12 august 2020

Last night was pretty frustrating. First I had problems with my pointing accuracy, and spent an hour trying to find stars to sync SkyTools to with the Argo. Finally I redid my star alignment and it worked ok. The back neighbors were having a party; while I don't mind them having a good time it's distracting to observe. They went in at around 11pm and it was much quieter -- though I could hear noise from the highway, and at one point what I think were pistol shots in the distance with a speeding car escaping. Also a bright flash followed by an explosion, someone lighting off a firework. It all settled down after midnight.

Another problem was the seeing was greatly variable. I needed to change magnification and masks frequently to find the right combination. Transparency grew worse as the night progressed, the bane of my sea level location. Still a good night with some interesting pairs. I observed until about 1:30am. I noticed a few Perseid meteors, a couple of which left smoke trails.

TDS 875 AB: 508; 205x: Very finely hair-split, slight magnitude difference, white stars
17H 37M 57.96S +28° 41' 33.7" P.A. 359 SEP 0.9 MAG 10.65,11.07

STF 2198 AB: 508; 205x: Bright light yellow A and ~3 delta orange B, wide  
17H 42M 38.37S +26° 33' 06.1" P.A. 25 SEP 7.7 MAG 7.63,11.22 SP K0III DIST. 176.68 PC (576.33 L.Y.)

HO 85 AB: 508; 205x: Blue-white A and slightly red B, wide, ~3 delta.  Did not notice HDS 2604 Aa-Ab, 0.7", 11.3 mag (though I probably could not have resolved it anyway).
18H 25M 20.37S +28° 04' 59.0" P.A. 196 SEP 4.9 MAG 8.68,12.00 SP B9 DIST. 641.03 PC (2091.04 L.Y.)

STF 2317 BC: 508; 533x: BC much cleaner on this night of better seeing, blue stars very close and faint 

18H 25M 19.45S +26° 04' 45.9" P.A. 315 SEP 1.4 MAG 12.50,12.70 DIST. 269.54 PC (879.24 L.Y.)

COU 815 AB: 508; 333x: B is a faint light orange star but is clearly separated from white A. Tough little pair
18H 25M 44.22S +26° 39' 25.0" P.A. 144 SEP 1.6 MAG 9.01,11.30 SP AP

HD 348678: 508; 205x: Neat equal white stars wide.  Not in WDS 

TDT 908 AB: 508; 205x: ~1 delta mag, fairly wide, white stars, B seen direct but brightens with averted vision. 

18H 29M 29.45S +23° 29' 14.4" P.A. 8 SEP 1.8 MAG 11.12,12.25

POU 3419 AB: 508; 205x: Easy pair, white stars, wide separation, ~3 delta mag

18H 32M 02.77S +25° 04' 01.7" P.A. 234 SEP 9.1 MAG 7.89,12.10 SP A5 DIST. 331.13 PC (1080.15 L.Y.)

POU3427 AB: 508; 205x: Easy wide near equal stars 

18H 32M 58.78S +24° 19' 49.7" P.A. 81 SEP 6.8 MAG 10.12,10.44 SP F5

COU 204 AB: 508; 205x:  Easy wide, ~1 delta mag. Not physical

18H 33M 31.63S +21° 02' 00.8" P.A. 130 SEP 11.9 MAG 10.16,10.70 SP F8

TDT 939 AB: 508; 205x: Beautiful clean split, half delta mag, white stars, very close

18H 34M 15.05S +21° 01' 05.0" P.A. 8 SEP 0.6 MAG 10.82,10.83

TDT 938 AB: 508; 533x: Very faint, exceptionally fine, split with seeing and B is slightly brighter with averted vision. 
18H 34M 18.40S +22° 58' 27.6" P.A. 74 SEP 0.6 MAG 11.50,11.79

COU 205 AB: 508; 1067x: Notched elongation, I have the impression of significant delta mag

18H 35M 17.64S +21° 44' 36.8" P.A. 152 SEP 0.3 MAG 9.37,10.67 SP A2 DIST. 158.73 PC (517.78 L.Y.)

