Sun – H-Alpha – March 4, 2010
Sketch and Details by Erika Rix
2010 March 4
Solar h-alpha, Active regions 1051, 1052, 1053
PCW Memorial Observatory, Zanesville, Ohio USA – Erika Rix
DS 60mm Maxscope, LXD75, 21-7mm Zhumell
H-alpha sketch created scope-side with black Canson paper, white Conte’ crayon and pencil, white Prang watercolor pencil, Derwent charcoal pencil, black oil pencil.
Temp: -1°C, Humidity 75%
Seeing: Wilson 4, Transparency: 4.6/6
Light cirrus, calm, Alt: 35.1, Az: 140.0
Sinus Iridum
Sketch and Details by Frank McCabe
In the waning moonlight the shadows of the Jura mountain peaks could be seen on the floor of Sinus Iridum. On this mid-August night I was experiencing and enjoying a full night observing and sketching. The moon occupied my time during the second half of this session all the way to sunrise. It was one of the rare nights with cool dry air and great seeing conditions.
Sinus Iridum (260km.) is what remains of the Upper Imbrium impact on the floor of the Sea of Showers. The dark basaltic lava floor with its wrinkled ridges could be clearly seen as the sunset shadow was approaching. Several notable and recognizable features could be seen and included Promontorium Heraclides at the southwestern end of the crater rim arc over to Promontorium Laplace on the northeastern side. Old craters Mairan (40 km.), Sharp (40 km.), Bianchini (38 km.), were all clearly seen and sketched as well as the younger impact scars of Harpalus (39 km.) and Bauguer (22 km.), with ancient Mare Frigoris (Lower Imbrium) beyond the remains of the ejecta of Sinus Iridum. Much of dorsum Zirkel (216 km.) and dorsum Heim (134 km.) could be seen paralleling the terminator at the lower end of the sketch.
I was pleased I did not miss this fine evening for observing and sketching at the telescope.
Sketching:
For this sketch I used: black Canson paper 9″x 12″, white and black Conte’
pastel pencils , and Conte’crayons, a blending stump, plastic and gum erasers. Brightness was decreased -2 using the scanner for this sketch
Telescope: 10 inch f/ 5.7 Dobsonian with 9mm (161x) eyepiece
Date: 8-15-2009 10:00-11:20 UT
Temperature: 16°C (60°F)
Clear , calm
Seeing: Antoniadi II
Co longitude 206.3°
Lunation days 24.3
Illumination 32.1%
Sun – January 14, 2010, 2038 – 2200 UT
Sketch and Details by Erika Rix
2010 Jan 14, 2038UT – 2200UT
Solar h-alpha and white light, AR1040, Cycle 24
PCW Memorial Observatory, Zanesville, Ohio USA – Erika Rix
DS 60mm Maxscope, LXD75, ETX70-AT w/tilt plate, 21-7mm Zhumell
H-alpha sketch created scopeside with black Canson paper, white Conte’ crayon and pencil, white Prang watercolor pencil, Derwent charcoal pencil, black oil pencil. White light sketch created scopeside with white copy paper, #2 pencil, 0.5mm mechanical pencil.
Sketches were rotated and flipped to match standard solar orientation. West is to the right and north is to the top.
Temp: 1.8°C-10.7°C, Humidity 61%-30%
Seeing: Wilson 4, Transparency: 3/6
Light cirrus, calm, Alt: 15.4, Az: 223.8
Part of Basin Schiller – Zucchius
Sketch and Details by Frank McCabe
After 12 cloudy days and nights I was anxious to get out under a clear sky to make an attempt at sketching a lunar target of opportunity. Before selecting a target I noticed the moon was moving through the Pleiades and created a very interesting binocular target. With the moon at 12.5 days into the lunation, the waxing gibbous phase was showing me the Schiller – Zucchius basin very nicely. I centered on two craters to one side of this 3 ringed basin. First the young Copernican period crater Zucchius (65 km.) with its terraced inner walls and shadowed floor looked deeper than its 3.3 km. measured depth because of the light and shadow. Sharing a common wall with this crater is the ancient and similar sized Segner (68 km.). This pre-Nectarian crater looked old and worn. Its rim was low and had nothing in the way of central peaks just a small nearly centered crater Segner H. Extending from the north side of crater Segner’s outer rim is a ridge which is a short wall segment of the second basin ring. What looks much like a shallow depression and measures about the same size as these two craters is the central ring of the basin and can be seen at the lower left (Northeast) in the sketch.
A photo of this entire basin credited to Gary Seronik can be seen on LPOD for October 17, 2004
http://www.lpod.org/archive/LPOD-2004-10-17.htm
I found myself sketching quickly in the cold air which was rapidly dropping in temperature as I sketched. After about an hour I considered the sketch finished and returned to the indoor warmth to thaw out.
