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?