Beginner's Corner: So What Can I See with This Thing? Part 2

Autumnal Equinox, 2006 Beginner's Corner: So what can I see with this thing? Part 2.

BY PHIL HOYLE presented, I would say, might not be for the beginner; they would be more for the intermedi- In the last Horizon, I mentioned that if you ate or advanced observer. live under, or can travel to dark skies, that your If you're wondering what you can try to point biggest challenge will not be seeing objects in the your telescope to, the first place I would ask you sky, but knowing what to look for and how to to look is right here in your very own Horizon. find them. In this segment of the "Beginner's The "Dark Times Calendars", which debuted in Corner", I am going to cover how the beginner the winter edition, make an excellent first place can decide what to look for through a small tele- to look. I would note here that whenever a deep- scope or binoculars. However, the discussion space object is mentioned in the events section of will not necessarily be limited to what you can the calendars, that does not mean that object is see under dark skies. visible only on that specific day. It only means If you missed the June meeting, you missed a that the object will be at the given altitude above presentation that was on the same topic that I am the horizon at that specific time on that day. discussing here. It was an excellent presentation Take for example NGC 253, which is listed on by several people. However, some of the sources the line for the evening of September 4, and the morning of September 5. The same object will be visible later in the year, but earlier in the Inside Horizon evening (or morning, as the case may be). It will also be visible earlier in the year, but later in the Bright Stars of Summer ...... page 3 morning. The right ascension and declination of deep space objects don't change (except over a Dark Times ...... page 5 period of thousands of years) so these numbers can be used to show you where they are in the Double Vision ...... page 8 sky, or more specifically, on a sky map. Podcasts ...... page 18 A second resource that you can use to decide what to look at is again right here in your Sidereal time ...... page 19 Horizon. Phil Creed's "Double Vision" is hope- fully the first in a series of articles that will be And More! designed around an observing season. This par- ticular article covers objects that can be seen in HORIZON 2 binoculars, but many of the objects are just as observable in a small telescope. There are also HORIZON is the quarterly newsletter of objects for beginner, intermediate and advanced The Wilderness Center Astronomy Club. observers. Editor: ...... Phil Hoyle Another tool in this Horizon is Ken Contributors: . . . . .Phill Creed, Dave Gill, Schneller's table for "Sidereal Time for the ...... Brian Gray, Ken Schneller Wilderness Center". Use this table in conjunc- Layout ...... John Waechter tion with a star atlas or star charting software to show you what part of the sky is up at the times WCAC Officers: listed in the chart. President: ...... Bill Castro If you are a beginner (or even an advanced Vice President: ...... Matt Hawrysko observer), I also highly recommend one or more Secretary: ...... John Waechter of the quality magazines published for our Treasurer: ...... Brian Gray hobby, such as Astronomy or Sky and Telescope. Planetarium Coordinator: . . . . Dave Ross These magazines always have a sky map in the Observatory Coordinator: . . . .Brian Gray center of the publication and almost always have Inreach: ...... Dave Gill at least one article with a detailed observing list. Education Outreach: . . . . John Waechter Some of these lists are not for the beginner, or WebMaster: ...... Bill Castro require a large scope or dark sky to see, so be WCAC Address: forewarned. Also, don't try to use the all-sky P.O. Box 202 map in the center of these magazines to find Wilmot, Ohio 44689-0202 deep space objects that might be labeled on Web Site: http://www.twcac.org them. For the most part, these all-sky maps are not detailed enough to match the position of the object on the map to its position in the sky; it's not that the objects are plotted in the wrong posi- http://www.stargazing.net/astropc/. But have a tion, there just aren't enough landmarks (or look around for yourself to decide what level of would that be skymarks) on these maps to get detail you want and how much you want to your telescope pointed in the right place. These spend. maps are extremely useful for letting you know Just remember one thing, when you are plan- which constellations and planets are visible in ning an observing session, the first place to look the sky on a given night. They are also extreme- is right here in your Horizon! ly valuable just to help you get familiar with the night sky. Some kind of atlas or sky guide is essential. This could take the form of a printed atlas or some kind of star charting software. My favorite hardcopy, since they were published, has been the Night Sky Observer's Guide by George Robert Kepple and Glen W. Sanner. My favorite star charting software (mainly due to the price: free!) is Cartes du Ciel. (That's French for Sky Charts.) If you want to check it out, go to HORIZON 3 The Bright Stars of Summer

BY DAVE GILL Deneb (Alpha Cygni) Visual magnitude: +1.25 Each summer, we watch as the familiar asterism Absolute magnitude: -7.5 we call the "Summer Triangle" rises again from Distance: 1467 ly the horizon murk to its dominant position overhead. We point out the three stars, Vega, Deneb Spectral type: A2 Ia and Altair to visitors, and trace their parent constellations with our slicing green beams. Let's Altair (Alpha Aquilae) get to know them a little better - and appreciate Visual magnitude: +0.76 them. Absolute magnitude: +2.1 Let's start with the numbers (taken from The Distance: 17 ly Observers Handbook): Spectral type: A7 Vnm Vega (Alpha Lyrae) All three are bright; Vega is the brightest and Visual magnitude: +0.03 Deneb the faintest. All are white stars (spectral Absolute magnitude: +0.6 type A). Altair is the yellowest (coolest), with a Distance: 25 light years (ly) type of A7; Vega is the bluest (hottest) at A0. But Spectral type: A0 Va the interesting thing is the absolute magnitude.

