Early Morning mars

Mars 

I have attached my latest Mars sketch for your interest. This resulted from my 3rd
observation of Mars during this opposition. Unfortunately seeing was too poor
during the 2nd session to allow me to make a ‘reliable’ sketch.

Mars SPA
  
I find observing in the early morning so invigorating and am always on a high
for the rest of the day following such an opportunity. As I have noted so often
before the view gets more detailed and contrasty as the dawn sky brightens. On
this occasion I noted a distinct brightening along the northern polar region
which I hope I have depicted agreeably in my sketch.
  
When I observe and sketch Mars I never research what I’m likely to see in case
some preconceived image might cloud my vision of reality at the eyepieces.

Dale Holt

Almost a Basin

Humbolt 

As the 2007 year began, winter’s cold grip had not yet taken hold. I was finishing
the process of cleaning and repairing a 13 inch Newtonian telescope when I decided
to colliminate and test the optics on the star Polaris and the moon. The moon was
one day past full and upper Imbrian period crater Humboldt in the
east-south-eastern sector of the libration zone was nicely placed for sketching.
Crater Humboldt at 207 km. in diameter is classified as a large floor fractured
crater. If this crater was 33% larger it would be a lunar basin. On the Lunar 100
list crater Humboldt is number 87.

At or near full moon many observers avoid looking moonward but old Luna can be a
rewarding telescope target at any and every phase.
  
  Sketching:
  
  I used a No. 2 HB pencil on copy paper for this drawing
  Date: 1-4-2007 4:00 to 4:40 UT
  Temperature: 0°C (33° F)
  Windy, some mid-altitude cloudiness, seeing was average
  Antoniadi : III
  13.1 inch f / 5.9 Dobsonian 9mm ortho ocular 218X
  Colongitude: 91.9°
  Lunation: 14.6 days
  Illumination: 99.6 %
  Libration in longitude. +5.5°        
  
  Frank McCabe

The Lost Treasure of Hercules

M92 

Messier 92: Globular Cluster 

And yet, another one of those Globs – don’t worry, there are plenty, 29
in the Messier Catalog alone, but I am slowly pulling through, one more
down on the list and counting. All in all, I’d say: again not bad, measured
up to the years of life it cost me to draw it. You sit there at the telescope,
frozen to the spot in a never-ending struggle to decide, whether you’ve
seen the detail or not, whether you should draw it or not, your hands are
getting cold, your neck is getting stiff and the cluster simply keeps refusing
to turn out the way you want it or see it. Well, the longest journey comes to
an end, so here it is: M 92! I like to call it The Lost Treasure of Hercules,
because it is a great view, yet often overlooked due to its proximity to the
far more well-known M 13. Maybe next time you visit the area, remember to
make a little stop-over at M 92.

Date: April 15, 2007
Location: Kegelhaus, Erbendorf, Bavaria, Germany
Instrument: Dobsonian 8″ f/6
Constellation: Hercules
Seeing: II of VI
Transparency: I-II of VI
NELM: 6m2
Magnification: 133x
Technique: white pastel pens and white ink-pen on black cardboard

Sebastian Lehner

Center of the Lunar Nearside

Pallas and Murchison

When the moon is several degrees below the summer ecliptic to the south, it can be
challenging to view and sketch from mid-northern latitudes.
I chose for sketching a highland region inside the triad of the Bays of Medii and
Aestuum and the Sea of Vapors. The center of this region contains the crater pair
Pallas and Murchison. Crater Pallas (50km.) which is a Nectarian period formation
is more than 3.8 billion years old. Pallas has a partially buried central peak at
1.3 km. above the lava flooded floor. Crater Pallas-A rests on the western rim and
deep bowl shaped crater Bode beyond the rim are clearly seen.  Murchison (58 km.)
which is the oldest of the pair at about 4 billion years shows the greatest amount
of wear. Lava flooded floor, severe wall erosion, and strikes such as Chladni
(13.8km.) on the southeastern wall are among the features that demonstrate the age
of this crater. All that remains of the common wall of Pallas-Murchison are pieces
of ridge wall. Half of well known crater Triesnecker is visible to the east.
I was unable to use higher magnification because sky conditions were below average
until after moonset.
  
