Time, as they say, waits for nobody and when I look back towards the beginning of the month I am left wondering where all the time has gone. March began (01.03.09 & 02.03.09) by bidding a fond farewell to comet Lulin as it started the long journey back out towards the distant reaches of the solar system. Around this time I also logged the open cluster M47 from the Binocular Messier Club list with the 10×50s, but with an elevation of around +18° M47 offered a rather sketchy observation as it drifted through the southern sky glow. I had also tried to catch two other open clusters in this part of the sky: M46 (which is very close to M47) and M50 in Monoceros. Both remained hidden from view, again due to the sky conditions, but I am going to make every effort to catch these two objects before they disappear into the summer evenings.
Besides my Lulin and Messier observations, the beginning of the month (05.03.09 & 06.03.09) also offered me the perfect opportunity to study the cratered surface of the waning gibbous Moon and score a number of objects from the Lunar 100 list. The most notable objects included the Vallis Alpes, the crater remnant Hipparchus as well as the mysterious Bessel Ray and the ancient crater of Clavius. Aside from viewing a good many Lunar 100 objects I also took the time to explore many features beyond the scope of the list and I made wonderful observations of prominent impact craters such as Reinhold, Herschel, Eudoxus, Aristoteles and many more.
Beyond this point bad weather conditions brought things to an abrupt end for almost two weeks, so it was nearer to the end of March (21.03.09) before I managed out, this time turning my gaze towards two faint galaxies in Canes Venatici: Messier 94 and Messier 63. However, the immediate interference of a neighbor’s extremely intrusive light combined with the neck breaking altitude of +41° put paid to a more in-depth observation. I dare say that I will return to these two deep sky objects in the next few months when they are both in a better position.
Following on from this I then spent some time a few mornings later (24.03.09) hunting down three more Messier objects: the open clusters M29 and M39 in Cygnus as well as the planetary nebula M27 in Vulpecula. I couldn’t have asked for better conditions and I easily tracked down the two open clusters but the urban terrain combined with a low position in the sky unfortunately prevented me from viewing M27. In addition to my deep sky observations I serendipitously caught two satellites through the 25×100s as they shot over the eastern sky. After some digging around on the web I whittled my options down to two possible designations: A0-27 and ITAMSAT 1. I’ve never been very good at catching iridium flares or tracking satellites, so I still have some niggling doubts over the identities of the two space craft, but it seems as though A0-27 and ITAMSAT 1 are my best bet.
To finally wrap things up I took in a short view of Saturn and the cloud enshrouded Titan as they sat serenely under the watchful eye of Leo. Upon making this observation I originally thought that I’d also seen the small Saturnian moon of Iapetus, but later investigation revealed that it was in fact HP 54954, a 9th magnitude G class star about 365 light years distant. So unfortunately, no cigar.
In retrospect March has definitely been a celestial smorgasbord, but as MoonWatch week is upon us UK amateur astronomers I plan to spend much of my time gazing at the checkered lunar surface. Hopefully the elements will cooperate and grant me some decent Moon watching weather.
Tags: A0-27, Aristoteles, Bessel Ray, Bresser 10x50, C/2007 N3 Lulin, Canes Venatici, Clavius, Cygnus, Eudoxus, Galaxies, Herschel, Hipparchus, HP 54954, ITAMSAT 1, M27, M29, M39, M46, M47, M50, M63, M94, Monoceros, Moon, Reinhold, Saturn, Strathspey 25x100, The Sunflower Galaxy, Titan, Vallis Alpes, Vulpecula
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Tuesday morning’s clear skies (02.03.09) offered me possibly the last chance to observe Lulin as it begins it’s long journey back towards the outer solar system and beyond. I didn’t expect to see too much detail as the comet is now fading, but I just couldn’t resist the opportunity to grab one last sketch of our cosmic visitor.
Lulin materialized as a spherical milky smudge against the jet sky, but I could not discern even the vaguest hint of the anti tail as I had done during my previous studies of the comet. The nucleus appeared dimmer and much fainter while the coma manifested itself as a hazy impression. Further opportunities to follow Lulin are now curbed by Moonlight up until around the middle of this month by which time the comet will have travelled into the constellation of Gemini and faded to 7th or 8th magnitude. From here up till the end of May Lulin will dwell in and around the stars Mebsuta, Tejat and Nu (ν) Geminorum, eventually disappearing in the glow of the setting Sun.
Of the three sketches that I have been lucky enough to make of Lulin, this one was certainly the hardest; I had to really work to accurately reproduce this observation. Initially I tried using a graphite palette and blending stumps to create the comet as I have done before, but I ran into problems creating the subtleties of the comet. Finally as a compromise, and unlike my last two sketches, I decided to use Photoshop to generate Lulin alongside the hand drawn star field. This way I could control the softness of the comet while keeping the definition of the stars.
It will be over a millennium before Lulin returns to the inner solar system, if indeed it ever does return, so I’m glad I’ve had this chance to observe and sketch this brief but amazing visitor to our skies.
Edit 14.09.09: After six months of procrastination I’ve finally made the effort to rework this sketch of comet Lulin. I’m now happy to present it here as a complete and consistent piece of work. I hope that you enjoy it.