This mosaic of shots by British amateur Pete Lawrence captures the summer triangle region beautifully. HORIZON 4

Visual magnitude is what our eyes see. But the than a Milky Way disk star. Vega also sports a absolute magnitude reflects what the star would disk of cool dust that was discovered 20 years look like at a common distance of 10 parsecs (32 ago by the IRAS infrared satellite. It is believed light years). Now we see Deneb dominating the to extend about 70 AU from Vega and is analo- field at -7.5, a full eight magnitudes brighter than gous to the Kuiper belt in our solar system. Vega. That translates to about 1600 times There is also a hole in the center of the disk, brighter. At that distance, the Sun would be a 5th which may indicate planets. But by the time any magnitude star, just barely visible under TWC Earth-like planets could emerge from the early skies, and Deneb would far outshine Venus, cast bombardment of formation, Vega will be moving shadows and be easily seen in the daytime. Vega off the main sequence and become too unstable would be only slightly fainter than it is in our cur- to support life. rent sky. Altair would be about as bright as In looking toward Vega, you are also looking Polaris. to the general direction in which our Sun is mov- Altair is the 13th brightest star in our sky. It is ing through space. This is called the "apex of the a main sequence star, and since it is hotter than Sun's way". the Sun, it is also brighter, about 10.6 times Deneb is the superlative star in this group. brighter, with almost twice the mass of our Sun. But it is difficult to know how luminous it really It is also one of the closer stars to the Sun. It is is. Star distances are devilishly hard to measure. the second most luminous star within 20 light The most absolute method we have is by meas- years of the Sun; Sirius is the most luminous, uring the parallax of a star, the slight angular shift about 4 times more than Altair. Altair rotates rap- of the star with respect to distant background idly; its equatorial speed is over 100 times that of stars as the Earth orbits the Sun. Even the closest our Sun. It rotates in about 6.5 hours, compared stars have a parallax of less than an arc second to our Sun's 28 days. This rotation flattens the (1/3600 of a degree). Our most accurate meas- star; its polar diameter is about 14% less than its urements of Deneb's distance via parallax pegs it equatorial diameter. Although it looks constant at 3200 light years. The error band is from 2000 to us, Altair is a slightly variable star. It is called to 7000 light years. (So the 1476 ly quoted in the a Delta Scuti type star - varying by a few thou- numbers section may well be wrong. I don't sandths of a magnitude with several different know which source they use.) This distance takes periods from less than an hour to 9 hours. the absolute magnitude up to -8 or brighter. It Vega is the second brightest northern hemi- would be as bright as the crescent moon and blot sphere star, a skosh fainter than Arcturus and a out our fainter stars at the standard distance of 10 tad brighter than Capella. It is the "standard" for parsecs. a white star. Its B-V index is 0. (Positive values of Regardless, let's just say that Deneb is a mon- B-V are redder; negative values are bluer.) It is ster of a star. It is a quarter of a million times also a photographic standard since it is very brighter than our Sun. It is not a main sequence nearly 0 magnitude. It is a main sequence star star; if it were, it would have to be much hotter that has about 1.5 solar masses and 54 solar lumi- to support that luminosity. It is a dying star, a nosities. It is believed to be about 385 million supergiant about the size of the Earth's orbit. It is years old, about 8% of our Sun's age. But it is probably fusing helium to make carbon, though over half way to exhausting its hydrogen and we don't really know. As most highly evolved leaving the main sequence. It will be long gone stars, it is losing mass through strong stellar when our Sun is still chugging along. winds, about 1000 times more mass loss than Vega is a low metal star with only about a from our Sun's feeble solar wind. Sometime in quarter of the metal content of the Sun. This is the next couple million years, Deneb will hard to explain; it is more like a galactic halo star explode as a supernova. HORIZON 5

6 Events 0 0 2

magnitude 11, altitude 52º at 11PM r magnitude 11, altitude 32º at 11PM e b . Partial lunar eclipse at 2:51 PM (not visible here). max in penumbra th m e t p e S s Globular cluster M71, 19h 54m +18º 47’, transits 10:22 PM Sunrise on lunar crater Aristarchus 1:16 AM Neptune at 21h 20m -15º 46’, magnitude 8 transits at 11:35 PM altitude 35º M15, 21h 30m +12º 10’, altitude 60º at 11 PM Open cluster M52, 23h 25m +61º 36’, altitude 62º at 11PM Open cluster M39, 21h 32m +48º 27’, altitude 82º at 11PM Open cluster M29, 20h 29m +38º 30’, altitude 58º at 11PM Galaxy NGC7619, 23h 20m +08º 12’, Comet 4p/Faye, 2h 05m +12º 51’, Full MoonFull PM on 7 2:43 MoonNew Globular cluster M56, 19h 17m +31º 11’, altitude 62º at 11PM; at 7:46AM e m Fr Fr Uranus at 22h 36º at 11PM, transits 12:40 AM 51m –07º 43’, altitude Fr Fr Globular cluster M92, 17h 17m +43º 08’, altitude 40º at 11PM Tu Galaxy NGC 253, 0h 47m -25º 17’, altitude 24º at 3 AM Th Comet 4P/Faye, 1h 49m +15º 12’, altitude 64º at 4 AM Tu Open cluster M39, transits 21h at 11:39 PM altitude 80º 32m +48º 27’, Th Globular cluster M72, 20h 54m -12º 32’, transits at 10:52 PM altitude 52º Tu Globular cluster M30, 21h 40m -32º 11’, altitude 26º at 11PM Th Galaxy NGC6503, 17h 49m +70º 08’, altitude 50º at 11PM Tu Sidereal Time is 21h 52m at 11PM Th Galaxy M33, 1h 34m +30º 40’, altitude 46º at 11PM Sa Sunrise on lunar crater Copernicus 7:44 PM Sa Galaxy M77, 2h 43m –0º 01’, altitude 48º at 4AM Sa Galaxy NGC7619, 23h 20m +08º 12’, altitude 47º at 11 PM Sa Globular cluster M2, 21h 33m -0º 49’, altitude 48º at 11PM Sa SunriseQuarter at 7:04AM Sept 30 on lunar crater Ptolemaeus at 8:05PM; First AM We Galaxy M74, 0h 37m +15º 47’, altitude 65º at 4 AM We Globular cluster M2, 21h 32m -0º 49’, transits at 11:36 PM altitude 49º We Globular cluster M92, 17h 17m +43º 08’, altitude 44º at 11PM We Globular cluster M30, 21h 40m -23º 11’, altitude 26º at 11PM Day i Dark Times September 2006 T 2 3 Su 4 Mo 5 6 1 Su 7 8 9 21 23 24 Su 25 Mo 26 27 28 29 30 13 14 12 16 17 Su 18 Mo 19 20 10 Su 11 Mo 15 AM

