Galaxy – Page 33 – Astronomy Sketch of the Day

A Fine Cigar

M82, NGC 3034 “The Cigar Galaxy”
Sketch and Details by Przemysław Horoszkiewicz, text by Rich Handy

Polish amateur astronomer Przemysław Horoszkiewicz has wonderfully captured M82, the Cigar Galaxy. M82 is classified as an irregular galaxy. The beautiful spiral M81, has had several previous close approaches to M82. Gravitational instabilities caused by these encounters have triggered massive star formation. Consequently, strong winds from supernovae and stellar formation have sculpted huge plumes of energized hydrogen gas that extends deep into the space around M82. It is this gas that obscures the central portions of the galaxy as is shown so well in Przemysław’s sketch.

Sketch information:

Object name: M 82 (NGC 3034)
Object type: Galaxy
Location: Poland, Zielona Góra (a few kilometers from the city)
Date: 29.11.2008r
Scope: Newton 254/1200
Eyepieces: LVW 8 ( 150x)
Seeing: 7/10
Technique:Pencil,graphics GIMP2
Amateur astronomer:Przemysław Horoszkiewicz(Poland)

A Handful of Peculiars

Arp 229
Sketch and Details by Jeff Young

Here’s another entry from Halton Arp’s catalog of Peculiar Galaxies: Arp 229. (I believe Arp’s designation applies only to the central galaxies in my sketch.)

I thought this made a particularly interesting view as the galaxies are quite varied even though there’s not really any structure visible in my instrument. From the top, we have NGC499 which presents an elongated, well-condensed core, followed by the bright over/under pair of NGC508 and 507, both of which present semi-stellar cores. The little guys around that pair, clockwise from the center of the sketch are IC1687 with no core visible, MCG+05-04-048 with a dim semi-stellar core visible, and NGC504 with a bright stellar core. Lastly is IC1685 in the lower left, which is quite bright but shows no core at all.

Sketched 11/30/2008 from County Louth, Ireland,
as viewed through a 16” Mak-Cass @ 150X; Pickering 5, NELM 5.5, SQM 20.4.
Daler-Rowney HB Graphic pencil on white cartridge paper. Scanned and inverted in Photoshop.

Cheers,

— Jeff.

In Memory of Charles Munton

Planetary Nebula NGC 1514
Sketch and Details by Dale Holt

There is a little story behind these that I would like to share. (Frank is already aware of the situation and has been of great support). About a month ago it was brought to my attention that a fellow astronomer whom I knew, but not well had been stricken with cancer. The unfortunate gentleman was Charles Munton, it was Charles work displayed at Astro Fest in London a number of years ago that first encouraged me to begin sketching deep sky objects.

Varible Reflection Nebula NGC 1554, 1555 Hinds
Sketch and Details by Dale Holt

Charles was very ill and was spending his last days in a hospice. I came up with a plan to write to Charles each week with a summary of my observations and prints of my sketches, this I did also sending in sketches and pictures from other friends too, including Frank McCabe & Sue French. Charles was delighted to receive the packages and they appeared to do what I set out to do, keep him engaged with his passion and let him continue observation and discovery in a virtual way.

Galaxy NGC 1587 in Taurus
Sketch and Details by Dale Holt

Because I was doing this for Charles I felt compelled to get out at every clear opportunity to create sketches for him. The sketches attached were part of that program. I had just completed NGC 1514 when my phone rang in the observatory, it was Andrew Robertson a close friend and observational sparring partner to both Charles and Myself. Andrew broke the news that Charles had gone!

Galaxy NGC 1589
Sketch and Details by Dale Holt

These are pictures for Charles that sadly he will never see.

As usual they were created using my 14″ f5 Newtonian running a Watec 120n Deep Sky Video camera, sketches made in real time from a black & white monitor using HB pencils, blending stumps and erasers on cartridge paper. Finished sketches then scanned and turned into negative images electronically.

