Neptune

9/16/09
8:15pm CST
Clear - 5-10 mph winds
62 degree temp
C8
10mm

I had some difficulty finding Neptune with my 10" Dob. Star jumping only worked so well as Neptune itself looks just like a star in low magnification. On a trial run with my new C8 advanced series GOTO Telescope (review to come later), I was able to target the mysterious blue planet with ease. Located to the southeast of Jupiter - less than a couple degrees infact - in the south eastern sky right after dusk one will find Neptune, the 8th planet from the Sun.  In a 25mm eyepiece, one could make out the blue color which already sets it off from typical star spectrum colors. When using a 10mm eyepiece, the disc is attainable and thus Neptune was confirmed. A bluish green disc - probably more blue than green when you really focus on it. Confirmation can also be made by slewing out and comparing it to nearby stars within the field of view. It is then you can make out the disc like feature that seperates it from the stars in the background.

Neptune, named for the Roman God of the sea, is the forth largest planet by diameter and third largest by overall mass. Neptune has 17 times more mass than Earth and sits about 30.1 AU from the sun or about 30 times the Earth-Sun distance.

As I get beyond the learning curve of my new C8 and the new CCD camera recently purchased, I will begin posting more astro images of both the planets and DSO objects. Please visit DSOcatalog.com for more information.

Plenty of views in Sagittarius

My first visit was with M21, an open cluster in Sagittarius. I also viewed M22, a Globular Cluster at magnitude 6.5. M22 is supposedly the 3rd brightest Globular in the northern hemisphere; Hard to agree due to the interstellar dust that resides in this region. I also viewed M24, an open cluster in the same region. M24 appeared as a dense bundle of stars within the Milkyway. Finally, I viewed M28, a dim, dusty Globular also residing in Sagittarius. I was unable to see M20 (Trifid Nebula) or M8 (Lagoon Nebula) - mostly due to interstellar dust in this region and poor seeing conditions due to light pollution.

I also attempted to view Neptune tonight but failed to locate its small bluish disc. Jupiter was spectacular as usual in the Southern sky.