Date k r 519 520 521 523 524 542 543 22 544 545 546 547 549 550 551 552 553 533 534 531 525 526 528 529 530 Begins a Twilight

D AM R 2 535 S 24 S 18 Moon S 125 S 237 S 355 S 516 R 103 536 R 208 537 R 313 538 R 417 540 R 519 541

PM Moon S 859 S 933 R 946 S 1017 S 1112 R 1023 R 1023 R 1109 917 916 914 912 910 908 906 904 902 901 859 857 855 853 851 937 935 933 931 929 927 925 923 921 919 850 848 846 844 843 Ends Twilight PM Date PM Day Friday 1 Saturday 2 Sunday 3 Monday 4 Tuesday 5 6 Wednesday 7 Thursday Friday 8 Saturday 9 Sunday 10 Monday 11 Tuesday 12 13 Wednesday 14 Thursday Friday 15 Saturday 16 Sunday 17 Monday 18 Tuesday 19 20 Wednesday 21 Thursday Friday 22 Saturday 23 Sunday 24 Monday 25 Tuesday 26 27 Wednesday 28 Thursday Friday 29 Saturday 30

HORIZON 6

25º 45’, in Leo, altitude 16º at 4 AM 6 ???? Events 0 0 2 -0º 01’, altitude 44º at 11PM r e b o t c at 12:15AM; Galaxy NGC7619, at magnitude 11, 23h 20m +08º 12’, altitude 58º at 11PM 10:13 PM; Pleiades transit 4:08AM altitude 73º O s e Sunrise on lunar crater Bullialdus. Comet C/2003 K4, magnitude 14 at 2h 49m -3º 27’, altitude 44º at 4AM Draconid Meteor Shower peaks 11 PM; Radiant at 17h 28m +54º Galaxy M74, 1h 37m +15º 47’, altitude 47º at 11PM Sidereal Time is 23h 11m at 11PM New Moon 17’, transits at 12:08 AM altitude 24º Galaxy NGC253, magnitude 8, 0h 47m -25º Standard Time begins. time ends; Daylight Savings Sidereal Time is 1h 06m at 11PM Sunrise on lunar crater Aristarchus 2:09 PM Oct 3 Full Moon m i Fr Comet C/2005 McNaught, magnitude 13.4, 9h 34m + Fr Planetary Nebula NGC7293, 22h 30m -20º 50’, altitude 28º at 11PM Fr Galaxy NGC6503, 17h 49m +70º 09’, altitude 40º at 11PM Fr 57º at 11PM; Sidereal Time Galaxy M74, 1h 37m +15º 47’, is 23h 54m at 11PM altitude Tu M33, 1h 34m +30º 40’, altitude 76º at 3 AM Th 22h 53m -7º 59’ magnitude Uranus 1.8º from Moon at 5.7 Tu M42, 5h 35m -5º 25’, altitude 38º at 4AM Th M31, 0h 43m +41º 16’, altitude 69º at 11PM Tu Open cluster M52, 23h 25m +61º 36’, altitude 69º at 11PM Th Open cluster M34, 2h 42m +42º 45’, altitude 53º at 11PM Tu M31, 0h 43m +41º 16’, altitude 79º at 11PM Th M33, 1h 34m +30º 40’, altitude 67º at 11PM Tu Galaxy M77, magnitude 9.6, 2h 43m Sa Sa Galaxy NGC7619, 23h 20m -20º 50’, altitude 28º at 11PM Sa 52m -08º 03’, altitude 42º, size 3.6” diameter Uranus, magnitude 5.7, transits at 11:05 PM 22h Sa altitude 46º at 11 PM, transits 1:14 AM Comet 4P/Faye, Magnitude 10.6, 2h 09m +07º 09’, AM We We Comet 4P/Faye, magnitude 10.9, 2h 08m +10º 58’, altitude 38º at 11 PM We Comet 4P/Faye, 2h 09m +9º 26’, altitude 41º at 11PM We Open cluster M34, 2h 42m +42º 45’, altitude 58º at 11PM We Sunrise on lunar crater Gassendi at 10:53 AM Nov 1 Day T Dark Times October 2006

2 Mo 3 4 5 1 6 7 8 Su 9 Mo 21 22 Su 23 Mo 24 25 26 27 28 29 Su 30 Mo 31 13 14 11 12 15 Su 16 Mo 17 18 19 20 10 AM Date k r a 554 555 556 557 614 615 616 617 618 619 620 621 522 523 524 525 606 607 604 605 559 600 601 602 Begins Twilight D

