5/23/2019

[Don Quixote]

5/23/2019

Oakwood, Illinois
Swaro 10X30 binoculars
ES 80 f6

Two in a row with a violent thunderstorm between.

Crazy.

I had a quick outing tonight. What fun !
It was a little before midnight when I started with my 10X30 Swaros.
I had a pretty nice view of Jupiter with 4 pinpoint moons, Callisto. Ganymede, Io to the west, and Europa just east of the bright giant.

(Later, with my ES80 and 7MM XW, I had nice banding and the GRS, although I saw faint color only on the GRS and then only for a few seconds at a snatch. The sky was muddy and turbulent.)

Then it was up the Scorpion's tail to Antares and the mere whisp of M4.
Now I was excited and swept south and east to the Ptolemy Cluster and a bit north to a faint Butterfly cluster. The Ptolomy was the best reveal. Both of these targets were deep in the soup. This is my first view of these clusters this season.

I swept north to try the Lagoon Nebula revealing only the slightest residue of nebulosity, and just again north, to the Trifid Nebula. Neither of these showed more than faint nebulosity. I drove more East into the Sag Star Cloud which was barely a glow, punctuated by the brightest stars.

Then I slipped to Saturn in the South East.

(Later, as with Jupiter, the ES80 revealed a nice view of Saturn's rings with the 7MM XW.)

On good sky nights the ES80 will easily take a doubling of the 7MM but tonight 7MM was all that would hold up.

And again with the binos I caught, M22, M25, and the Omega Nebula.

The list is quickly written but the views were long and slow. It took time to acquire each target.

I am sitting in my car writing this up and I am pumped !
It is 1:02 the moon is beginning to crawl above the tree line in the East.
Time to go home.

Cheers!

[KingClinton]

Great report Mark, drive safe!

Reading reports from the northern hemisphere reminds me of how differently we see things.
Your down in the soup is my zenith and the moon and planets make much earlier appearances.
Glad you enjoyed the night and got to see a few awesome targets hiding out in the central galactic region!

[quincy]

Nice you made it two in a row. It seems a luxury these days.
I thought of setting up last night, but it was iffy. Glad I didn't. As soon as it got dark, a thunderstorm popped up.

[Don Quixote]

"Your down in the soup is my zenith and the moon and planets make much earlier appearances", Clinton.

Yes Clinton. This is a marvelous thing. Together we compose a closer approximation to the "universal" consciousness. I am pleased to share this with you my friend. :-)

"Nice you made it two in a row. It seems a luxury these days.
I thought of setting up last night, but it was iffy. Glad I didn't. As soon as it got dark, a thunderstorm popped up" Quincy.

It has been most appreciated by yours truly, Jim.
I got some news from my son very late and could not sleep. All is well with him, but I needed to go out. I got up and grabbed my binos and drove out not expecting any stellar experiences. I just needed to be alone out there. To my wonder and surprise the sky was opened to me for another short window. As my time there closed I noticed a small light bobbing as it moved toward me in the road as if being carried my someone walking slowly. It continued to approach. As the light got closer I heard a "Hellooo", and out of the datkness emerged a very large man carrying a bundle over his shoulders. We greated and began a chat that lasted another 20 minutes. He and I shared an appreciation for the night sky. He pointed here and there telling me what was there. Sometimes the stars were visible, sometimes there was only the fogg of incoming clouds. He knew the sky. He loved the stars and when I pointed out Jupiter he smiled and said with satisfaction, "yes", and pointed southeast and said, "and there is Saturn". The moon by this time was a large orange fuzzy ball with a broad dense core, a "superglob" :-)
I told him if he is ever on this road again and catches me out he would be welcome to observe with me through the glass. My kit was back in the car by this time. A saw him smile as we shook hands. He walked away down the road. A few minutes later I got in my van and turned around to follow in the same direction thinking I would give him a lift. But as I made my way home I did not see him on the road. I should have asked his name.
By the time I got home it was pooring rain.
I hope you get another window soon, Jim.

[helicon]

Great report Mark on your evening with the binos. Sometimes it's fun just to gaze at the objects in (or near) the summer Milky Way to the South. I've done the same with my 10x50 and 15x70 binos.

[Don Quixote]

Great report Mark on your evening with the binos. Sometimes it's fun just to gaze at the objects in (or near) the summer Milky Way to the South. I've done the same with my 10x50 and 15x70 binos.

Definitely a fun and satisfying excursion. I think I would like to get some 50s. I need something in between the 30s and 43s and my 100s.
It is amazing how well these little Swaros do, but I am sure 50s would have revealed more.
Thank you Michael

[bladekeeper]

Two in a row! Unprecedented!

Glad you got out there, Mark! I saw Scorpius climbing up in the southeast. Soupy yet clear here so I sat up for a couple of galaxy images, M104 and M63. I was going to push further but ended up feeling terrible by the end of the night and packed up at half past midnight.

And when I went to process my data today I realized I'd shot myself in the foot with my captures. Nothing to show but a tale of woe.

[Don Quixote]

Two in a row! Unprecedented!

Glad you got out there, Mark! I saw Scorpius climbing up in the southeast. Soupy yet clear here so I sat up for a couple of galaxy images, M104 and M63. I was going to push further but ended up feeling terrible by the end of the night and packed up at half past midnight.

And when I went to process my data today I realized I'd shot myself in the foot with my captures. Nothing to show but a tale of woe.

Oh my !!!

It has been rather strange here Bryan. I have been getting these 2 to 3 hour windows of clear between otherwise crud!
Everett and I were able to get out last night for a few hours as well.
I hope you get some soon