Sketching:
For this sketch I used: black Canson paper 9″x 12″, white and black Conte’
pastel pencils , and Conte’crayons, a blending stump, plastic and gum erasers. Brightness was not altered but contrast was increased +2 using the scanner for this sketch
Telescope: 10 inch f/ 5.7 Dobsonian with 6mm (241x) eyepiece
Date: 12-29-2009 4:45-5:45 UT
Temperature: -8°C (18°F)
Clear, calm
Seeing: Antoniadi IV
Co longitude 60.6°
Lunation 12.7 days
Illumination 90.7%
Frank McCabe
Crater Euclides and Montes Riphaeus
Sketch and details by Frank McCabe
In southern Oceanus Procellarum not far from mare Cognitum you can locate a bright little Copernican era crater that formed after the last of the dark lava had solidified. This little 12 kilometer crater wearing the bright ejecta blanket is Euclides. The bright ejecta makes it easy to pick out at high sun and with a little bit of shadow and high magnification the nearby Riphaeus mountains also show some fine relief. In the upper left of the sketch note the front range of these mountains which date back 4 billion years. These mountains are likely the remains of a very large crater rim that was not completely buried in the lava flooding. Other similar sized and smaller craters in the region also reveal some bright ejecta betraying their young ages. To learn more read the LPOD caption for May 24, 2006.
Sketching:
For this sketch I used: black Canson paper 10″x 12″, white and black Conte’
pastel pencils , and Conte’crayons, a blending stump, plastic and gum erasers. Brightness was decreased -2 and contrast increased +2 using the scanner for this sketch
Telescope: 10 inch f/ 5.7 Dobsonian with 6mm (241x) eyepiece
Date: 11-28-2009 4:15-5:40 UT
Temperature: 0°C (32°F)
Clear becoming partly cloudy, calm
Seeing: Antoniadi II -III
Co longitude 44°
Lunation 11.4 days
Illumination 80.7%
Frank McCabe
The lunar crater Julius Caesar and environs
Sketch and Details by Dale Holt
The Weather in the UK has been very wet and windy over the past couple of weeks culminating in the devastating floods in western regions that have made the news over the past week.
On Monday evening just after dark I got a break in the cloud and the Moon shone through with Jupiter in a close embrace. From my observatory I was soon touring the terminator as I so love to do. I was looking for that mountain, ridge, rill, crater or flooded plain that just caught my eye above all else.
Tonight it was lava flooded 80km diameter crater Julius Caesar that did just that, with its low, irregular, and heavily worn wall, washed out completely and the southern end I liken it to a burst dam. It is located to the west of Mare Tranquillitatis, and directly southeast of the crater Manilius on the Mare Vaporum. To the east is the rounded 18km diameter impact crater Sosigenes.
The interior floor of Julius Caesar is relatively level, especially in the southwest half. The northern half of the interior has a lower darker appearance than the south, I hopefully have captured this effect in my sketch. Most likely the floor has been covered or modified by ejecta from the impact that created the Imbrium basin.
There are a number of crater remnants overlapping the rim along the south and northeast edges, the illumination at the time of drawing has allowed me to see and capture one or two of these. A low ridge crosses the floor across the northeast sections of the crater.
Further to the south of Caesar we see the striking graben or fault trough Rima Ariadaeus shown as a dark line in my sketch it runs for over 300km
Sketch was made on Black Daler Rowney Artist paper using a mix of Conte pastels, Water Colour and other artist pencils applied direct on with a blending stump.
Telescope used was a 150mm triplet F9 refractor
Dale Holt
Chippingdale Observatory
Hertfordshire, England
The Leonid Meteor Shower, November 16th and 17th, 2009
Sketch and Details by Richard Handy
The Leonids put on a spectacular display in the early morning hours of November 17th as seen from from Jacumba, California. Around 1:30 to 4:30 am PDT, we were treated to a barrage of meteors, from bright little spikes of light to radiant bolides that streaked halfway across the starry skies leaving long smoke trains that lingered in the air and then dissipated. The stream was sporadic however, and we noted several five to ten minute intervals with small counts breaking the 100-200 meteors per hour rate that seemed a good approximation to the average observed. I was certain that the rate was close to the 500/hr in periods between 3:30 am and 4:30 am predicted by some. Jacumba has very few bright street lights currently and the zodiacal light shone so brightly it was almost distracting. I decided to sketch the scene, and after finishing the foreground ridge on the eastern side of my property and the position of Leo on the horizon, I began to record the trajectory and brightness of the meteors that fell within the field of view of my sketch during the interval between 1:45 am and 3:15 am PDT. You’ll note that Leo would have risen about 25 degrees higher off the horizon during the sketch session, so the drawing does not accurately reflect that movement. Despite the restricted field of view, you can see that I was able to record a nice variety of Leonids during the hour and a half period. In the future, I’ve decided to try sketching one hour intervals with larger fov’s, that way I can record hourly count variations.
I hope most of you had clear weather and were able to see this awesome event, it’s one that will remain in my memory as the best I’ve ever witnessed.
