Category: Black Paper

Four Day Old Waning Lunar Crescent

Crescent Moon - February 3, 2014
Crescent Moon – February 3, 2014

An unusually clear winter day here in Chicagoland with high clouds racing towards us in front of our next round of snow. As twilight began the Moon remained at a good altitude for sketching as long as I worked quickly. During this sketch earthshine became exceptional but high thin clouds began to erase the fine view and heavy clouds ended the sketch before I finished.
Sketching:
For this sketch I used black sketching paper (12” x 14”), white and black Conte’ pastel pencils, blending stumps, white Pearl eraser.

Telescope 4.25”f/5 Dobsonian riding on an equatorial platform, 21mm wide field eyepiece 26x
Date and Time: 02-03-2014; 17:30 – 18:25 local time
Seeing: mostly Antoniadi III
Transparency: clear to overcast
Temperature: -6.7 °C (20°F)
Colongitude: 315.8°
Lunation: 3.85 days
Illumination: 20%
Favorable longitudinal libration

Frank McCabe

Three days in the life of crater Philolaus

Philolaus Crater
Philolaus Crater

Three nights in a row clear sky, it doesn’t happen a lot in cloudy Belgium. I guess I was just lucky. Nice to see the changing shadows and libration. I hope you like it too.

Clear skies
Jef De Wit

Object: Philolaus (+ Anaximenes, Anaxagoras, Mouchez and Poncelet)
Object type: lunar crater
Location: Hove, Belgium (51°09’ N 4°28’ E)
Date and time: 11-13 January 2014
Equipment: 8 cm refractor (WO Zenithstar 80 FD)
Eyepiece: 3,5 mm Nagler T6 (158x)
Medium: white, gray and black pastel pencils on black paper, scanned, contrast
adjustments with Paint Shop Pro, compilation and text with Paint

Messier 82 and SN2014J – January 24, 2014

Messier 82 and SN2014J
Messier 82 and SN2014J

Hey ASOD!

I send a sketch of the great supernova in the galaxy M.82.
I could not detect any color in this SN, it looked white to me!
I also observed the SN in M.81 in 1993 (ASOD-gallery).
My sketch here is made with colorcrayons on black paper.
Location: Trondheim, Norway. Info on my sketch.

Best wishes from Per-Jonny Bremseth.

Bi-Polar Reflection Nebula in Orion

NGC 2163
NGC 2163

At last a chance has come over these holidays to do some observing. Top of my list is Wolfgang’s Webb Society object of the season , Bi-polar reflection nebula in Orion, NGC 2163, not even listed in the Keppler & Sanner bible!

In the last hour I picked the nebula up readily enough by star hoping to the target but had to keep the exposure time of the video camera shorter than usual due to the residual breeze. That said I’m pleased with the result, it is an interesting object and a first observation for me. Appearing as a bow tie N-S in position there are a couple of dark notches visible and a short dust lane in the lower lobe in my sketch. I hope other member get sketches and images too.

NGC 2163 - Observing form
NGC 2163 – Observing form

Happy New Year, 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/

Eta Carina – The Goliath through a 4″ Refractor

NGC 3372 / Eta Carina
NGC 3372 / Eta Carina

Hello all,

I finally got to go bush with my latest scope acquisition, and my smallest scope, a 4” achro refractor. I was spoilt for choice for potential targets, but I settled on one target I’ve sketched four times previously, Eta Carina. The previous sketches of Eta Carina were done with an 8” (once) and my 17.5” (twice) and once with my binos from my home. But this time, I had the opportunity to chase the full extent of the visible nebulosity of this celestial giant. With the single eyepiece I took on this outing, this little refractor gives me a whopping TFOV of 5°! This would be the perfect weapon and dark sky combination to tackle this target.

Oh my goodness! How much detail is visible! At first glance the nebulosity is nice and compact. As the sketch developed, and I slowly examined the scene, the nebulosity kept on reaching further and further out. Add to this the mottling of the background Milky Way star field that surrounds Eta Carina. I also spotted a couple of faint open clusters in the field of view.

The sketch doesn’t show the full extent of the TFOV – the sheet of paper wasn’t big enough! I was spent after this too.

I hope you find this sketch to your liking.

Alex.