COU 207 AB: 508; 333x: Light yellow A and light orange B, nicely split, ~2 delta mag. 
18H 38M 54.97S +22° 21' 58.7" P.A. 298 SEP 1.6 MAG 9.17,10.60 SP G0

BU 248 AB: 203; 205x: 2 Vul.  White A and light blue B, split outside first diffraction ~1.5" really pretty.  [Burnham discovered in 1876 with his 6-inch at 1.86", "a fine pair with a moderate aperture"]

19H 17M 43.64S +23° 01' 32.0" P.A. 128 SEP 1.8 MAG 5.43,8.75 SP B0.5IV DIST. 373.13 PC (1217.15 L.Y.)

COU 322 AB: 508; 533x: Near equal white stars, nice, split more than hairline, slight delta mag.
19H 18M 11.69S +22° 31' 06.4" P.A. 25 SEP 0.5 MAG 10.42,10.50 SP A0

STF 2499 AB: 508; 205x: White stars, near equal, wide
19H 18M 33.52S +21° 56' 51.6" P.A. 325 SEP 2.6 MAG 8.82,9.12 SP B8

ES 483 AB: 508; 205x: Z Vul.  Pale yellow A with slightly red color wide faint companion.  Not physical

19H 21M 39.11S +25° 34' 29.5" P.A. 3 SEP 13.8 MAG 7.30,12.00 SP B3 DIST. 191.94 PC (626.11 L.Y.)

BU 141 AB: 203; 205x: Very finely split, ~2 delta mag, pale white A and light blue B.  [Burnham discovered in 1875 with his 6-inch]
19H 21M 57.26S +22° 30' 23.2" P.A. 84 SEP 0.9 MAG 7.61,9.21 SP B4V DIST. 260.42 PC (849.49 L.Y.)

TDT 1416 AB: 508; 533x: Exceptionally fine, split with seeing, very faint ~1 delta mag.  B resolves at first diffraction, light orange stars. 

19H 23M 28.49S +22° 34' 19.7" P.A. 298 SEP 0.7 MAG 10.53,11.07 SP K5

STF 2515 AB: 508; 205x: Blue-white A and ~2 delta light orange B, wide.  Not physical

19H 24M 33.33S +21° 30' 57.3" P.A. 141 SEP 6.2 MAG 8.45,10.26 SP F2V DIST. 200.8 PC (655.01 L.Y.)

HO 448 AB: 508; 205x: Light yellow stars, ~3 delta mag, wide 

19H 24M 44.82S +23° 36' 56.1" SEP 7.7 MAG 8.46,10.72 SP G5 DIST. 781.25 PC (2548.44 L.Y.)

WSI 22 AB: 508; 205x: Near equal, wide. Not physical
19H 24M 53.90S +21° 26' 29.1" P.A. 272 SEP 15 MAG 10.32,10.47 SP G5

STF 3111 AB: 508; 205x: White stars, very slight magnitude difference, wide >2". Not physical

19H 25M 06.44S +21° 50' 03.4" P.A. 116 SEP 2.5 MAG 9.92,10.16 SP A0

COU 513 AB: 508; 1067x: Deeply notched overlapping disks -- I think it's hairline split at best moments -- slight mag difference 

19H 25M 08.84S +22° 12' 56.9" P.A. 3 SEP 0.3 MAG 9.22,9.92 SP B9 DIST. 549.45 PC (1792.31 L.Y.)

STF 2525 AB: 508; 205x: Near equal yellow-white stars, wide.  An amazingly precise 882.894 year period.  I will not notice the change...

19H 26M 33.71S +27° 19' 21.9" P.A. 289.2 SEP 2.2 MAG 8.19,8.39 SP F8 DIST. 64.52 PC (210.46 L.Y.)

STF 2524 AB: 508; 205x: Near equal white stars, wide.  Not physical
19H 26M 35.78S +25° 29' 48.2" P.A. 82 SEP 5.4 MAG 9.15,9.53 SP A2 DIST. 346.02 PC (1128.72 L.Y.)

STF 2523 AB: 508; 205x: Near equal pale yellow stars, wide.  Physical.
19H 26M 48.38S +21° 09' 46.2" P.A. 148 SEP 6.4 MAG 7.95,8.05 SP B3V+B7V DIST. 1470.59 PC (4797.06 L.Y.)

A 2786 AB: 508; 1067x: Wow!  Exceptionally fine but clean split, ~1 delta split, best without apodising mask, nearly perfect seeing.  In the same FOV as STF 2523.

