My failed observing session on January the 29th (save for a weak observation of Saturn and Titan) left me almost empty handed. However, Wednesday the 4th of February rewarded my patience and determination with a captivating view of Messier 13 (The Hercules Globular Cluster) and Messier 92, another smaller, but exquisite globular cluster also in the constellation of Hercules.
M13 presented me with a truly magnificent sight and left me in absolutely no doubt that it is the king of globular clusters. I spent a good 15 minutes scrutinizing the field of view using direct vision which showed the cluster as an almost spherical, slightly hazy smudge with an extremely dense core. The whole cluster (including the core) brightened considerably when using averted vision where upon it also revealed a delicate hint of some very fine granularity. While M13 had thoroughly impressed me, M92 proved to be more of a polished gem than a shining diamond, but this small and almost diffuse cluster really came to life when using averted vision showing a real increase in brightness but lacking the density or texture of M13. With hindsight this DSO is probably better observed in darker conditions, but even under my light polluted skies M92 is still a wonderful globular cluster to observe. It really does boggles the mind when you realise that you are observing objects that span over 100 light years and contain several hundred thousand stars or more! Two beautiful globulars that are easily attainable with binoculars of medium and high power even under impaired skies.
Before I ended my session I took the opportunity to turn the giant binoculars towards Saturn. As usual I could easily see Titan, the largest of Saturn’s moons’ but on this occasion I also managed a tenuous observation of the extremely faint outer moon Hyperion. At the time I wasn’t all that sure if I was looking at another of Saturn’s moons’ or a star, but after checking things out in Stellarium I was delighted to find that I had indeed been lucky enough to see Hyperion.
Tags: Hercules, Hyperion, M13, M92, Saturn, Strathspey 25x100, Titan