Tags: C/2007 N3 Lulin, Gemini, Mebsuta, Strathspey 25x100, Tejat
Posted in Astro Art, Observing | 2 Comments »
I really thought that my last observation of Lulin would be a one off considering the weather conditions over the last few weeks, but the sky on Monday evening through to Tuesday morning (24.02.09) was exceptional and I knew that I was going to get a second chance at this fantastic comet.
Turning my giant binoculars towards Lulin revealed that the nucleus was not as well defined as my first observation and was rather more diffuse, but bright nonetheless. The coma on the other hand appeared to be quite hazy and I couldn’t discern any colour like I had seen previously. Looking over to the left of my field of view I could just make out the extremely faint and diaphanous dust tail stretching out behind the comet if I used averted vision. On this occasion, and much to my surprise, the tail seemed slightly longer and a little fatter which left me wondering if I was seeing things. While the dust tail was tenuously observable, the ion tail still remained completely undetectable.
I stayed with Lulin for a further half hour before I set my sights on a far more diminutive target: The Black Eye Galaxy, otherwise known as Messier 64. I had tried for this faint DSO at the beginning of the month under Moon lit skies, and surprise surprise had failed to locate it (call me foolhardy). This time around I really didn’t have much of a problem pinning M64 down, and had it in my field of view within a few minutes after tracking up from α Com to HP 64312 and then sweeping about 5° west. The galaxy itself showed up as a faint but condensed blot of elongated light with a hint of what I can only describe as a misty golden centre. A delightful binocular object and like other galaxies I have seen, I found M64 to be no less absorbing.
I managed to continue observing for a further ten minutes before my binoculars began to fog up with dew, forcing me to bring things to an end. However, having had a second run at Lulin and bagging Messier 64, I really didn’t feel hard done by. All in all, I’d say it was a pretty rewarding observing session.
[image edited: 26.02.09]
Tags: C/2007 N3 Lulin, Coma Berenices, M64, Strathspey 25x100, The Black Eye Galaxy, Weather
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Comet C/2007 N3 (Lulin) was discovered back in July 2007 by Ye Quanzhi and Lin Chi-Sheng from Lulin Observatory in Taiwan. Within the next few days this very same comet will make it’s closet approach to the Earth at just 0.41 astronomical units, the equivalent of 61 million kilometers. What the weather conditions will be like over Central Scotland at this time will be anyones’ guess, but I’m not going to hold out much hope for a clear sky.
However, as luck would have it, I was offered the opportunity to observe Lulin early this morning as the thick blanket of stratus that had been bearing down over Falkirk was slowly torn apart by high altitude wind shear. Finding the comet was a breeze and my Bresser 10×50 binoculars easily revealed the diffuse, ball like coma and the bright nucleus, but minus the tail or the anti tail.
After spending some time observing with the 10×50s, I decided to set up the 25×100s to see how much more detail I could pull from my light polluted skies. With direct vision the coma was still quite diffuse but I could easily discern the bright nucleus as well as a faint hint of the green hue that Lulin is emitting due to the gaseous out jetting of cyanogen and diatomic carbon. Averted vision caused the entire coma to brighten noticeably and revealed a tenuous glimpse of the dust tail trailing after the comet, but the ion tail was sadly still elusive. This really was a magnificent and thrilling sight and I took the opportunity to produce an isophote drawing which was used for reference when creating the final sketch above.
Unfortunately the clouds decided to quickly reclaim the sky and although my session only lasted around 30 minutes I am extremely glad that I got the chance to observe Lulin. I dare say that my sketch would have yielded far more detail had I made an observation from a dark sky site, but you work with what you’ve got. I’d love to spend another morning under the stars in the company of this comet, especially with better weather conditions, but the prospects of that happening look pretty slim. If you’ve not done so yet, I would highly recommend taking in a view of this stunning comet - you won’t be disappointed!
Tags: Bresser 10x50, C/2007 N3 Lulin, Strathspey 25x100, Weather
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Since RevAaron over at Caffeinated Astronomy began following comet C/2007 N3 (Lulin), his observations and reports have inspired me to spend a little time doing some comet hunting of my own. While comet Lulin skims the dawn horizon and remains (for me) an elusive object, comet 144P/Kushida is well placed for extended observing. Riding high up in the constellation of Taurus, comet Kushida currently has a magnitude of around 10.7 and promises to rapidly brighten as it climbs towards perihelion at the end of January.
With clear skies on Monday night I set up my 25×100 binoculars and began my run at Kushida from 21:30 UT onwards. It was easy enough to locate the position of the comet using a finder chart but it was another thing actually gleaning any substantial detail from it. Sky conditions were excellent - transparency was good as was the seeing but the glare from the waxing gibbous Moon really impinged on my observation and all but washed Kushida away.
Using averted vision I believe I was able to just discern the extremely faint green/blue smudge of the comet but I was not entirely trusting of my own vision. Undeterred by the Moon light I persevered with my hunt for 144P/Kushida but after a further 45 minutes of continued scrutiny I gave in to the futility of my search and called it quits at about 10:20 UT.
While the results of my observation were very ambiguous, it was a good chance to lay the groundwork for further observations that I plan to undertake in the coming weeks (weather permitting). Hopefully with a little luck I can catch a good concrete sighting of this comet as it reaches perihelion towards the end of the month.
Tags: 144P/Kushida, C/2007 N3 Lulin, Comet, Strathspey 25x100, Taurus
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