Category: Pencil

The Palantir of Taurus

NGC 1514

NGC 1514
Sketch and Details by Bill Ferris

NGC 1514: Planetary Nebula (Taurus) RA: 04h 09.3m / DEC: +30º 46′.6
Instrument: 18-inch Obsession

NGC 1514 is pictured in the sketch [above]. Observing at 199X (12-mm Nagler Type 4) with the 18-inch Obsession, I initially mistook this large planetary as fog on the eyepiece producing a hazy glow around a bright star. But while sweeping the area, I realized that bright star was the only one encased in haze. I’d found the nebula. NGC 1514 covers a 3′ by 2′.5 area. At its heart is the blue tinged 9.4 magnitude central star. The nebulosity features a bright outer ring. After a few minutes observation, averted vision reveals striations within the nebula, and the east and west edges appear brighter than the surrounding ring. Slipping an OIII filter into position teases very faint outer lobes into view. These appeared along the east and west edges of the planetary nebula, and are confirmed by long exposure astrophotos and CCD images. Eighteen stars frame the view in the big Dob. You’ll find NGC 1514 in far northern Taurus about 3.5 degrees east-southeast of Zeta (44) Persei.

Bisected Globular

M4

M4
Sketch by Michael Vlasov

M4 lies about 7,200 light years away, and is one of the closest globular clusters. It displays a bar-like structure that runs through its center. The bar consists of 11th magnitude stars, is 2.5′ long and runs at a position angle of 12°. The cluster is obscured by interstellar matter, and so is dimmed greatly. Deep photography reveals a diameter of 36, equating to 75 light years, whereas its visual diameter has been estimated at 14′. At Class IX, it is one of the most open of globular clusters, with a half-mass radius of 3.65′ or 8 light years.

M4 was discovered by De Chéseaux in 1745-46 and subsequently catalogued by Messier in 1764 who resolved it into stars. It was the only one he could resolve, calling it a “cluster of very small stars”, and so was the first globular ever resolved into stars.

Source: SEDS.

The Swirling Splendor of M51

M51

M51 (NGC 5194 and 5195)
Sketch by Serge Vieillard

Serge Vieillard created this sketch of M51 during three precious minutes he had at the eyepiece of a 60 cm (T600) telescope. The intricate detail that was visible conflicted with the short amount of time he had to record it. Serge notes that he wished he had hours to spend on the nearly photographic detail, but he did his best to quickly capture the main features of this beautiful pair of galaxies. He did have opportunity a little later in the evening to spend 2 more minutes at the 80 cm (T800) telescope to refine a few more details.

A Wink of Color

NGC 6826

NGC 6826
Sketch and Details by Jeremy Perez

Observation Notes:

NGC 6826, also known as the Blinking Planetary, was pleasantly bright when I tracked it down at low power. It exhaled a blue-green color at all levels of magnification. At 240X, it displayed a shelled structure with an outer shell that appeared circular while the inner shell was elongated at a PA of about 135 degrees. This inner shell was bright enough to make the central star appear to almost blend into it. I did not notice a blinking effect on the nebula, but detail was lost to direct vision. I estimated its diameter to be about 40 arc seconds. This estimate turned out to be fairly poor, as the actual diameter is 27 x 24 arc minutes. If you’re in the area enjoying M27 and M57, reward yourself a look at this beautiful planetary nebula too.

Object Information:

NGC 6826 was discovered by F.W. Herschel in 1793. High resolution photographs reveal an elliptical nebula with an eye-like appearance. Between the inner and outer shells, along the long axis, two red “FLIERS” can be seen. The cause of these structures is yet to be determined, but Hubble telescope images seem to indicate that these FLIERS are stationary while ejected stellar material flows past them–sculpting them in the process. NGC 6826 is also catalogued as PK83+12.1, H IV-73, h 2050, GC 4514.

Subject NGC 6826
Classification Planetary Nebula (3a(2))
Position Cygnus [RA: 19:44:48.17 / Dec: +50:31:30.4]*
Size* 27″ x 24″
Brightness* 8.8 vMag / 9.8 bMag (Central Star 10.4 mag.)
Date/Time August 13, 2007 – 01:30 AM MST (August 13, 2007 – 08:30 UT)
Observing Loc. Flagstaff, AZ – Home
Instrument Orion SVP 6LT Reflector (150 mm dia./1200 mm F/L)
Eyepieces/Mag. 10 mm Sirius Plössl + 2X Barlow (240X)
Conditions Mostly clear, calm
Seeing 4/10 Pickering
Transparency ~ Mag 5.8 NELM
*References NGC/IC Project, Bruce Balick, University of Washington

Hydra’s Fleeting Visitor

C/2007 W1 (Boattini)

C/2007 W1 (Boattini)
Sketch and details by Eric Graff

Here is my sketch of comet C/2007 W1 (Boattini) on it leisurely coarse through the starfields of western Hydra. The coma has an overall diameter of at least 12′ and an apparent visual magnitude in the 7.5-8.0 range. The soft, diffuse glow brightens gradually to the center, with occasional glimpses of a smaller, more intense concentration at the core. The whole seems to have a slight aqua tint, but that impression of color tended to be fleeting at best.

A Scorpion on the Horizon

Scorpius

Scorpius
Sketch and Details by Ron De Laet

Last night, I drove to a dark site with a clear view to the horizon. The nelm sunk below mag 6. M13 and M5 were visible with the naked eye. I made several sketches with the binoculars. Finally the constellation of the Scorpion caught my attention. I could not resist to put the Scorpion to paper. Constellation sketches are very enjoyable to do. Here is my impression.

Jets of Machholz

C/2004 Q2 Machholz

C/2004 Q2 (Machholz)
Sketch and Details by Martin Mc Kenna

Three jets issuing from the nucleus of C/2004 Q2 Machholz on Dec 28th at 18.22 LT and Dec 29th through the 8″ F/6.3 S. Cass at 49X. Over a period of several nights I could see the position of the jets changing due to the rotation of the comets nucleus. These jets were bright white linear, pencil thin features that were easy to see. CCD imagers confirmed my visual sighting several nights later. Machholz was an unusual comet as it stayed far from the sun, was visible all night high in a dark sky and was easy with the naked eye. Not all comets are so considerate as many bright new comers remain hidden within bright twilight close to the sun skirting the horizon.

I was delighted to be the first in Ireland to track down this comet – my first observation was made late on a winters night before Christmas using a Meade 3.5″ ETX from a nearby pitch – a location which let me see low down into the eastern sky. I found the comet quickly above distant rooftops and in good time to as 20 min’s later dense mist and murk obscured the this sky sector for days afterward!