Orion in Hallandale

[Kanadalainen]

A very much elevated Orion

December 27, 2019

9:30 PM
Conditions - Partially cloudy with on the beach at Hallandale, Florida
25*C, breezy, looking east out over the ocean in front of our apartment.
Naked eye visual observation.


++++++++

I was visiting family in Florida this past Christmas, and we met our kids and parents there for a week's holiday.

My wife and I went for a stroll on the beach and I noted Orion to the East, and described some of its major stars, the "dagger", the nebulae associated with that, as well some of the location of the surrounding DSO's.

My daughter wandered down to the beach and I pointed out Betelgeuse, Bellatrix, Saiph and Rigel, nearby NGC 2244.

After pointing out the rough locale of the Rosette and tried to tell them how lovely this DSO looks in long exposure.

I knew these DSOs would be markedly elevated in the sky with respect to my "home" skies, but in the moment, I should say that I was shocked at the elevation!!

I had no equipment to sketch or even to get a better look with Binos, but we had a lot of fun... its so weird to be observing with a t-shirt and jogging shorts in December.

Thanks for reading to the bottom.

[Bigzmey]

Nice stargazing session Ian!

I always have binos with me. 8x40 don't take much room, but even with those one can catch quite few targets.

[Kanadalainen]

Thanks Andrey,

I would have liked to pack em. But my case was stuffed with Christmas gifts and my wife’s stuff. Her suitcase was over the weight restriction.

[terrynak]

Very nice naked-eye observing in Florida with family, Ian.

You can see a lot of Southern Hemisphere goodies in Florida, especially down on the peninsular side, that you can't see from the Far North (or even from Southern California for that matter). It'd be fun to do some serious observing (with a grab-and-go telescope) the next time you are vacationing there.

Always a bit shocking to see familiar constellations placed higher (or lower) in the sky when observing from a latitude markedly different from home. From Brisbane, Orion is upside down...

[bladekeeper]

Good stuff, Ian! Thanks for sharing the experience with us!

[pakarinen]

Did you happen to catch Canopus? I'm pretty sure it was well above the horizon once when I was in the Tampa area. Didn't have any charts or anything with me though.

What software did you use to generate your map? I like that format.

[Don Alvarez]

Screen Shot 2020-01-03 at 2.20.47 PM.pngA very much elevated Orion

December 27, 2019

9:30 PM
Conditions - Partially cloudy with on the beach at Hallandale, Florida
25*C, breezy, looking east out over the ocean in front of our apartment.
Naked eye visual observation.


++++++++

I was visiting family in Florida this past Christmas, and we met our kids and parents there for a week's holiday.

My wife and I went for a stroll on the beach and I noted Orion to the East, and described some of its major stars, the "dagger", the nebulae associated with that, as well some of the location of the surrounding DSO's.

My daughter wandered down to the beach and I pointed out Betelgeuse, Bellatrix, Saiph and Rigel, nearby NGC 2244.

After pointing out the rough locale of the Rosette and tried to tell them how lovely this DSO looks in long exposure.

I knew these DSOs would be markedly elevated in the sky with respect to my "home" skies, but in the moment, I should say that I was shocked at the elevation!!

I had no equipment to sketch or even to get a better look with Binos, but we had a lot of fun... its so weird to be observing with a t-shirt and jogging shorts in December.

Thanks for reading to the bottom.

I had a similar moment when I moved down here. The one I noted most was Sagittarius. In my old home it rides very low and is often buried in the trees or just above them. Down here it comes up very high. They'd be great skies for observing - if there wasn't so much cursed skyglow.

[Kanadalainen]

Did you happen to catch Canopus? I'm pretty sure it was well above the horizon once when I was in the Tampa area. Didn't have any charts or anything with me though.

What software did you use to generate your map? I like that format.

Hi,

I didn't look for Canopus... it was a kind of an outreach session, prompted only by my recognition of Orion, which this year I have seen so little of.

Aside from that, there are so many objects that would have been rather exotic to have been seen., next time I will come prepared.


The software I use is Sky Safari 6 Pro, its versatile. I also rig it to my dob with Nexus II, which is an amazing push to set up.

[Kanadalainen]

Screen Shot 2020-01-03 at 2.20.47 PM.pngA very much elevated Orion

December 27, 2019

9:30 PM
Conditions - Partially cloudy with on the beach at Hallandale, Florida
25*C, breezy, looking east out over the ocean in front of our apartment.
Naked eye visual observation.


++++++++

I was visiting family in Florida this past Christmas, and we met our kids and parents there for a week's holiday.

My wife and I went for a stroll on the beach and I noted Orion to the East, and described some of its major stars, the "dagger", the nebulae associated with that, as well some of the location of the surrounding DSO's.

My daughter wandered down to the beach and I pointed out Betelgeuse, Bellatrix, Saiph and Rigel, nearby NGC 2244.

After pointing out the rough locale of the Rosette and tried to tell them how lovely this DSO looks in long exposure.

I knew these DSOs would be markedly elevated in the sky with respect to my "home" skies, but in the moment, I should say that I was shocked at the elevation!!

I had no equipment to sketch or even to get a better look with Binos, but we had a lot of fun... its so weird to be observing with a t-shirt and jogging shorts in December.

Thanks for reading to the bottom.

I had a similar moment when I moved down here. The one I noted most was Sagittarius. In my old home it rides very low and is often buried in the trees or just above them. Down here it comes up very high. They'd be great skies for observing - if there wasn't so much cursed skyglow.

I forgot about Sagittarius, such a rich part of the sky.
The coast is lit! No, I mean its light polluted essentially to the point wherein its like any major downtown sight. This is slightly alleviated looking east (seaward).

[Unitron48]

Great session...and great that you had a clear night in Florida! It's always cloudy or raining when I make my trips to Florida to visit my daughter!!

Dave