Category: Binoculars

Emission Nebulae in Perseus

The data of the drawing:
NGC869-884

Telescope: 7×50 binocular
Date: 10.11.2010

Observing Location: Zakany – Hungary, 46° 15′ N 16° 57’E elev.: 129m
This digital drawing preparated GIMP 2.6 programs.

Thank you for it!

Clear Sky !

Tamas Bognar

—
Üdvözlettel !
——————————-
Bognár Tamás

http://tamasasztro.haminfo.hu/

skype : bognartamas
msn : bognart@gmail.com

Progressive Moon

Object Name: Moon
Object Type: moon
Location: São Bernardo do Campo – SP – Brazil
Date: (5 nights – 2010)
Media: 0.5mm mechanical pencil on white paper
Instrument: binoculars Celestron UpClose 10×50 Wide Angle (7º)

Additional information:
The millions of lights from a huge metropolis (more than 20 million people) added to the heavy pollution do affect the sky observation. However, I found out an astonishing Moon through my binoculars, and whenever the sky was clear, I sketched it. I’ve done it from my apartment, fourth floor, through the window. The purpose was to register the position of the terminator, and how some features (specially the seas and Tyco crater) change their appearance according to the incidence of the sunlight. In this sketch we can also notice that there’s no “dark side of the moon”, in fact there’s a “hidden side of the moon”.
I can barely wait for my next vacations in order to go to Itajobi, on countryside, to keep observing under dark skies.
Clear skies to all.

Rodrigo Pasiani Costa

The Sun and AR1035

Sun (AR1035)
Sun (AR1035)
Sketch and details by Michael Rosolina

Here are a pair of white light observations I made of a new Solar Cycle 24 active region which suddenly appeared on the solar disk on December 14th. One can see that these areas of solar activity are changing constantly as they rotate with the Sun. The sunspot group spans a distance from east to west of about nine Earth diameters or 72,000 miles/116,000 km.

The sketches were done in the field with 2B and HB graphite pencils. I viewed the Sun through handheld image stabilized binoculars with homemade filters over the objectives. Remember: NEVER look at the Sun unless you have approved solar filters covering the objective end of your telescope or binoculars or you are using a solar telescope designed for that purpose.

The Sun and AR 1035
Star and active region
White Sulphur Springs, WV USA
16 and 17 December 2009

Michael Rosolina

Moon and Jupiter in the Haze

Moon and Jupiter in the Haze

A foggy conjunction of the Moon and Jupiter
Sketch and details by Carlos E. Hernandez

Our weather in has been very overcast and wet lately but I was able to view the Waxing Crescent Moon (6.6 days old) and Jupiter (-2.29m) over my southwestern sky among haze on November 23, 2009 at 06:30 PM EST (23:30 U.T.). The scene was eerie in my Oberwerk 11 x 56 mm binoculars. The Moon appeared to glow in a nest of light clouds and haze with Jupiter a pastel orange beacon to the south. I am convinced that I spotted a Galilean satellite, most probably Ganymede (4.97m) west of Jupiter at the edge of it’s glare. The inset shows what I observed (the satellite is a little brighter than visible to show it better). I hope that others were able to view this event.

A digital image produced using Pixelmator.

Carlos E. Hernandez

Radiant Heart of Perseus

Radiant Heart of Perseus

M34 (NGC 1039), a bright galactic cluster in Perseus
Sketch and Details by Tamas Bognar

The data of the drawing:
M34

Telescope: 7×50 binocular
Date: 17.11.2009

Observing Location: Zakany – Hungary, 46° 15′ N 16° 57’E elev.: 129m
This digital drawing preparated GIMP 2.6 programs.

Thank you for it!

Clear Sky !

Tamas Bognar

Orion’s Belt

Orion’s Belt

Orions Belt Asterism
Sketch and Details by Oscar Ll. (Almach)

Orion’s Belt with 15×70 binoculars – Sketch by Oscar Ll. (Nickname: almach)

Object Type: Asterism

Location: Barcelona – Spain

2009 November, 16

To start enjoying astronomy is not necessary to have a telescope.
With a few simple binoculars, affordable to everyone, you can see a
number of really interesting objects. Even, there are wonders in the
sky because of its size, it is almost an obligation to observe with
binoculars, not with telescopes.

One of these objects is in the Orion constellation and is known as
Orion’s Belt. This is my sketch, made with a HB2 pencil, on white
paper. Inverted and modified some paremeters with Photoshop Elements.

Great Alnilam, Alnitak and Mintaka with her evanescence companion.

For more details of my observation you can visit my blog:

http://laorilladelcosmos.blogspot.com/2009/11/el-cinturon-de-orion.html

Orion’s Belt (Asterism)

Date and Time: 2009-11-16, 21h 45m UT

Binoculars: Celestron Skymaster 15×70 with tripod.

White paper, HB2 graphite pencil, and scanned and inverted with Photoshop

Seeing: 3/5 (5 the best)

Transparency: Clear. Moderate light pollution.

Location Constellation: Orion

Position: R.A. 05 h 36 min

Dec. -01° 12′

Webmaster’s note: Oscar kindly sent along this text and sketch data. Thank you sir.

Mars Glides Past the “Beehive”

Mars Glides Past the “Beehive”

Mars and “The Beehive Cluster”
Sketch and Details by Michael Rosolina

The clouds parted over West Virginia the other night allowing me to view Mars shortly after it passed in front of Messier 44, the Beehive.

I made this widefield sketch in order to capture the star cluster and its two attendants, Asellus Borealis–the Northern Ass and Asellus Australis, the Southern Ass. In Galileo’s time (about 180 years before Charles Messier catalogued it), M44 was known as Praesepe, the manger, where the Aselli ate their hay.

Praesepe was one of the objects that Galileo scrutinized with his new telescopes, discovering that it was a star cluster and not a nebula or cloud as previously thought. One of his scopes had about 15x, although he didn’t enjoy nearly the field of view that I had with my modern binoculars.

I made this sketch in the field with color pencils on black paper. I couldn’t give Mars the luminous appearance that I observed using color pencils on black paper, so I tweaked it a little digitally.

I am dedicating this drawing to a friend who passed away not long ago. Eric realized his dreams of astronomy by becoming an operator of the 100 meter radio telescope at Green Bank, West Virginia.

Best regards,

Michael Rosolina

Mars and M44
Planet and Open Cluster
Friars Hill, WV USA
3 November 2009 0830-0900 UT