558 AM S 46 Moon S 131 S 248 S 407 S 526 S 202 R 104 608 R 209 609 R 312 610 R 412 611 R 512 612 R 612 613

PM Moon S 816 S 907 R 901 R 953 S 1008 S 1117 S 1131 R 1053 R 1053 R 1158 826 825 823 821 820 818 817 816 814 813 811 810 809 807 806 841 839 838 836 834 833 831 829 828 805 804 802 801 700 659 658 Ends Twilight PM Date PM Day Sunday 1 Monday 2 Tuesday 3 4 Wednesday 5 Thursday Friday 6 Saturday 7 Sunday 8 Monday 9 Tuesday 10 11 Wednesday 12 Thursday Friday 13 Saturday 14 Sunday 15 Monday 16 Tuesday 17 18 Wednesday 19 Thursday Friday 20 Saturday 21 Sunday 22 Monday 23 Tuesday 24 25 Wednesday 26 Thursday Friday 27 Saturday 28 Sunday 29 Monday 30 Tuesday 31

HORIZON 7

, alt. 26º, transit ends 7:10PM 26º, transit , alt. th 6 24º 12 ‘, in Leo altitude 45º at 4AM 0 Events titude 36º at 11PM; First Quarter Moon 1:30AM 0 2

32m -5º 05’, altitude 36º at 11PM -0º 01’, altitude 49º at 11PM +69º 04’, altitude 34º at 11 PM r

th e b m e v o at 5:17 PM Nov 20 at 7:59AM Nov 5 N s e Full Moon Comet C/2005 McNaught, magnitude 13.7, 9h 59m + Sidereal Time is 1h 58m at 11PM Open cluster M34, 2h 42m +42º 45’, altitude 82º at 11PM Galaxy NGC1600, magnitude 11, 4h Open cluster M34, 2h 42m +42º 45’, altitude 87º at 11PM Comet 4P/Faye, magnitude 10.7, 2h 14m +2º 26’, altitude 51º at 11PM Pleiades, 3h 48m +24º 06’, altitude 68º at 11PM Mercury begins transit of Sun at 2:12:23PM Wed Nov 8 Mercury begins transit of New Moon m i Fr Open cluster M36, 5h 36m +34 08’, altitude 40º at 11PM Fr 2h 40m -34º Galaxy ESO-356-4, magnitude 9.3, 27’, altitude 14º at 11PM Fr Comet C/2003 K4 in Cetus at 2h 25m -4º 42’ altitude 45º, magnitude 14.3 Fr Open cluster M37, 5h 50m +32º 32’ altitude 52º at 11PM Fr Galaxy M81, magnitude 8, 9h 56m Th Sunrise on lunar crater Gassendi 10:53 AM Nov 1 Tu Saturn at 9h 47m +14º 24’, altitude 31º, at 3 AM Th Comet C/2003 K4 at 2h 29m -4º 33’, altitude 44º at 11PM Tu Open cluster M103, 1h 33m +60º 39’, altitude 69º at 11PM Th Galaxy M77, magnitude 9.6, 2h 43m Tu Th Open cluster M38, 5h 29m +35º 51’, altitude 56º at 11PM Tu Globular cluster NGC2419, 7h 38m +38º 53’, al Th Open cluster M35, 6h 09m +24º 21’, altitude 49º at 11PM Sa M42, 5h 35m -5º 25’, transits at 3:12 AM Sa Comet 4P/Faye, 2h 10m +4º 08, altitude 53º at 11PM Sa Comet 4P/Faye, 2h 11m +3º 15’, altitude 53º at 11PM Sa Comet 78P/West-Kohoutek-Ikemora, magnitude 13.7, at 8h 0m +24º 05’, altitude 25º 11PM AM We We M33, 1h 34m +30º 40’, altitude 77º at 11PM We Crab Nebula M1, 5h 35m +22º 01’, altitude 48º at 11PM We5h 24m -24º 31’, altitude 17º at 11PM Globular cluster M79, magnitude 7.7, Day T Dark Times November 2006 2 3 1 9 4 5 Su 6 Mo 7 8

12 Su 19 Su 20 Mo 21 23 24 25 26 Su 27 Mo 28 29 30 10 11 14 15 16 17 18 13 Mo AM Date k r 537 526 527 544 545 546 547 22 548 549 550 551 551 552 553 554 555 534 535 536 532 533 a Begins Twilight D

528 530 531 AM R 1 538 Moon S 318 S 435 S 102 S 216 S 331 R 103 539 R 203 540 R 303 541 R 403 542 R 505 543

PM Moon S 702 S 810 S 922 R 737 R 842 R 950 S 1036 S 1149 R 1057 R 1057 650 649 648 647 647 646 645 644 644 643 643 642 642 641 641 640 640 640 657 656 655 654 653 652 651 639 639 639 639 638 Ends Twilight PM Date PM Day Wednesday 1 Wednesday 2 Thursday Friday 3 Saturday 4 Sunday 5 Monday 6 Tuesday 7 8 Wednesday 9 Thursday Friday 10 Saturday 11 Sunday 12 Monday 13 Tuesday 14 15 Wednesday 16 Thursday Friday 17 Saturday 18 Sunday 19 Monday 20 Tuesday 21 22 Wednesday 23 Thursday Friday 24 Saturday 25 Sunday 26 Monday 27 Tuesday 28 29 Wednesday 30 Thursday

HORIZON 8 Double Vision

BY PHILLIP J. CREED

(PHOTOS BY PHIL HOYLE)