19H 26M 57.67S +21° 09' 02.7" P.A. 108 SEP 0.4 MAG 10.10,10.08 SP A2

A 159 AB: 508; 1067x: Super difficult.  B appears just within A's diffraction ring, extremely faint, with seeing which is 7/10.  Coalesces to a point at the correct PA, which I looked up during the observation to make sure I was looking at the correct quadrant of the star.  Part of STF 2527 AC.

19H 27M 20.85S +20° 40' 08.0" P.A. 336 SEP 0.8 MAG 8.50,10.43 SP B9 DIST. 384.62 PC (1254.63 L.Y.)

COU 514 AB: 508; 1067x: Subtle notched elongation, white stars, noticeable magnitude difference.

19H 27M 33.15S +20° 09' 17.3" P.A. 88 SEP 0.5 MAG 9.81,9.27 SP B8V

BU 983 AB: 508; 1067x: QR Vul.  Olive shape seen through "rain" of the diffraction. Even with 8-inch mask there is a definite misshape with a faint tail bump to the ball of A's disk.  [Burnham discovered with 18.5-inch Washburn @ 0.86", so it was easier for him!]

20H 15M 15.89S +25° 35' 31.1" P.A. 185 SEP 0.5 MAG 4.80,7.55 SP B3V DIST. 303.95 PC (991.48 L.Y.)

A 389 AB: 508; 205x: Beautiful well split white stars, slight magnitude difference
20H 16M 00.80S +27° 03' 10.8" P.A. 213 SEP 1.7 MAG 9.89,10.11 SP A5

COU 218 AB: 508; 667x: Hairline split, equal stars, light yellow-white

20H 16M 21.85S +23° 09' 03.0" P.A. 235 SEP 0.3 MAG 9.40,9.50 SP F0

11 august 2020

 Had a decent night last night, from about 9:15 to 11pm, when the marine layer started to move in.  Had some moments of surprisingly good seeing.  When it looked like the fog would roll in I slewed down to look at Saturn, very bright and with more moons than I could see in the 6-inch, but surprisingly with similar amounts of detail -- go figure.

POU3265 AB: 508; 205x: B seen with averted vision at first, and with some foveal coaxing I could hold it with direct vision.  ~1 delta mag and ~3"
17H 14M 44.25S +23° 56' 22.1" P.A. 170 SEP 3.9 MAG 11.81,13.00

STF 2139 AB: 508; 205x: Easy wide pair, ~3 delta mag, both are very light orange though B is a deeper color since it's fainter.  Not physical
17H 14M 09.65S +19° 18' 43.1" P.A. 335 SEP 8.3 MAG 9.60,11.70 SP K0 DIST. 198.02 PC (645.94 L.Y.)

HO 557 AB: 508; 205x: AK Her.  White A and much fainter orange B, interesting pair.  It is an uncertain pair yet WDS shows a period of 58.8 years, +/- 8 years.
17H 13M 57.81S +16° 21' 01.0" P.A. 323 SEP 4.5 MAG 8.57,12.00 SP F8 DIST. 106.27 PC (346.65 L.Y.)

COU 111 AB: 508; 533x: Clean, obvious split with apodising mask, not quite 1 delta mag.  Suspected elongation with 205x & hairline with apodising mask at 333x.  Very slightly orange-yellow stars. 
17H 13M 59.66S +21° 19' 10.0" P.A. 245 SEP 0.6 MAG 10.70,10.77

HU 488 AB: 508; 205x: Blue-white A and orange B, ~4", ~2 delta mag 
17H 14M 29.61S +19° 55' 52.3" P.A. 105 SEP 2.9 MAG 9.71,11.16 SP F2

POU3271 AB: 508; 205x: Near equal, pretty wide ~4", light yellow stars.  Not physical 
17H 15M 49.60S +23° 22' 05.8" P.A. 259 SEP 3.3 MAG 10.20,10.50

POU3272 AB: 508; 205x: B flashes an intense blue with averted vision, compared to A's white-yellow color.  I can barely hold B direct. Wide ~8".  Not physical
17H 15M 56.53S +24° 13' 39.4" P.A. 211 SEP 7.2 MAG 10.87,12.90

POU3273 AB: 508; 205x: Needed to use averted vision to see B, then can hold direct.  Wide ~10". Not physical
17H 15M 59.46S +24° 37' 19.7" P.A. 252 SEP 8.4 MAG 11.30,12.40

