300 Million Light-Years from Home

16 March 2020, 20:00 – 23:30

Conditions: no wind (at last). Somewhat chilly, but no condensation.

Seeing: Good
Transparency: Average

I started the session looking at a selection of double stars in Cancer (at 171x with the 7mm DeLite).

Iota Cancri: as per previous observation – a lovely, colourful double.

Phi-2 Cancri (Σ1223): tight “headlight” pair of equally matched 6th magnitude stars. No colour discernible.

24 Cnc (Σ1224): similar separation to Phi-2, but primary was brighter.

Zeta Cancri: neat little triple star system; the primary pair are so close that they only appeared separated during moments of really good seeing.

Leo 1, dwarf galaxy, Leo
171x. I know I was looking in the right place this time, and with averted vision there was perhaps the merest hint of an extended misty patch. Tube-tapping seemed to help with its visibility, but it was immediately extinguished the moment Regulus strayed into the field of view. It was so faint I’m not even sure I can count this as a positive sighting, but I do think this new eyepiece gives me the best chance of spotting it (under perfect seeing conditions).

NGC 3077, galaxy, Ursa Major
At 92x (Ethos 13mm) this galaxy was clearly visible with just a slight nudge of the scope away from M81. In fact it was so obvious, I’m kind of embarrassed that I never noticed it before 12 March. But, like many DSOs, once you know it’s there… Visually it appeared much as it did on the previous session, albeit a little brighter (and at a smaller scale, obviously).

NGC 2976, galaxy, Ursa Major
92x. Another overlooked member of the M81 family. Appeared as a large, faint ellipse (perhaps irregular?), not as bright as 3077, with a faint star just off the southern edge.

I couldn’t find Comet C/2019 Y4 (Atlas), though I later found out I was sweeping in the area it was heading towards rather than where it actually was. Turns out it was nearer NGC 2976 than I realised, so I can’t have missed it by much. There will be other opportunities.

M101, galaxy, Ursa Major
92x. The core of the galaxy was the only part visible with direct vision. The faint star just north of the nucleus is useful for getting your bearings. This time there seemed to be a hazy patch west of the core, though I’m not sure what – if anything – this corresponded to. Out of curiosity, I added the Ultrablock filter to the Ethos to see if this would bring out any of the HII regions. The core was still just about visible and there was a suggestion of vague mottled patches which seemed to come and go depending on which side I was looking, but (like Leo 1) whatever was there was right on the threshold of visibility.

IC 3568, planetary nebula, Camelopardalis
Failed to find this last year because I didn’t appreciate how tiny it was (though my notes indicate that I did see the nearby double star Sigma 1694). This time I used the Ultrablock filter to help pick it out in the Ethos (it stood out as a prominent green “star”). At 171x it appeared as a bright perfectly round little disc of light with a star right next to it. It’s circumpolar from my location, so now I know where it is, I can observe it on any clear night of the year (though I don’t expect to see much detail, even at very high power).

NGC 3184, galaxy, Ursa Major
171x. Very faint, round galaxy, with a field star on its north edge. Visibility hampered by bright star to west.

NGC 4725, galaxy, Coma Berenices
One of the bright Coma galaxies that I overlooked last year. At 92x it appeared as a large misty ellipse with a bright core and a stellar nucleus.

NGC 4889 (Caldwell 35), galaxy, Coma Berenices
Another one I missed out on last year, but the finderscope helped me to quickly pinpoint the nearby 7th magnitude star HD 112887. Even then I wasn’t sure if I would be able to see the galaxy, but it was almost immediately obvious at 92x as a tiny round fuzz surrounding a bright core. So visually it was unimpressive, but as with 3C 273, the “awe-factor” comes from knowing its distance: a whopping 300 million light-years (a good 5 or 6 times further away than most of the galaxies I typically observe at this time of year). NGC 4889 is the giant elliptical powerhouse at the centre of the Coma Cluster of galaxies. Most of them are beyond the reach of my scope, but I was able to see nearby NGC 4874 as a small, faint hazy patch east of NGC 4889, somewhat hampered by the glare from HD 112887. In fleeting moments of really good seeing NGC 4889 appeared to be doubled, with a tiny companion next to it (in line with HD 112887) perhaps corresponding to NGC 4886.

NGC 3242 (Caldwell 59), planetary nebula, Hydra
No obstructing foliage this time. Very bright at 92x; blue-green disc. Seemed brighter on northern and southern edges.

I spent the rest of the session revisiting a galaxy-rich area of Leo. All observations with the 13mm Ethos at 92x.

M95, galaxy, Leo
Large, brighter towards the core. Stellar nucleus. No detail apparent.

M96, galaxy, Leo
Similar size to M95. Brighter core, also stellar nucleus.

M105, galaxy, Leo
Round, condensed. Bright, stellar core.

NGC 3384, galaxy, Leo
In same field as M105 but smaller. Also has a bright, stellar core.

NGC 3389, galaxy, Leo
In same field as M105 and NGC 3384. Visible with averted vision as a faint ellipse, angled away from M105 towards 3 field stars. Easy to overlook (I missed it last year).

NGC 3412, galaxy, Leo
Small ellipse with a bright stellar core.

NGC 3377, galaxy, Leo
Same again – a little fainter than 3412, but another ellipse with a stellar core. The print-out I was using showed a 3377A galaxy in the same field, but I couldn’t see anything at that location.

NGC 3489, galaxy, Leo
Extended ellipse with a stellar core; suggestion of a dark cut-off along its southern edge.

At this point galaxy fatigue was setting in (although they’re bright and numerous, a lot of the Leo galaxies just don’t have the “wow” factor of the ones in Canes Venatici and Coma Berenices), so I called it a night.