Venus - May 16, 2012

Location: Rocbaron Provence France
Date: 16 may 2012 – 9:20 PM
Media: graphite pencil, white paper, circle inverted while scanning

It’s always nice to have a look at Venus while so close to the sun, just some weeks before her sun’s rendez-vous June 6th.
I prefer to draw the brilliant Venus when the darkness is not too deep, then the contrast is more convenient.

Clear sky to you all

Michel Deconinck

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

HCG 28

A bitterly cold night that saw the mercury drop to the lowest level I have ever known or recorded -16?C. I wanted to get an early observation in before Moon rise; my primary objective was to add another Hickson group to my list. This I did successfully with very appropriately HCG 28, I say appropriate as this was the 28th that I have observed and sketched. Located in Eridanus there are 4 faint members in the group although my sketch actually includes a 5th galaxy which isn’t a member and is depicted as a faint star. All members have PGC listing the faintest & smallest (d) member is Mag 18, so serious stuff! The commanding member is a nice edge on PGC 15136 running N-S, see my sketch here
Quite how I came to observe the next object I’m not quite sure? I may have noticed it close by on my planetarium software, not that it matters, it was an interesting and valuable observation. Again in Eridanus, NGC 1535 is a lovely planetary nebula, named ‘Cleopatra’s eye’ by Greg Crinklaw aka ‘The Skyhound’ a name that appears to have stuck and grown in popularity. I had observed this planetary back in 2010 with the old 350mm F5 and older first generation Watec camera, but this was my first visit with the 505mm mirror. It did show an improvement, despite the lower focal length employed on this occasion, I used a barlow lens previously to increase image scale and try and pull out more detail, I had failed to resolve a faint star on the very northern edge of the nebula, the central star was easy and steady as were internal annular ring structures rather like those in the ‘Eskimo’ nebula.
Here is my old sketch with the 350mm and here is the latest with the 505mm. At the time of writing I have asked Sue French if she would be so kind as to help assist me on finding the outer stars mag.
Happy days, Dale

Do you want to know more about my interest in astronomy? If so take a look at my Website: www.chippingdaleobservatory.com

Keep up to date with observations from Chippingdale Observatory by reading the Blog http://chippingdaleobservatory.com/blog/

NGC 1535

Vallis Schröteri

Object name: vallisschröteri
Object type: Lunar Crater
Location: Amsterdam
Date: 8-5-2012
Media: Pastel on black paper

During a very gray period the last weeks, and with no chance to use the telescope, I decided to enhance my sketching skills by sketching some moon craters based on pictures made by others. This one is a sketch of the vallisschröteri area. Made with pastel pencil on black paper.

Clear skies and kind regards

Matthijs Broggel

Saturn and Titan

Object Name: Saturn
Object Type: Planet
Location: Deventer, The Netherlands
Date: May 13, 2012
Media: Pastel pencils on black paper

Last night I wanted to make a sketch of Saturn, mostly to capture as much moons as possible through my old 75mm f/15 Polarex/Unitron refractor. After 45 minutes of sketching at 200x with pastel pencils on black paper, Saturn was pretty much done (although I found it surprisingly difficult to draw a good ellipse for the rings), and just when I added the easily visble Titan, I heard some droplets on the trees next to me and felt something on my head: RAIN! I immediately covered the pastel sketch witch my hand and rushed inside my shed. After the sketch was save I pulled the telescope out of the rain. The most abrupt ending of a sketching session ever! I had completely missed the incoming clouds while viewing through the eyepiece.

Anyway, both the sketch and the telescope survived. Sadly with only one moon observed: Titan.

Clear skies and kind regards,
Roel Weijenberg
www.roelblog.nl

Messier 42 and 43

M42 & M43
Emission Nebula in Orion
Maui, Hawaii elevation 4000 ft
27mm Panoptic, 56x
12/29/11 9:20pm
Graphite pencil and white paper, inverted using PhotoScape

I have observed this amazing region many times & each time try to tease out a little more information. On my last observation I could see folds like a curtain in a portion of the nebula, delicate but detailed.

Aloha!
Thia Krach

White Light Sun - May 11, 2012

Hey, send your sketch of the Sun. During the present observations of the Sun I saw on the surface of a group of duck-like spots. You can see it in my sketch. These were some of the best observation of the sun. I can not wait to see the transit of Venus;) I encourage you to follow our daytime star.
Thanks in advance and best regards.

THE SUN
Date: 11 th May 2012
Location: Psary in Poland
Telescope: Newton 200/1200
Magnification: 48x
Media: 2B pencil, white A4 paper

White Light Sun - May 10, 2012

Include 3 sketches of sunspot 1476 have been sent to you.

Yours Sincerely
Hooman Jahanbani
Control Gostar Jahed

Messier 45

Object Name: M45
Object Type : Open Cluster
Location : Saveh, Iran
Date: 29.sep.2011
Media: Pencil, White Paper
Equipment : Binocular 20*80

By: Ghazale Adampour

Caldwell 49

Hi,

In attachment you can find sketch of emission nebulous complex known as Rosette Nebula (Caldwell 49)

Short description:

Object Name: Caldwell 49 – Rosette Nebula
Object Type: emission nebula
Location: Oderne – small village in southern Poland (picture made during Winter StarParty in Oderne 2012)
Date: 27.01.2012
Media: graphite pencil, white paper, color invert
Telescope: GSO 10” + Lumicon UHC + Orion Q70 26mm
Seeing: 3/5 (average)
Transparency: 4/5 (weak)
Outside temperature -21*C !!!
NELM: 5,8 mag

Another sketch made in extreme temperature (-21*C)
This time object which you can find on many photos but which is not so popular in visual observations – Rosette Nebula in Monoceros.
It is quite easy to observe with some UHC filter (Lumicon, Ultrablock) and wide-field eyepiece (1,3* FOV is necessary) even in 6” telescope.
In 10” or larger mirror you can try to find some faint nebulosity regions with some dust pillars and lighter gas areas (but really good transparency is necessary).

Clear Sky
Łukasz

Comet Garradd and Messier 92

Object Name: Comet Garradd and M92
Object Type: comet, globular gluster
Location: Cherry Springs Dark Sky Park, Pennsylvania
Date: February 3, 2012
Media: Digitally simulated chalk and white pencil on black paper.

I literally had seconds to glimpse it this morning, so my sketch cannot be accurate (9:30 UT). We were completely socked in. I waited 45 minutes for a tiny tear in the cloud cover to sweep rapidly across
Hercules. Then for another 30 minutes there was no other opportunity and I went back to bed. Now, a long wait under almost complete cloud cover makes you exceptionally well dark adapted… so I really believe it was the comet that I saw with the naked eye for a few moments as I was raising my binoculars with
shaking hands. Blue, near grey zone, altitude 2400 ft/700 m.