Object: Eta Carina, NGC 3372
Scope: 4” f/5 refractor
Gear: 30mm Explore Scientific 82°, 17X, plus OIII filter
Date: 3rd January 2014
Location: Blue Mountains, NSW, Australia
Media: White soft pastel, charcoal and white ink on A4 size black paper.

Mount Leibnitz and Environs

Mount Leibnitz and Environs
Mount Leibnitz and Environs

Hello artists,we come in New Year,i hope good Year for all.
I sent one of my last Moon Sketch,made with my dobson 10″ and 12,4 mm
Erfle plus Barlow.
I hope to made in future other sketches with this technics.Frank Mc Cabe
is the Master of this.
I hope like you.
Auguri a tutti di un Bello e Limpido 2014!!!
Ciao,Giorgio.

Site: Pergola,Center Italy,behind my home.
Date: 24 September 2013.
Moon phase: Down (19,6 days)
Instrument: Dobson Gso 10″
Eyepiece: 12,4mm erfle plus Barlow(201,6 x)
Seeing: Good
Zone: Mount Leibnitz ( 8.000 meter of altitude).
Media: White pencil on black paper.

Langrenus and Vendelinus Sunset Approaches

Langrenus and Vendelinus Craters
Langrenus and Vendelinus Craters

This evening presented the rare, clear sky that we always look forward to enjoying. Early on some deep sky treasures presented themselves at the eyepiece but before long the Moon was up and deep sky targets became washed out. Now my attention and telescope turned toward old luna with the Moon just past full by 2.5 days. My eye ran along the terminator and the famous “four in a row” which rest upon the 61° E longitude line. All four were standing at the edge. I skipped over craters Furnerius and Petavius this time and went north to Vendelinus (147 km.) and Langrenus (133 km.) as they were the easier two sketching targets. As I sketched the younger crater Langrenus, all that was visible from the floor were the tips of the two tallest central peaks pushing up to catch the last of the sunlight. North and west of Langrenus on the eastern edge of Mare Fecunditatis, the trio of Atwood (30 km.), Naonobu (35 km.) and Bilharz (43 km.) were easily seen and parts of the ray system extending from Langrenus was detectable even at this time of low illumination. To the south and straddled by Lohse (41 km.) and Holden (48 km.), Vendelinus was showing its best look for an old shattered crater. Parts of the shallow floor were illuminated by grazing light and presenting a fine view.
Sketching:
For this sketch I used: black Strathmore 400 Artagain paper, 8”x 10”, white and black Conte’pastel pencils, white pearl eraser and blending stumps.
Telescope: 10 inch f/5.7 Dobsonian and 6mm eyepiece 241x
Date: 07-25-2013 04:15-06:00 UT
Temperature: 20°C (68°F)
Clear, calm
Seeing: Antoniadi III
Co longitude: 115.0°
Lunation: 16.7 days
Illumination: 93.0 %
Phase: 329.4°
Frank McCabe

The Art of Line

Messier 34
Messier 34

Hi everyone!

I observed M34 in Nov. midnight with my 15″ Dob.

The center of M34 has big & bright ‘Y’ shape, and many lines follow the ‘Y’!

It is very impressive and huge.

I drew all of the stars in my eyepiece through two nights.

But I couldn’t express M34 perpectly..

Who makes this fantastic star chains?

God? or My eyes? 🙂

Object Name : M34
Object Type : Open Cluster
Location : S. Korea
Date : Nov. 11, 2013
Media : Black paper, Jelly pen, Pastel pencil

The Charm of ISON

C/2012 S1 (ISON) - November 16, 2013
C/2012 S1 (ISON) – November 16, 2013

Hello ! Here is a drawing Ison (only unfortunately) made ​​Friday morning between 6:15 ET 6:45 HL with my newton telescope 12″. Visible with binoculars 8×40, Ison revealed all its charm to the telescope, including its beautiful clear blue hair, as well as two fine jets in the queue that stretched over 3/4 of my ES 20mm, which provides a field of 1.36 ° and a magnification of 75x.
A real treat for the eyes! Strongly in December…

Détails :
Object : The comet C/2012 S1 Ison
Location : France (Vendée-Atlantic)
Date : 16/11/2013
Support : Canson Black and colored pencil Derwent Academy

Good reception and thank you for your interest
Best regard, Yohan Archambaud ( Vendée, France)