I'm not the nostalgic type. There is, however, a certain harkening back to the days of yesteryear when I attend WCAC club meetings. They're held in the same exact room when I joined the club back in the summer of 1995. It's about the only thing that hasn't changed about TWC since then. As an offshoot of such recollections, I tried to remember what I had in the way of expertise and equipment when I first joined. One thing I remember about June 1995 was that it was just before I got a telescope. Back then, I was strictly a binocular observer and those that remember me back then can point to some seasonal binocular HORIZON articles I wrote at the time. Well, what can I say? Sometimes you put on an old pair of shoes you haven't worn for years and they feel comfy! I've been truly blessed with the observing experiences I've had over the years with binoculars and I hope to encourage and challenge you to scout the heavens with the most portable and user-friendly instrument around. The reward may be in the glimpse of a spectacular object, or just knowing that it was merely detected. What I have compiled is a list that accommodates both desires of the binocular observer's spectrum, with a spattering of objects somewhere in between. A few quick pointers are in order. The best binocular for astronomy combines adequate aperture with the proper amount of magnification. The larger the aperture, the better, but 50mm lenses are fine for rural locales. Ten-power binoculars are about as high as you want to go for handheld use. Binoculars of 70mm or larger should be tripod-mounted for steady viewing, though 80mm binoculars can be handheld for short periods of time. To relieve arm strain, hold the binoculars near the lenses, not the eyepieces. Binoculars greater than 80mm and/or 20x require a sturdy mount. Aperture is kind of like power, though. Once you get a little, you'll always want more, for better or for worse. Nowadays "giant binoculars", those with 70mm or larger lenses, are becoming much more affordable. Consider that when I purchased my Orion 16x80 binoculars in 1995, they were $450 new (about $600 in 2006 dollars) and in today's dollars a pair of 20x100s would have cost over $1000. Today, $350-$400 will net you a decent pair of new 100mm binoculars, and $1600 buys you an Oberwerk 100mm-binocular telescope! The diameter of the circle of light exiting the eyepieces, or exit pupil, is an important considera- tion as well. Simply divide the aperture by the power to determine exit pupil. (e.g. 10x50s have a 5- mm exit pupil, while a 7.3-mm exit pupil accompanies 11x80s). Higher exit pupils are recommended only if you're relatively young and regularly observe from dark skies. Either from light pollution or age, the typical observer's pupils only dilate to 5-6 mm. Using a pair of 10x70s if your pupils only dilate to 5mm effectively leaves you with big pair of 10x50s. So what can you see on an autumn evening with binoculars? Plenty! From TWC a typical observer can see stars down to about magnitude 10.5 with 50mm binoculars, magnitude 11 with 70mm binoculars, and about 12th magnitude with 100mm giants. Some nebulae and star clusters are so broad that in many cases binoculars offer the best view. So without further adieu, let's spring into action with both barrels blazing. HORIZON 9

The Autumn Galleria I like to challenge the limits of my vision on a regular basis. Like any journey, an excursion under the stars doesn't hold its greatest discoveries out in the wilderness, but inside the mind. I do like to prime the optical engine, though, with some of the brighter objects before delving in, whether I'm using binoculars or a telescope. The autumn skies are not known for prominent nebulae, but do have some of the best star clusters around. 1. M31, The Andromeda Galaxy (and friends) Figure 1. It always helps to keep an eye on the "Locals" every once in a while. The Andromeda Galaxy, the closest major galaxy in the Local Group, is a stunning binocular object. Because galaxies emit along a wide swath of the spectrum, light pollution filters won't improve the view. If you make the effort to see M31 in a dark sky, you'll be glad you made the trip. Under good skies the galaxy can be seen to stretch at least 2 degrees or more. Companion galaxy M32 resembles an ever-so-slightly "fuzzy star", while M110 is a lower-surface brightness object that can be seen in 10x50s if near overhead from TWC. Phil Hoyle and I could easily make out two dust lanes with 16x80s from West Virginia; can you see them from Ohio?

Figure 1: Chart showing the locations of M31, the Andromeda Galaxy, M34, the Double Cluster, Stock 2 and NGC 752. HORIZON 10

2. M34 Figure 1. Find Algol (β Persei). If you have a pair of 10x50s, sweep about one binocular field to the north- west. There lies M34, a magnificent open cluster. Dozens of stars are visible in a 30' expanse in 10x50s on a crisp night from TWC. Full resolution is achievable from TWC in many of the new "mini-giant" binoculars, like 12x60s or 15x63s.

3. Double Cluster and Stock 2 Figure 1. Along with the Pleiades, The Double Cluster (NGC 869 and NGC 884) is a close contender for the title of "best binocular object". The view in a pair of 10x50s on an autumn night is one that few forget. Several dozen stars are prominent in each cluster, all the more impressive given their location on the galactic plane. While you're there, don't forget to pan the binoculars just a leeeeetle further north. Barely two degrees towards Polaris from the Double Cluster is Stock 2. This cluster has been commonly described as the "Muscle Man Cluster" due to the uncanny resemblance to a stick-figure flexing biceps and quads consisting of 8th- and 9th-magnitude stars. The rich star field somewhat obscures the cluster appearance of Stock 2; many have undoubtedly gone right over it without noticing. A pair of 10x50s should comfortably fit it in the same field of view with the Double Cluster.

4. M45, The Pleiades Figure 7. Did I mention the Pleiades? No autumn (or winter, for that matter) observing session would be complete without a gander at the best star cluster in the heavens. There are very few objects that can just stop you on sight like the view of these hot sparkling sapphires on a cold night. A pair of 10x50 binoculars can easily net 50+ members from Wilmot and perhaps 100 from southern Ohio. Spanning almost 2 degrees in diameter, only binoculars do the Pleiades true justice.

