shaped -- two wings with a dark V-shape in between.  Astro photos show many dark nebula trunks coursing through it, but I didn't see such detail since I was using low magnification, but I did see very faint streams of nebula running between it up to Sivan 8. 

Around midnight I tried to sleep in my car, intending to wake up at 3:00am when Saturn should be well risen and the shadow transit should be approaching its midpoint.  But I didn't sleep very well and got up at 2:30am.  I looked at the 3rd quarter moon for a while.  Seeing was still soft, transparency a little worse, and it was still gusting.  Saturn looked very poor when I first slewed to it, I could barely make out any bands and only saw a small formless dark smudge where the shadow should be.  I touched-up my collimation and continued to observe.  After 20 minutes or so, at 3:30am, the seeing settled down enough to give me a fine view of the small dark dot of shadow, just below the very thin rings (which appeared as a dark slash through the planet -- viewed nearly edge on they weren't reflecting so much light back).  In moments of best seeing, I could see the very small, tiny points of Dione & Tethys, and even Enceladus which was a brightening on the outer edge of the rings.  Rhea was easy and bright further west from the system.

  

Mission accomplished, I started packing at 4:00am and drove home.  There are more events in the weeks to come and hopefully I can see them (maybe even from home).

surprises at TB

Tuesday presented good enough conditions to justify a trip down to "Tranquility Base" on the central coast.  The coming weekend is out due to the holiday, and the weather next week is uncertain.  I had a gap in my work schedule and could afford the time to go down.

I left the Bay Area at 2:00pm to try and beat traffic and was mostly successful.  Since darkness is not until after 8:30pm, I had a long lingering restaurant dinner (instead of my usual picnic with supermarket food) and drove into the site.  The roads have been patched since my last visit, and while still a relatively rough ride, a lot better than before.

There was no one in the area, not even at the nearby campground.  I saw only one car departing and that was all.  Going out during the week, and well before a busy weekend, was a good choice.  I set up and waited for night, watching the bats darting around as darkness fell.  As the song says, "I saw the constellations / Reveal themselves one star at a time."

I brought my 10-inch and intended to continue Vogel's Large Planetary list and to try for flat galaxies with NV at prime focus.  The planetaries went well enough, but when I configured the device for prime for the flat galaxies, it needed much more in-focus than I had set-up for.  I may need to replace the focuser and try it again.  It's strange: on the Newtonians the prime configuration needs more in-focus, while refractors seem to need out-focus.  

Abell 21: 07:29.0 +13°15' v.10.2 744"x509" Viewed while not fully dark.  Faint, raggedly round with one brighter side making it a C-shape, and a fission of faint nebula from the opposite side.  Ha.

Abell 24: 07 51 38 +03 00 27, 6'. Hazy edge, round, with two bright lobes facing each other inside the glow.  Near two bright stars, easy to find. Ha.

TK 1 = Ton 320: 08 27 05.53 +31 30 08, 30' diameter, PN G191.4+33.0: Small at low magnification, very vague diffuse cloud in a faint group of stars.  Noticed only by changing filters, as there is very little contrast with the background sky.  It could be mistaken for galactic nebula, do not see rounding in it.  There is a very faint extension of nebula to the west into a group of 3 stars.  Very difficult, Ha & Ha+OIII dual band.

Abell 28: 08 41 35 +58 14 03, 5' diameter.  Seen Ha+OIII dual band only, very tenuously seen with flashes of averted vision, round, uneven surface brightness, hazy edges.

Abell 31: 08:54.2 +08 54, v12.0, 970"x930": Fairly bright, oval shaped, very mottled, bright patch to southwest, on one corner of a box asterism of stars.  Ha.  (Two hawks screaming at each other from a tree at the edge of the meadow during this observation).

Abell 35: 12:53.7 -22 52, v13.3, 938"x636": Pretty large, moderately bright and diffuse, centered on a bright star, mostly round, two brighter streaks through the southern half.  Ha.

Abell 36: 13:40.7 -19 53, v11.8, 478"x281".  Bright, fairly large, best with Ha+OIII dual band.  The bright asymmetric central shell has a bright uneven rim and has a sharp cut off along the northern edge, which is nearly flat.  A very faint, two-armed lobe emerges farther north and is about the same size as the central shell. There is a very weak, smaller shell to the southeast of the central shell, and looks like a dethatched comma.

Next, I did some browsing with my NV device at 1x and 3x, observing the Milky Way now that it was well up.  I re-observed the Spica Nebula, a very large roughly triangular shaped lightening of the sky background around and below Spica.  I think I'm still the only person to observe this through any kind of eyepiece.  I looked at Sivan 8, one of my favorites.