Dale Holt
Chippingdale Observatory
Hertfordshire
England

Asymmetrical Beauty

NGC 7640 Galaxy in Andromeda
Sketch and Details by Ferenc Lovró

NGC 7640 Galaxy in Andromeda

Ferenc Lovró wrote:
This object is a faint but still very spectacular spiral galaxy with an estimated brightness of about 12.3 m. As I almost never read or view pictures of the objects I want to observe (so the photos in my memory will not change the picture I really see with my own eyes). Because of its very asymmetrical shape I first thought that it must be an irregular galaxy, similar to the objects in Halton Arp’s compilation of peculiar galaxies. Even its core areas seemed to almost fall out of the galaxy itself. However, later on by examining astrophotographs it turned out that what I believed to be its core is in fact a bright foreground star and the real galactic core is in fact located in the brighter little densities near the “fake core”. At smaller magnification, the so far homogeneous arms start to show many details, especially with averted vision near the core. I measured its size as 4.5′ x 1′.

Location: Constellation Andromeda
R.A.23hrs. 22 min.
Dec. + 40° 54′
Date/Time: 2008, 11, 18 19:30 UT
Equipment: 12″ f/5 Newtonian
FOV: 23′ Magnification 167x
Seeing: 6/10 Transparency 3/5
Location: Nádasdladány, Hungary
Ferenc Lovró

String of Pearls

Arp 331, “The String of Pearls”
Sketch and Details by Jeff Young

Here’s something a bit off the beaten path: Arp 331, comprising a string of NGC galaxies in Pisces.

My sketch shows NGC383 in the center, with NGC380 and then NGC379 to the N. Somewhat dimmer are NGC385 and NGC384 to the S, with the averted-vision-only NGC386 in between (the dimmest one captured on the sketch). I missed NGC382 (which was too close to NGC383 to differentiate), and NGC388, which was too dim for my instrument and conditions.

Sketched 11/27/2008 from County Louth, Ireland,

as viewed through 16” Mak-Cass @ 150X; Pickering 8, NELM 5, SQM 20.4

Daler-Rowney HB Graphic pencil on white cartridge paper. Scanned and inverted in Photoshop.

Before Two Become One

NGC 2207 and IC 2163
Sketch by Eiji Kato, text by Frank McCabe

This remarkable sketch was made by Eiji Kato using a 47 cm. f/4 reflector and looking out to a distance measured to be 114 to144 million light years. These beautiful, large, interacting spiral galaxies are located in the constellation of Canis Major at R.A. 6 hrs.16 min.22 sec.; Dec. -21° 22′ 21”. The smaller of the two IC 2163 is about the size of our own Milky Way galaxy. Both members were discovered by John Herschel in 1835. Supernova hunters may be familiar with this pair since the brighter, larger member NGC 2207 has been the site of three supernovas in the past 33 years. The visual magnitudes of these galaxies are 12.2 (IC 2163) and 11.6 (NGC 2207). The nuclei of theses spirals are about 1.4′ of an arc apart. In time, galactic cannibalism will complete the merging of this pair.

Hubble Heritage Image from November of 1999 http://heritage.stsci.edu/1999/41/big.html

Galaxy NGC 5236 (M83) A Sketch and Return Visit

Galaxy NGC 5236 (M83)
Sketch and Details by Kiminori Ikebe

This galaxy is situated near the boundary of Hydra and Centaurs. It is a bright large barred-spiral, famous among the Messier objects. According to some sources, spiral arms should be visible but I have not seen them yet. Due to its low southern position, it is difficult to observe under excellent conditions. This sketch was made under less-than-perfect transparency.
A star-like, blurred nucleus stands out at the center. It is surrounded by extensive halo which shows uniform surface brightness without central brightening. The halo extends to the southwest and northeast direction, which indicates the presence of a bar structure, but it is not clearly visible. With careful observation the halo looks fan-shaped open to the northeast and north. A faint region is detected in the south. When checked against photographs, there should be two counter-clockwise arms around the halo I had sketched. Note* there is a second sketch:

Galaxy NGC 5236 (M83) second sketch
Sketch and Details by Kiminori Ikebe

*In the second sketch made 5 years later under darker sky conditions, using a larger telescope and higher magnification the features such as the bar and spiral arms are clearly visible.

NGC 5236 (M83) Hya galaxy Difficulty level 2

Date of observation: 1997/02/01 04:25
Observing site:
Transparency/seeing/sky darkness: 2/2/3
Instruments: 32cm Dobsonian with TPL10.5 at 150x
Width of field: 0.3°

M83 (NGC 5236) Hya galaxy Difficulty level 2

Date of observation: 2002/02/16 04:29
Observing site: Kujyu
Transparency/seeing/sky darkness: 3/1/4
Instruments: 50cm Dobsonian with RA10 at 220x
Width of field: 0.2°

(I added the note because I felt these sketches should be posted together.