5. Harrington 1 In his seminal work Touring the Universe Through Binoculars, Philip S. Harrington took the lib- erty of designating certain asterisms with "Harrington" numbers to complement other catalogs. Harrington 1, like Stock 2, is probably something skipped over inadvertently on many occasions. It is a circle of about 10 stars near the North Celestial Pole, with Polaris being a 2nd-magnitude stand- out among a circle of mostly 8th- and 9th-magnitude connectors. This is sometimes referred to as the "Engagement Ring" cluster, with Polaris as the "solitaire" stone in an ethereal (albeit bent) ring.

Jacks or Better to Open When I was a kid, every Christmas Eve at Aunt Dorothy's we would play poker using jars of coins for chips (yes, we were high rollers). We used a common poker variation where you had to have at least a pair of jacks to make a wager. HORIZON 11

Likewise, the following objects are ones that, while they don't require much, will still involve a little more in the way of sky conditions and equipment to be "in the game". Binoculars of more than 50mm aperture would be recommended here, but are not absolutely necessary if the sky is even mar- ginally darker than The Wilderness Center.

1. NGC 7000, The North American Nebula Figure 2. Although thought of as a summer constellation, a good portion of Cygnus lies east of 21 hours right ascension, and is actually better placed for viewing at convenient times in autumn. The North American Nebula lies almost straight overhead at the end of twilight in fall. Look about 2 degrees south of Deneb with your binoculars for the snake-like "Mexico" section of the nebula. Once this is visible, the rest of the nebula just magically lifts itself out of the rich star field, especially the "Gulf of Mexico" and "Florida". There's nothing like having the entire Gulf Coast in view and no hurricanes to worry about.

Figure 2: Photograph showing the locations of the North American Nebula (NGC7000) and the eastern half of the Veil Nebula (NGC 6992). The field of view of this photo is about 40 degrees across. HORIZON 12

2. NGC 6992, Eastern Half of the Veil Nebula Figure 2. Oh, won't you stay (in Cygnus) just a little bit longer? It's hard to believe that telescopically the Veil Nebula was once considered a "challenge" object. The truth is, under a good Ohio sky (Doughty Gorge, Kensington), the eastern portion (NGC 6992) is within the visual threshold of 10x50s, especially when it lies overhead on a cool September evening. Giant glasses offer a better view of the huge, ghostly 1-degree long arc.

3. NGC 7243 Figure 3. Sandwiched between Cygnus and Andromeda lies the … um … greatness that is Lacerta. All kid- ding aside, it does have a nice open cluster in NGC 7243. Look just south of Cepheus for a skinny diamond with 3.8-magnitude Alpha Lacertae on its east corner. Swing 2-½ degrees west of Alpha Lacertae for NGC 7243. Several members of this cluster are too faint to be detected in binoculars, but enough come out to form a sprinkling of stars amidst an unresolved haze. About a dozen or more stars should be visible in steadily held 10x50s from Wilmot. Darker skies and/or larger glasses will greatly augment the view.

Figure 3: Photograph showing the location of NGC 7243 in Lacerta and M39 in Cygnus. The field of view of this photo is about 15 degrees across. HORIZON 13

4. NGC 752 Figure 1. Starting from gamma Andromedae, pan to the southwest with your binoculars and you'll come across a curious asterism of 6th- and 7th-magnitude stars forming what looks like either a hockey stick or a golf putter. At the business end of the putter is NGC 752, a huge open cluster. The brightest stars in cluster are around 9th magnitude. NGC 752 has an unusual appearance in 10x50s from TWC: a giant, 45' hazy ball with a spattering of resolved stars. It is similar in some aspects to NGC 7243, but noticeably larger in size. This is a showpiece object in 70+mm binoculars, or smaller binoculars from darker skies.

5. NGC 7293, The Helix Nebula Figure 4. The Helix Nebula is another example of a low-contrast object that favors the binocular observer. The Helix is the reigning champ for both apparent size (about 15') and visual magnitude (about 7) for planetary nebulae. The next time you have a pair of binoculars and a good star chart handy, try defo- cusing a 7th-magnitude star until it's about half the apparent diameter of the Moon. Now you know what you're up against. From experience, I have found that the best way to find the Helix is to start at Fomulhaut. From there, follow a counterclockwise arc passing through Epsilon Piscis Austrinus and ending at Upsilon Aquarii, and then hanging a sharp right for 1.2 degrees. Those who can use 7mm-exit pupil binoculars are favored, but it shows up well in 10x50s at TWC, and especially in 16x80s. Most will simply see a hazy circle of light. The actual double-ring shape so evident in pictures won't be seen in binoculars, but under dark skies with larger binoculars some ring-like structure can be seen.

Figure 4: NGC 7293, The Helix Nebula. The field of view is about 15 degrees. HORIZON 14

Roll out the Heavy Artillery--The O'Meara List So what's a stargazer to do with these new "SUV" binoculars that are out there? Squeeze every photon of performance out of them with a dastardly challenging observing list, of course! I call this the "O'Meara List" in honor of veteran observer Stephen James O'Meara, who's also known for an extraordinary ability to see faint objects. I have created this list for those very patient observers who have a larger (70mm+ and/or 15x +) pair of binoculars and are willing to travel to darker skies to go beyond the normal binocular call-of-duty. Put another way, this is a list for those who'd rather relish in insanity than suffer from it. 1. NGC 1499, The California Nebula Figure 5. More of a photographic object, the California Nebula is a telescopic observer's nightmare. Light pollution reduces the already slim chances of detection for this 1ºx3º glow in most of Ohio, unless you have an H-Beta filter. The ridiculously low surface brightness renders my 12.5"-Dob almost use- less except for showing a subtle contrast in sky background. You can tackle the nebular version of the Golden State with the lower magnification and wide field of view of binoculars. I have seen this object with 16x80 binoculars on numerous occasions from West Virginia and Pennsylvania. I strongly suspect smaller apertures in the hands of keen observers would suffice even in some of the darker Ohio sites south of I-70. Look one degree north of Xi Persei for a very diffuse east-west glow. Five-millimeter exit pupil binoculars will work, but 6- and 7-mm exit pupil binoculars (if you can use them) are recommended. Try moving the binoculars back and forth to "induce" averted vision.