TDT 294 AB: 508; 333x: Hairline split, significant mag difference.  Faint pair. 
17H 16M 02.32S +17° 01' 37.6" P.A. 92 SEP 0.8 MAG 11.46,11.73

POU3277 AB: 508; 205x: Faint, but seen easily since they're wide, ~1 delta mag. Not physical
17H 17M 02.28S +24° 21' 10.3" P.A. 168 SEP 7.3 MAG 12.78,13.50

POU3278 AB: 508; 205x: Faint, but wide, ~1 delta mag. Physical
17H 17M 14.33S +24° 32' 08.9" P.A. 81 SEP 9.4 MAG 11.70,12.60

TDT 299 AB: 508; 667x: Very challenging.  Seeing became very good for this observation, good airy disks, and with averted vision a small condensation appeared within first diffraction ring, exceptionally close.  Seen well only with averted vision, there was just a slight brightening with direct.  Only one WDS observation.
17H 17M 59.69S +23° 16' 33.7" P.A. 64 SEP 0.5 MAG 10.83,11.17

J 452 AB: 508; 205x: Wide, nearly 2 delta mag, blue-white A 
17H 20M 47.25S +15° 21' 51.5" P.A. 300 SEP 2.8 MAG 10.80,12.20

COU 415 AB: 508; 1067x: Notched elongation at 533x & 667x.  I get an instantaneous split with perfect seeing at 1067x, it stays notched.  ~1 delta.  90 year period.

17H 22M 04.55S +23° 09' 40.4" P.A. 219.4 SEP 0.27 MAG 8.75,9.83 SP F5 DIST. 84.75 PC (276.45 L.Y.)

COU 201 AC: 508; 205x: Bright light orange A and I notice B with averted vision, and then can hold it direct, wide, ~3 delta mag.  I did not notice AB, 0.5" 9.23/10.11, need to go back to it.

17H 22M 24.79S +20° 56' 03.7" P.A. 301 SEP 10.3 MAG 9.23,13.00 SP K0

TDT 322 AB: 508; 533x: B emerges with seeing to condense to a point outside A's diffraction, very large delta mag.
17H 22M 22.87S +14° 46' 59.7" P.A. 188 SEP 1.3 MAG 8.66,11.47 SP G5

COU 112 AB: 508; 205x: Just split, ~1 delta mag, good pair
17H 22M 48.68S +24° 27' 55.6" P.A. 24 SEP 1.4 MAG 10.04,11.80

STF 2157 AB-C: 508; 205x: Lovely ice blue and yellow pair, wide, ~2 delta mag.  AB is J 1248 0.1" and listed 9.0/9.0, I tried 667x and through I saw olive shape, but it could be confirmation bias.
17H 22M 52.73S +16° 27' 40.9" P.A. 208 SEP 3.4 MAG 8.92,10.17 SP G5 DIST. 118.62 PC (386.94 L.Y.)

A 2183 AB: 508; 333x: Clean split ~1", ~3 delta mag.  B is light orange, A is blue-white.  Physical.

17H 23M 30.10S +16° 54' 10.7" P.A. 137 SEP 1.2 MAG 7.67,10.60 SP A2V DIST. 178.57 PC (582.5 L.Y.)

J 1032 AB: 508; 205x: Near equal wide
17H 26M 48.25S +22° 37' 42.4" P.A. 351 SEP 4.1 MAG 11.30,11.60

TDT 952 AB: 508; 1067x: B appears with seeing within A's first diffraction, very faint, significant delta mag

18H 35M 54.54S +25° 41' 33.4" P.A. 178 SEP 0.7 MAG 11.36,11.59

HD 336513: 508; 333x: Not in WDS. B very faint, seen with averted vision only, ~4 delta mag, ~3"

BU 645 AB: 508; 205x: Pretty cream yellow-white A and slightly orange B, wide ~10", very large delta mag, >4 delta. 
18H 43M 14.48S +19° 27' 59.2" P.A. 305 SEP 9.3 MAG 7.29,12.10 SP B9.5IV-V DIST. 129.53 PC (422.53 L.Y.)