Frank McCabe)

Galaxy in a Cup

NGC 3887 in the constellation Crater
Sketch and Details by Eric Graff

NGC 3887 lies over 10.5° south and just over 1° east of NGC 3818. If you have an equatorial mount, the ten-degree southward adjustment might be the easiest way to reach this object quickly. If you prefer to star hop, you can either return to Theta Crateris to follow a line of widely spaced stars trending southward and slightly east: 3.4° SSE to Iota Crateris; 1.3° SSE to 6th magnitude HD 101369; 2.2° almost due south to 6th magnitude HD 101370; and finally 1.8° due east to NGC 3887. You might also consider a star-hop taking you through the double star H VI 115 and the galaxy NGC 3962 (nos. 8 and 9, below).

However you get here, the trip will be worth your trouble, as NGC 3887 is the brightest spiral galaxy in the constellation of Crater. This galaxy appears as a moderately sized amorphous glow of diffuse nebulosity in an attractive field of view. The faint field stars are arranged in a “V” like pattern with the galaxy nestled within the figure. NGC 3887 displays a brighter central region without a nucleus and a patchy outer halo somewhat suggestive of coarse spiral arm fragments. The view at 120x magnification reminds me of a smaller, fainter version of NGC 2403 in Camelopardalis.

NGC 3887 was discovered visually by William Herschel using a 18.7-inch reflector on December 31, 1785. It was catalogued as the 120th entry in the discoverer’s list of “Bright Nebulae.” Photographically, NGC 3887 is a beautiful object characterized by a small bright nucleus, a smooth oval-shaped bar with dark lanes and several knotty, branching spiral arms. The oval-shape of the central bar is atypical and it is only the presence of two thin straight dust lanes emerging from opposite sides of the nucleus. The largest HII regions (emission nebulae) have diameters of about 2″. Each of the two spiral arms may be traced for about 300° before disappearing. The arms are quite lumpy, exhibiting features much larger than typical star-forming regions and it is these features that trace the spiral arms beyond 180°. NGC 3887 lies at a distance of about 43 million light-years.

The Leo Three

The Leo Three
Sketch by Janis Romer, Details by Frank McCabe

Janis has rendered here an impressive sketch of the “Leo triplet” of galaxies in the constellation of the same name. The northern most member closest to the bottom of the drawing is NGC 3628. At approximately magnitude 9.9 visually, it was missed by Charles Messier but recorded by William Herschel in the spring of 1784. At 35 million light years distant it has an apparent diameter of 15 arc minutes. In an 18 inch telescope from good skies the dust lane bisecting this galaxy is clearly visible. The outer visible parts of this galaxy are distorted by gravitational interactions with the other two members of this group, namely M-65 and M-66. These two galaxies were discovered and recorded by Charles Messier in March of 1780 (incorrectly attributed to Pierre Mechain until recently corrected). M-65 the fainter of these two at magnitude 9.3 and western most (top left) in this sketch, is a tightly wound spiral with an apparent size of 8’ by 2’. M-66 the eastern most (top right) galaxy in the sketch is dusty looking and brighter at magnitude 8.9. This less symmetrical spiral measures 8’ by 3’ in apparent dimensions. Values for the distances of these last two galaxies vary from 22 million light years to 35 million. Measurements taken using Cepheid variables as standard measuring candles find the distance to these galaxies at about 35 million light years (11 mega parsec).

This sketch was made using a Criterion 8” f / 8 Newtonian reflector telescope

Galaxy Cluster Choreography

Stephan’s Quintet
Sketch and Details by Dale Holt

Stephan’s Quintet

Perhaps as a follow on to Jeff Young’s superb NGC 7331 “Deer Lick with fleas” My own rendition of Stephan’s Quintet might fit well?

On the 2nd of October this year I used my observatory 14″ F5 Newt with Watec 120n video camera sketching from a 9″ B&W monitor, using a graphite pencil plus blending stump on standard cartridge paper to capture the enigmatic Stephan’s Quintet.
The image was scanned and turned to a negative to give a more realistic and pleasing view. I caught up with this exquisite galaxy cluster following some wonderful shared visual studies with my 20″ at the Kelling Heath Autumn Equinox star party in Norfolk, England the previous week.