  
  Sketching:
  For this sketch I used: black Strathmore 400 Artagain paper, white and black Conte’
  pastel pencils and a blending stump. Contrast and brightness were slightly
  increased after scanning.
  Telescope: 10 inch f/ 5.7 Dobsonian and 9 mm eyepiece 161X
  Date: 7-23-2007, 1:15-1:48 UT
  Temperature: 24° C (75° F)
  Partly cloudy, calm
  Seeing:  Antoniadi III
  Colongitude  10.1 °
  Lunation  8.6 days
  Illumination 58 %
  
  Frank McCabe

Extragalactic thundercloud

M106 
Messier 106

That night (the 20th of April 2007) I first planned to redo a sketch of M51. When I
scanned the region, M106 came into view. I found the view so interesting that I
decided to sketch this Messier object instead. At first sight, this galaxy reminded
me of a cumulonimbus cloud drifting in the sky. I could not help it but to see
patterns and shadows in this galaxy. I found the core very confusing to look at.
According to the late Walter Scott Houston, descriptions of its visual appearance
vary considerably. Some observers have reported a needle-like shape, while ‘Scotty’
saw a very bright parallelogram shape. My little scope reveals ‘a drifting cloud’. I
hope you like the view.
Date : April 20, 2007
Time : 21.30UT
Scope : ETX 105/1470
Vixen LV Zoom eyepiece at 15mm
Power : 100
FOV: 30′
Filter : none
Seeing : 2.5/5
Transp. : 2/5
Nelm : 5.3
Sketch Orientation : N down, W left.
Digital sketch made with a digital tablet and PhotoPaint, based on a raw pencil sketch.

Rony De Laet

http://www.geocities.com/rodelaet, my personal website.

Lovely Limb

Ingrahami

Crater Ingrahami
  
  You have got to admit, on a clear winter night from the northern hemisphere the
full moon has a way of revealing itself and moving high and bright to the
meridian. After looking at the full moon through a telescope eyepiece you can be
quite moonblind for a while. Don’t make any sudden movements until your night
vision returns. This night was my rendezvous with the crater Inghirami. Crater
Inghirami is a Nectarian period crater (3.85 billion years old) and measuring 92
km.in diameter. This crater is southwest of Schickard and southeast of Vallis
Inghirami. The crater has an interesting floor with what looks like a low ridge
mountain range running across it. Inghirami crater is near the edge of the lunar
impact basin Mare Orientale. Below is my number 2 pencil and ink sketch on copy
paper of the region of Inghirami crater near both the terminator and limb.       
                                                    
  
  Date: 1-3-2007 4:00 to 4:45 UT
  Temperature: -2.2 °C (28° F)
  Breezy, seeing was average
  Antoniadi : III
  13.1 inch f / 5.9 Dobsonian 6mm ortho ocular 327X
  Colongitude: 83°
  Lunation: 13.8 days
  Illumination: 100 %         
  
  Frank McCabe

Long haired star

Comet Linear C/2006 VZ13

I love comets and observe them whenever I can. Most are just faint
celestial smudges but you never know when things can change! When I
observe them I always make a sketch to capture that moment forever, after
all most never return in our life time so it is so nice to look back on your
records. This week I caught up with current Comet Linear C/2006 VZ13 in
Bootes andmade the attached sketch.
  
Made simply on white cartridge paper with a graphite pencil & blending
stump at the eyepiece. Scanned and turned into a white on black negative.
  
Warm regards, Dale Holt

Before the Moon Is Full

Schickard 

Crater Schickard

One of the many large and interesting craters on the visible lunar surface is 227
km. diameter walled plain crater Schickard. This Pre-Nectarian crater is somewhat
isolated from craters of equal size. It is the shallow floor of Schickard that
presents its most interesting features. After the large impactor struck the lunar
highlands to form this crater, lava passed to the surface through cracks that
served as channels. Tens of millions of years later the gargantuan impact forming
the Orientale basin occurred blanketing the crater with highland ejecta. After
some time more flooding of dark mare lava created the two notable dark patches on
the crater floor to the Northwest and Southeast. This grand crater can easily be
seen in a modest telescope with good lighting one or two days before full moon.
  
  Sketching:
  For this sketch I used: copy paper, a no. 2 graphite pencil, fingertips for
  blending.
  Telescope: 10 inch f/ 5.7 Dobsonian at 233X
  Date: 11-4-2006,  Time: 2:11-3:15 UT
  Clear skies:  4.4°C (40°F)
  Seeing:  Pickering 5/10
  Colongitude 70.5 °
  Lunation 12.9 days
  Illumination 97 %
  
  Frank McCabe