HU 325 AB: 508; 533x: Hairline split, ~1 delta mag, very fine pair

18H 44M 18.57S +20° 52' 17.8" P.A. 7 SEP 0.3 MAG 10.17,10.85 SP A0 DIST. 934.58 PC (3048.6 L.Y.)

more short period pairs

Had good seeing last night, a solid 8/10 at 333x, so I was able to spend most of my time at full aperture and also going after short period and other challenging pairs.  I was glad of it, it was getting kind of boring to observe just with the 8-inch mask.  I observed from 9:30pm to 1am, when the moon cleared a neighbor's roof and the transparency had become poor -- the moon casting a bright haze across the sky, making fainter pairs harder to resolve.  After closing up the 20-inch I walked over to my newly mounted 6-inch f/15 refractor and spent some time on the moon, then Mars, both showing wonderful detail, and with high contrast despite the transparency.  

TDT 152 AB: 508; 333x: Discovered in 1991. Well split and resolved, fairly faint, slight mag difference.
16H 56M 17.57S +18° 52' 04.2" P.A. 89 SEP 0.8 MAG 11.98,12.12

LDS 986 AB: 508; 205x: Physical pair.  Wide separation, near equal pretty bright white stars
16H 56M 46.43S +25° 41' 02.0" P.A. 266 SEP 8.5 MAG 10.72,10.83

HEI 71 AB: 508; 205x: Close pair but easily split, light yellow stars, one delta mag.
16H 56M 53.03S +15° 40' 10.8" P.A. 253 SEP 1.3 MAG 10.39,11.40 SP G0

BRT2426 AB: 508; 205xx: Near equal easy pair, wide.  Not physical 
16H 57M 24.72S +21° 29' 40.1" P.A. 307 SEP 4.2 MAG 11.76,12.01

STT 320 AB: 508; 205x: White A, slightly orange B, wide, significant magnitude difference 
16H 58M 12.20S +25° 20' 18.6" P.A. 252 SEP 5.8 MAG 8.47,11.79 SP F0 DIST. 158.73 PC (517.78 L.Y.)

A 351 AB: 508; 333x: Very finely split with just 333x, near equal light orange stars.  Busy field, easy to make sketch to capture the orientation for short period project.  59 year period, near apastron, will tighten considerably by 2032.
17H 29M 20.05S +29° 23' 30.8" P.A. 60.6 SEP 0.568 MAG 9.70,9.95 SP K2 DIST. 23.76 PC (77.51 L.Y.)

KUI 83 AB: 508; 667x: AC is an ordinary wide pair 2 delta mag ~10". AB is a hairline split with 533x, and an obvious well split with 667x. Light orange stars, ~1 delta mag. Short period, 24.1 years, nearly circular orbit so it will be fun to follow it around.
17H 37M 10.76S +27° 53' 47.1" P.A. 155.1 SEP 0.34 MAG 9.81,10.40 SP M0V:P DIST. 29.49 PC (96.2 L.Y.)

A 235 AB: 508; 533x: Nice clean split, more than hairline, white stars, significant mag difference.  With apodising mask.   Currently at apastron, will make nearly half turn by 2040.
17H 53M 18.60S +24° 59' 29.0" P.A. 71.9 SEP 0.356 MAG 8.36,9.28 SP G8V DIST. 49.04 PC (159.97 L.Y.)


HU 581 AB: 508; 1067x: Snowman at 533x & 667x, clean split at 1067x & apodising mask, one delta mag.  Amazing.  Coalesces into two points, can easily tell orientation & magnitude difference for sketch.  At apastron, it is on a nearly edge on orientation, will close rapidly within the next ten years to be too close for me to detect.
18H 22M 54.84S +14° 58' 11.0" P.A. 123.4 SEP 0.3 MAG 8.80,9.40 SP G0V DIST. 79.3 PC (258.68 L.Y.)

HU 1191 AB: 508; 1067x: V595 Lyr. Very tough! In unsettled seeing it is an elongation or lopsided at all powers. However at best moments it tightens enough to show a very subtle notch & also different brightness and color, A being light orange-yellow, and ~1 delta mag B a deeper orange. Discovered in 1902 at 0.2, it has only a 14.64 year period, it will make a rapid circuit to the other side by 2026 (though only 0.1"), and "widen" to 0.2" again by 2030. Should be fun to observe!
18H 46M 34.62S +38° 21' 04.0" P.A. 311.8 SEP 0.256 MAG 8.67,9.42 SP G9V DIST. 35.61 PC (116.16 L.Y.)