Figure 5: NGC 1499, The California Nebula. The field of view is about 15 degrees. HORIZON 15

2. Mottling in NGC 253 Figure 6. Near the South Galactic Pole lies NGC 253, an enormous galaxy that shows a wealth of detail telescopically. The galaxy shines with an integrated magnitude of about 7.5 with relatively high surface brightness. Its low declination somewhat hampers the view from here, but detecting NGC 253 with binoculars is easy from any decent Ohio sky. But can you detect more than just a smudge? According to Harrington, 11x80s under perfect sky conditions might reveal some of the dust texture. I've tried to see detail in this galaxy with 16x80s before without success. Got a pair of 20x giants looking for a challenge?

Figure 6: NGC 253 with globular cluster NGC 288 in the lower left. The field of view is about 5 degrees.

3. Pleiades Nebulosity Figure 7. The stars of the Pleiades sparkle like hot sapphires in the cold night. In a fortuitous circumstance, an intervening gossamer-thin dust cloud reflects the light from these hot stars. (There is now consid- erable debate as to whether this nebula is physically associated with The Pleiades.) This reflection nebula is sometimes tough to see due to glare from the glittering stars. The nebula is an easy telescopic object from Spruce Knob, and in 16x80s the nebula is so obvious from the Big Bend region of Texas, a pair of 10x50's would have been up to the task. Traveling 1600 miles to SW Texas isn't necessary. For those that frequent the binocular forums on the Cloudy Nights website, Ed Zarenski could see Pleiades nebulosity with a 100mm binocular telescope @ 24x under a mag-5.8 sky in Rhode Island. There has to be some middle ground between these two extremes. Could it be done from some of the darker Ohio skies with 70 or 80-mm glasses? HORIZON 16

Figure 7: The Pleiades, a.k.a. M45. The field of view is about 5 degrees.

4. NGC 604 This is a massive stellar nursery that is orders of magnitude larger than M42. So what's it doing on the O'Meara List? Because it's tucked away in M33, a galaxy 2.3 million light-years away. This massive star factory, if placed at the same distance as M42, would span well over 20 degrees in our skies! To catch this extragalactic nebula you first need to find M33, a large but notoriously low-contrast galaxy in Triangulum. Upon doing so, look a little more than 10' northeast of the nucleus for a fuzzy "star" of 10th or 11th magnitude that's about the same apparent size as Jupiter.

Figure 8: All-sky chart for midnight September 30. This chart shows the constellations containing all the objects in this observing list. For dates earlier than September 30, this chart is valid for earlier in the evening, for dates later then September 30, the chart is valid for hours in the early AM. HORIZON 17

So there you have it. For the budding or advanced binocular observer this list should keep you on your visual toes as we start to venture into longer, cooler nights. With their decided advantages in portability and the visual comfort of using both eyes, binoculars are so much more than just an afterthought for astronomy. When I make the effort to set up my scope under dark skies I'll typical- ly gravitate toward either show-stopping objects or those that strain the optics and eyes to their limits. Binoculars in that aspect aren't any different. Winter's treasures will have to wait, but in the mean- time, enjoy the objects listed above while Orion sleeps.

Sources for further reading: Philip S. Harrington, Touring the Universe Through Binoculars. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, 1990. Stephen J. O'Meara, Deep Sky Companions: The Messier Objects. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, MA, 1998. Stephen J. O'Meara, Deep Sky Companions: The Caldwell Objects. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, MA, 2002. Sue French, Celestial Sampler. Sky Publishing Corporation, Cambridge, MA, 2005.

As is our annual custom, for our October 27 Large Magellanic Cloud, so he is very familiar meeting, the WCAC will visit Mount Union with these southern hemisphere neighbors. The College in Alliance. Our host will be Dr. Peter meeting will start at 7:30 PM in the lower level Lucke, Professor of Physics and Astronomy. lecture hall in Bracy Hall. Mount Union is locat- Peter will talk to us about the Magellanic Clouds ed near the intersection of US 62 and OH 183. - the nearby irregular companion galaxies to the The attached map shows parking, which is read- Milky Way. Dr. Lucke worked with Dr. Paul ily available adjacent to the Mount Union Hodge on cataloging stellar associations in the Theater and on the east side of Union Ave. HORIZON 18 Podcasts

BY BRIAN GRAY

Some Internet resources that I love to explore are Internet radio programs or podcasts. These are audio files that are generally recorded and then made available on an Internet site for downloading or streaming. Some of these shows are produced professionally while others are the products of a dedicated amateur with some rather simple equipment. The following is a list of astronomy related shows that I enjoy the most:

Astronomy a Go-go http: //astronomy.libsyn.com/ is a great podcast for the novice astronomer. Each episode lasts about an hour, and segments include some recent news, tips on observing, and discussions about constellations and objects visible during the night. One episode per month is dedicated to a preview of the night sky. Astronomy a Go-go is family friendly and suitable for public air- ing.

Let's Talk Stars http://www.letstalkstars.com/ is a long running show hosted by David and Wendee Levy. Each installment consists of interviews or personal reflections about various astronomical events or issues. Guests have included authors, amateur and professional astronomers, and astro- nauts. This Internet radio show is also appropriate for all family members.

