07/01/2022
Location: Anza desert site,
Bortle 3.0.
Equipment: Celestron 9.25” Edge HD
SCT and Celestron 150ST
achro on
SW SkyTee 2 manual AltAz mount. Pentax XW/ TV Panoptic EPs.
Another fine summer evening in SoCal. The temperatures in the Anza desert were actually cooler than at my home location, what a pleasant surprise. I have set the camp, deployed the scopes and enjoyed beautiful views of the new Moon setting into the sunset colors.
21:30. At the onset of astronomical darkness the crescent Moon was still setting. However, it was only about 8% illuminated, Milky Way was clearly visible, and I decided it was dark enough to start observing. As before I was torn between cluster-rich south and galaxy-rich north, and as before the north won!
Canes Venatici galaxies (all observed with 9.25” Edge).
NGC 4117 – faint narrow oval (118x, 168x).
NGC 4109 – faint small wide oval with AV, next to star (168x).
NGC 4156 – faint small spot with AV (168x).
NGC 4163 – very faint wide oval with AV (118x, 168x).
NGC 4190 – faint AV oval (118x).
NGC 4183 – long narrow edge-on (87x, 118x).
NGC 4187 (aka
NGC 4187A) – faint AV oval next to star (168x).
NGC 4218 – small faint narrow oval (118x).
NGC 4227 – faint oval with brighter central area (118x, 168x).
NGC 4229 – smaller fainter oval with AV next to
NGC 4227 (168x).
NGC 5433 – faint small narrow oval (118x).
NGC 5410 – very faint elongated AV oval (118x).
NGC 5407 – small faint oval with AV. This otherwise unremarkable galaxy resides in a neat
asterism. The galaxy is next to a small tight triangle of faint stars. This small triangle sits inside wide triangle of brighter stars. (168x).
NGC 5403 – very faint spot detected with AV by moving
EP (118x).
NGC 5401 – small faint lens with AV (118x).
NGC 5399 – extremely faint spot detected with AV by moving
EP (168x).
NGC 5394 and
NGC 5395 – two elongated ovals next to each other.
NGC 5395 is larger and brighter (168x).
NGC 5380 – faint elongated oval with compact core (168x).
NGC 5378 – faint round disk (118x).
NGC 5362 – faint oval with brighter central area (118x).
NGC 5361 – extremely faint spot detected with AV by moving
EP (235x).
The sky was great and observing smooth but by the midnight I have run out of gas. I could push it but decided that it was a good session as it is. For a few minutes I simply relaxed and enjoyed the sky naked eye, then hit the sleeping bag.
While driving back this flowering bush caught my eye. I don't know what kind of plant it is, but it was pretty. Who knew that in the heat of summer you can still find something like that in the desert?
And congrats on the 