HO 581 AB: 508; 667x: Very subtly notched elongation at best, light orange stars. 25.63 year period, near apastron in a nearly circular orbit, it will widen slightly in the next 5 years and still be a detectable 0.2" in 2035.
19H 54M 58.40S +41° 52' 17.6" P.A. 49.1 SEP 0.31 MAG 8.03,8.72 SP G9V DIST. 46.23 PC (150.8 L.Y.)

STT 371 AB: 203; 333x: Bright pair showed best masked down to 8-inches. Near equal, white stars,  perfect!
19H 15M 56.96S +27° 27' 21.4" P.A. 161 SEP 0.9 MAG 7.03,7.55 SP B8V DIST. 277.01 PC (903.61 L.Y.)

J 1263 BC: 508; 205x: AB is the easy bright light orange star and the very wide blue pair of BC, which are wide and ~1 delta mag. Not physical 

19H 11M 28.70S +29° 53' 10.2" P.A. 40 SEP 8.6 MAG 12.90,14.00 DIST. 492.61 PC (1606.89 L.Y.)

STF 2483 AB: 508; 205x: Easy wide A is greenish yellow-white, and B is ice blue.
19H 12M 23.60S +30° 20' 51.9" P.A. 317 SEP 10 MAG 7.97,9.09 SP B9IV DIST. 515.46 PC (1681.43 L.Y.)

STF 2491 AB: 203; 205x: A is white, B is slightly bluish, ~1.5 delta mag, ~1"
19H 16M 11.63S +28° 16' 50.2" P.A. 230 SEP 1.4 MAG 8.58,9.71 SP AM DIST. 230.95 PC (753.36 L.Y.)

COU 420 AB: 203; 205x: Finely split, <2 delta mag, bluish B.
19H 08M 17.42S +25° 55' 25.4" P.A. 97 SEP 1.2 MAG 8.74,10.75 SP A0 DIST. 297.62 PC (970.84 L.Y.)

STF 2459 AB: 203; 205x: Easy wide, ~1 delta  
19H 07M 22.01S +25° 58' 23.9" P.A. 232 SEP 13.8 MAG 9.12,10.07 SP A2

COU 1023 AB: 508; 1067x: Hairline split, very definite and consistent, near equal 
19H 20M 23.74S +26° 30' 58.8" P.A. 146 SEP 0.3 MAG 9.50,9.50 SP A0

A 267 AB: 508; 667x: White stars hairline split, ~1 delta mag.  Notched elongation at 533x.
19H 17M 31.08S +26° 37' 33.7" P.A. 181 SEP 0.4 MAG 10.00,10.40 SP B9

TDT 1250 AB: 508; 205x: Very finely split, faint blue pair, half delta mag.
19H 08M 51.33S +26° 03' 04.6" P.A. 172 SEP 1.2 MAG 11.92,12.10

HO 444 AB: 508; 333x: Close split <1", significant magnitude difference >1 delta.  White stars
19H 09M 13.70S +26° 56' 07.3" P.A. 67 SEP 1.3 MAG 8.66,10.48 SP F5

TDS 972 AB: 508; 333x: Faint, finely split, slight mag difference
19H 09M 37.79S +26° 40' 32.3" P.A. 311 SEP 0.7 MAG 11.11,11.34

TDT 1262 AB: 508; 533x: Very faint, B is difficult, split and resolved with seeing, helped with foveal coaxing and I can hold it direct after.  Noticeable magnitude difference, <1 delta. 
19H 09M 42.80S +27° 14' 41.1" P.A. 92 SEP 0.7 MAG 12.08,12.28

AG 373 AB: 508; 205x: Light yellow-white A and deeper yellow B, ~2 delta mag, wide
19H 11M 20.45S +27° 05' 28.7" P.A. 328 SEP 3 MAG 10.40,11.10 SP K0

HO 141 AB: 508; 205x: Pretty pair, significant delta mag, wide ~1.5"
20H 47M 05.66S +19° 17' 47.5" P.A. 293 SEP 1.6 MAG 9.53,11.19 SP A3

2 august 2020

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

(image Ted Dobosz)

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

28 july 2020

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

27 july 2020

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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