The Asymmetry of Messier 31

Andromeda Galaxy - M31, M32, M110
Andromeda Galaxy - M31, M32, M110

Object Name Andromeda galaxy M31 including M32 and M110
Object Type Galaxies
Location Different locations in Arizona, USA
Date 7 nights between September 28th and October 31st, 2010
Media graphite pencil, white paper, digitally inverted
Equipment 16” f/4.5 Newtonian reflector (Meade Lightbridge), magnification of sketch is 70x
Observing conditions good to excellent, fst 7m0 on Mt Graham used for sketching the galaxy bodies with all structures

I sketched all 110 Messier objects when I was a visiting scholar at the University of Arizona in Tucson back in 2010. Sketching M31 with a 16” under dark skies means just a whole lot of work… However, despite the fact that this sketch required some 10 or so hours at the telescope spread over seven nights and some more hours to get in a vivid form, it is not the M-object that took me longest (this actually was M24).

Most interesting to me is the observable asymmetry of M31 and the tilted core. Pretty often, M31 is said to be disappointing. Well, when sky conditions are good, it is not!

Best regards,
Christian Weis
Scheidegg, Bavaria, Germany

Last Chance

Venus Transit
Venus Transit

This transit was our last chance to observe, you know. It was really interesting that I had literature exam!
OK, there are some words in the sketch in Persian, but I’ll translate them here.

It’s starting from that part which has :
Time: 2:44
Time: 2:59
Time: 3:29
Time: 3:59
Time: 4:29
Time: 4:59
Time: 5:29
Time: –:–
Time: –:–
(The times are not local.)

Object Name: Sun & Venus
Object Type: Star & Planet
Location: Tehran_Iran
Date: 06/6/2012
Media: White Paper + Black Pencil
Equipment: 130 mm Newt & Maylar Filter & 25 mm super plossl
Weather: Sunny

With Regards
Negar Najafi

Mysterious Saturn

Saturn - June 5, 2012
Saturn - June 5, 2012

Location: Lombard, IL, USA (41.8800° N, 88.0078° W)
Date: 5 Jun 2012, 22:30 CDT
Media: Pencil on white paper (no image processing after scanning)

Comments: This is my first attempt to sketch Saturn, the planet seemed to be hiding its secrets last night, revealing details only for short moments, but staying ghostly mysterious for most of the time.
Equipment used: ATM 8″ f5.9 Newtonian, Baader Hyperion 5mm

Sunrise Transit

Venus Transit
Venus Transit

Venus as a star, once more,…

Object Name (Venus transit…)
Location (Néoules – Provence – France)
Date (06-06-2012 & 13-06-2012)
Media (red wine, graphite pencil, watercolour)
Refractor 1000/102

I made this sketch directly while the sun was rising, just with pencil on white paper.

I had to sketch very quickly.

Today, at home I used yellow watercolour and black for the dark part of the sky

For the clouds I used red wine pigment, from here we are in France.

I was on a hill, the time for this sketch was 3:50, 2 or 3 minutes before the theoretical sunrise time, so my telescope was downwardly inclined. Strange and fantastic souvenir.

Clear sky to you all

Michel Deconinck
Site Web: http://astro.aquarellia.com

Transit from Milad Tower

Venus Transit
Venus Transit

This sketch is transit of Venus in Iran. We have good horizon & the weather its so good & sunny the sky was clean.

Object: Venus transit & sunspot
Location: Milad tower_Iran-tehran 35° 44′ 40″ N, 51° 22′ 30″ E
Date: June 6, 2012
Telescope: 6 inch / Newtonian
Media: graphite pencil & eraser / colored pencil / with paper

Melika bidabadi

2012 Venus Transit Journal

2012 Venus Transit Journal
2012 Venus Transit Journal

Hey, can I send a compilation of my sketches and photos which I described in my journal of astronomical observations. Here I translated my notes from Polish to English 🙂

Sketch / note no. 1 – “The course of events in my telleskopie Newton 200/1200”
Venus looked like a solar disc immersed in the stain. Sketch shows its position relative to the Sun at 5:22. I threw the image of the Sun and Venus with a telescope 60/600 on the white paper, and marked its location. Then at 23:30 pasted this sketch in my journal of astronomical observations.You can also see a group of sunspots.

Sketch / No. 2 – “End phenomena”
During the final stage of the phenomenon of Venus was still evident. But the nearer edge of the Sun was located, the bardziiej could see “black drop effect,” which have said the sketch.

sketch no. 3 – “Goodbye transit of Venus in 2117 years or 20 125: (”
The moment when the transit of Venus ends the last of this century is very difficult. I held my breath. I’m glad I saw it but when Venus left the disc of the Sun at 6:54 I felt a great sorrow. With barely said goodbye Venus.This was my first and the phenomenon of this type, k, I thank God for good weather. I hope that the next transit of Venus seen from the sky.

Object name: Transit of Venus an the Sun
Location: Psary in Poland.
Telescope: Newton 200/1200 power 48x.
Date: 6 June 2012
Media: White paper, pen and pencil, my journal astronomical observations:)

Last in My Lifetime Pairing

Venus Transit
Venus Transit

Object Name – Sun and Venus
Object Type – Solar System
Location – Green Bay, WI
Date – 6/5/2012
Media – graphite pencil, white paper.

I would like to submit this sketch of the transit of Venus. The sketch was made with my 10” Discovery Dobsonion telescope at about 80 x using a Mylar solar filter. I first sketched the Sun and sunspots before the transit began and then added Venus at various intervals as the transit progressed. The numbers along the side are the times the silhouette of Venus was added, in UTC. I was only able to see about half of the transit from Green Bay. The astronomy club I belong to, the Neville Public Museum Astronomical Society, hosted a public observing event. We had a very large turnout and the weather was great. It was a very enjoyable day and I was happy to capture it in this sketch.

Thank you,

Brian Chopp