Around 11:30pm I took a break from NV and used my visual eyepieces.  Stars were much tighter, the sky background darker, but of course everything was fainter.  I did a small tour of some Messier objects: M4, M68, M83, and so on.  Omega Centauri was too low, but I had a nice view of the bright, disturbed galaxy NGC 5128.  

Out of the corner of my eye I noticed a bright orange light rising from the hills.  I thought maybe it was a plane, but it accelerated and curved toward the west.  I realized it was a rocket launch from Vandeberg, though the color and the size of the plume was smaller than other rocket launches I've seen (I found out the next day it was a Minuteman III, of course smaller than the other rockets).  It was fortunate I was set-up for visual and quickly pointed my scope at it and started tracking.  There was a spray of debris (a dozen?) which was quickly following the rocket -- I wonder if it was an anti-missile defense mechanism? or just a stage separation?  As the rocket was headed due west (it was headed for the Marshall Islands), and I didn't need to slew the scope as much to keep up with it.  There was a bright flash and then a burst of vapor, so I assume that was a stage separation (it likely was, probably second stage ignition).  It seemed I was looking directly behind the rocket, since the vapor came out as a burst around the rocket, which stayed in the center.  After a few seconds there was a burst of a thick blue ring, like a smoke ring, which spread out from the rocket.  Third stage?  A few seconds later, there were pulses of vapor, forming concentric circles which spread out.  Then the vapor swirled -- like the rocket was spinning as the vapor came from it.  Eventually there was no more vapor, but I could still see the brighter rocket (maybe just it's glowing cone) swiftly followed by a fainter point -- likely a stage skirt or a stage itself.  Until I lost the view.  When I looked up from the eyepiece at the sky, there was a large, moustache-shaped, long vapor trail with a bright knot in the lower end which hung above Corvus.  In the west there was a large, thick-walled oval formed by the vapor I had seen, it was nearly as large as Leo.  As I watched it slowly grew in size: incredible to see it first as a complete oval, then as an arch intersected by the nearby hills.  My quick field sketch tries to show it in relation to Leo:

Now that I know it was a Minuteman, I can only imagine the scene when dozens of them are launched at the same time -- a terrifying spectacle.  

After trying and failing to use prime focus in this set-up, I went back to afocal NV observing.  I reobserved Sivan 8, at the base of Scorpio's tail, with the 10-inch.  I was careful to reobserve the large cone-shaped nebula along the north inner rim of the nebula -- a larger, more challenging Cone Nebula.  It was clearly there, along with several other crenelations along the rest of the rim.  This is such a dramatic nebula, amazing to behold.

Outers 4: 21h 11 48 +59 59 12 69'x20': This is a very strange bipolar nebula in the center of Sh2-129.  I observed it first a couple years ago with my NP101.  Now with the 10-inch, it was a little more obvious, meaning I could more quickly pick out the very subtle, thick-finger-shaped milky contrast change.  The southern portion is relatively brighter than the northern, of which I barely made out the section nearest the star.  With Ha, it was still very subtle and helped by knowing where to look.  It was even fainter than what's shown in the photo. 

IPHASX J205013.7 +465518: Near Deneb, this appeared best unfiltered and was a small, very faint, irregularly oval milky wash with a stronger western rim and mottling in the center.  Nicknamed the Ear Nebula, it is a relatively old and very faint planetary nebula that was discovered by the INT/WFC Photometric H-alpha Survey of the Northern Galactic Plane (IPHAS) in 2005. The black and white photo is a good representation of what I saw (though at larger scale).  The color photo was taken by the Mosaic camera on the Mayall 4-meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory. 

I woke at 6am, getting only 3 hours of sleep -- though it was that solid, blackout kind of sleep of the very tired.  It was still cool, and the sun had not yet overcome the eastern hills.  When I come out to this site, I always regret not spending more time here to go hiking or to explore the interesting rock formations -- I hesitate to leave expensive telescope equipment unattended in a car.  This time, since I knew no one was in the campground, and it was still very early for people to come in, I decided to drive down the road a little to explore an interesting rock outcrop.  I scrambled up the rocks, which formed different levels one could climb, and noted various caves, boulders, and interesting plants -- including a succulent called "live forever" which clung to the lip of a cave.  I felt free, exhilarated, since this was not part of my plan.  As Simic said, not even my fate knew where I was.  I very much needed a break from all my various pressures and obligations.

Upon arriving home and taking a shower, I found a black tick on my shin.  I quickly picked it off and checked the rest of my body, and washed all my clothes and camping gear etc.  So, this wasn't all a fun outing!