Sketch details:
Subject: The 2009 Leonid Meteor Shower
Date: 11-17-09 Time: 1:30 to 3:15 am PDT Location: Jacumba, California
Naked eye sketch
Media: Conte’ Crayon and dry pastels on Strathmore 400 series black Artagain paper
Sketch size: 9″ x 12″
Lunar craters Mairan, Sharp, Harpalus and the Jura Mountains
Sketch and Details by Frank McCabe
The lunar feature known as the Jura Mountains includes the rim of the Sinus Iridium impact and is visible here in late day sunlight. The debris field can be seen extending westward to Mare Frigoris. All of Sinus Iridium is in shadow which gives this region an unfamiliar appearance. The impact that created the large mountainous debris field occurred during the Upper Imbrium period (3.8 billion years ago). Some of the mountains are a lofty 5 kilometers high. Superimposed on these mountains are two forty kilometer complex craters known as Mairan and Sharp; another similar sized crater can be seen on Mare Frigoris and is called Harpalus (39 km.). At high sun this crater shows a bright young crater ray system in addition to a fine glacis. There are 3 pillow-like features to the far left in the sketch at the edge of the Iridium ejecta. The two that are closest together are the famous large lunar domes known as Gruithuisen Gamma and Delta.
It is always worth while when not expecting a rigorous day ahead to get up a little earlier than usual to see what is going on in the sky before sunrise. This is especially true when the sky is clear and very transparent.
Sketching:
For this sketch I used: black Canson paper 9″x 12″, white and black Conte’
pastel pencils , and Conte’crayons, a blending stump, plastic and gum erasers. Brightness was decreased -2 using the scanner for this sketch
Telescope: 10 inch f/ 5.7 Dobsonian with 9mm (161x) eyepiece
Date: 11-12-2009 11:00-12:00 UT
Temperature: -3°C (27°F)
Clear to partly cloudy, calm
Seeing: Antoniadi III
Co longitude 212.7°
Lunation days 25.27
Illumination 20.1%
Frank McCabe
Lunar crater Manillus in the Sea of Vapors
Sketch and Details by Frank McCabe
There is a stand alone Eratosthenian crater (1-3 billion years old) on the northeastern shore of the Sea of Vapors known as Manilius. Manilius is 39 kilometers in diameter with a steep inner wall 3.1 kilometers above its floor. The crater rim and outer rampart are impressive in the eyepiece as is the illuminated inner talus slope and central mountain still capturing sunlight. As I was making this sketch at 241 power I knew this moonscape was know to have several small domes and when I finished I took a look at several of the larger ones under higher magnification. They are a little difficult to pick out from all the smaller bits of Imbrium ejecta piles. I didn’t concern myself with them during the sketch but Chuck Wood’s LPOD and Bruno Daversin’s image on April 12, 2006 show the ones close to the crater to the north and east. HYPERLINK “http://www.lpod.org/?m=20060412″ http://www.lpod.org/?m=20060412
This photo was taken during the waxing moon and I was viewing and sketching during the waning moon. Also since I was sketching with a Newtonian scope south is up in the sketch.
Sketching:
For this sketch I used: black Canson paper 9″x 12”, white and black Conte’
pastel pencils , and Conte’crayons, a blending stump, plastic eraser. Brightness was decreased -2 and contrast increased +2 using the scanner for this sketch
Telescope: 10 inch f/ 5.7 Dobsonian with 6mm (241x) eyepiece
Date: 11-8-2009 11:15-12:40 UT
Temperature: 9°C (49°F)
Clear becoming partly cloudy, calm
Seeing: Antoniadi II
Co longitude 167°
Lunation 21.5 days
Illumination 61%
Chicago, Illinois USA
Frank McCabe
Lunar crater Maurolycus and environs
Sketch and Details by Frank McCabe
Among the craters in the southern highlands this large walled plain crater (115 km.) really stands out. Seeing this crater on the sunrise terminator was all the motivation I needed to attempt a sketch. The atmosphere was somewhat turbulent so I keep the magnification in the medium range.
I drew this crater back in late July of 2008 when it was illuminated by a higher sun at the waning gibbous phase. As I continued to sketch, the central peak of this crater began to catch the rising sun, and I immediately recalled a beautiful sketch of this crater under similar lighting made by Rich Handy back in 2006 or there about.
Just above Maurolycus which would be south in the sketch, the dark crescent seen is a partial remnant of a more ancient crater than the old Nectarian period Maurolycus. The outer wall of this crater and its partner to the south, south east Barocius (83 km.) stand tall and steep more than 4 kilometers above the floor.
Sketching:
For this sketch I used: black Strathmore 400 Artagain paper 9”x12”, white and black Conte’ pastel pencils and a blending stump. After scanning, Brightness was decreased (-3) and contrast increased (+2) using Microsoft Office Picture Manager.
Telescope: 10 inch f/ 5.7 Dobsonian and 8 mm eyepiece 181 x
Date: 10-24 to 10-25-2009, 10:40-12:05 UT
Temperature: 13° C (55° F)
Partly Cloudy, calm
Seeing: Antoniadi III-IV
Colongitude 347.1 °
Lunation 6.75 days
Illumination 40.2 %
Frank McCabe