Planetary Radio http://www.planetary.org/radio/ is a weekly podcast produced by the Planetary Society. This show concentrates on subjects that are at the core of the Society's main focus, such as robotic planetary exploration and human space travel. Each episode showcases an interview sup- ported by Q&A, What's Up, and trivia contest segments. This show is suitable for family enjoyment.

Those who are interested in hearing about astronomy from the younger set should check the Slacker Astronomy podcast http: //www.slackerastronomy.org/wordpress/index.php. The trio that pro- duces the show showcases a topic about once a week in ten-minute segments. The slackers pepper their dialogues with humor that is usually lacking in other shows. Longer "extra" shows that concen- trate on interviews or roundtable discussions are offered on a semi-regular basis. It should be noted that many shows are not suitable for all ages.

The Jodcast http://www.jodcast.net/ is a monthly, family friendly show produced by astronomers at the University of Manchester's Jodrell Bank Observatory in the United Kingdom. These one-hour shows include interviews, recent news items, and ask an astronomer segments.

New shows are always sprouting upon the scene so the occasional search for "astronomy podcast" on Yahoo, Google, or some other search engine should help you stay aware of any new program that may be the next great tool in astronomy education. HORIZON 19 Sidereal Time for The Wilderness Center (40 41' 0"N 81 39' 26"W)

BY KEN SCHNELLER

The table below is used to determine the sidereal time for a given clock time on the given date. The right ascension in the body of the table will be due south for the time at the top table. Use this with star charts to determine what part of the sky will be visible for a given date and time. Corrections for Daylight Savings Time are already made in the table so all times are local times.

Month Date 8 PM 9 PM 10 PM 11 PM Midnight 1 AM 2 AM 3 AM January 1 2 19m 3 19m 4 19m 5 19m 6 20m 7 20m 8 20m 9 20m 8 2 51 3 51 4 51 5 51 6 51 7 51 8 52 9 52 15 3 14 4 14 5 14 6 15 7 15 8 15 9 15 10 15 22 3 42 4 42 5 42 6 42 7 42 8 43 9 43 10 43 29 4 09 5 10 6 10 7 10 8 10 9 10 10 10 11 11 February 5 4 37 5 37 6 37 7 37 8 38 9 38 10 38 11 38 12 5 05 6 05 7 05 8 05 9 05 10 05 11 06 12 06 19 5 32 6 32 7 33 8 33 9 33 10 33 11 33 12 33 26 6 00 7 00 8 00 9 00 10 00 11 01 12 01 13 01 March 5 6 27 7 28 8 28 9 28 10 28 11 28 12 28 13 29 12 6 55 7 55 8 55 9 55 10 56 11 56 12 56 13 56 19 7 23 8 23 9 23 10 23 11 23 12 23 13 24 14 24 26 7 50 8 50 9 51 10 51 11 51 12 51 13 51 14 51 April 2 7 18 8 18 9 18 10 18 11 18 12 18 13 19 14 19 9 7 45 8 45 9 46 10 46 11 46 12 46 13 46 14 46 16 8 13 9 13 10 13 11 13 12 13 13 14 14 14 15 14 23 8 40 9 41 10 41 11 41 12 41 13 41 14 41 15 42 30 9 08 10 08 11 08 12 09 13 09 14 09 15 09 16 09 May 7 9 36 10 36 11 36 12 36 13 36 14 36 15 37 16 37 14 10 03 11 03 12 04 13 04 14 04 15 04 16 04 17 04 21 10 31 11 31 12 31 13 31 14 31 15 32 16 32 17 32 28 10 58 11 59 12 59 13 59 14 59 15 59 16 59 18 00 June 4 11 26 12 26 13 26 14 26 15 27 16 27 17 27 18 27 11 11 54 12 54 13 54 14 54 15 54 16 54 17 55 18 55 18 12 21 13 21 14 22 15 22 16 22 17 22 18 22 19 22 25 12 49 13 49 14 49 15 49 16 49 17 50 18 50 19 50 July 2 13 16 14 16 15 17 16 17 17 17 18 17 19 17 20 18 9 13 44 14 44 15 44 16 44 17 45 18 45 19 45 20 45 16 14 12 15 12 16 12 17 12 18 12 19 12 20 13 21 13 23 14 39 15 39 16 40 17 40 18 40 19 40 20 40 21 40 30 15 07 16 07 17 07 18 07 19 07 20 08 21 08 22 08 August 6 15 34 16 35 17 35 18 35 19 35 20 35 21 35 22 36 13 16 02 17 02 18 02 19 02 20 03 21 03 22 03 23 03 20 16 30 17 30 18 30 19 30 20 30 21 31 22 31 23 31 27 16 57 17 57 18 58 19 58 20 58 21 58 22 58 23 58 HORIZON 20

September 3 17 25 18 25 19 25 20 25 21 25 22 26 23 26 0 26 10 17 52 18 53 19 53 20 53 21 53 22 53 23 53 0 54 17 18 20 19 20 20 20 21 20 22 21 23 21 0 21 1 21 24 18 48 19 48 20 48 21 48 22 48 23 48 0 49 1 49 October 1 19 15 20 15 21 15 22 16 23 16 0 16 1 16 2 16 8 19 43 20 43 21 43 22 43 23 43 0 44 1 44 2 44 15 20 10 21 11 22 11 23 11 0 11 1 11 2 11 3 12 22 20 38 21 38 22 38 23 38 0 39 1 39 2 39 3 39 29 22 06 23 06 0 06 1 06 2 06 3 07 4 07 5 07 November 5 22 33 23 33 0 34 1 34 2 34 3 34 4 34 5 34 12 23 01 0 01 1 01 2 01 3 02 4 02 5 02 6 02 19 23 29 0 29 1 29 2 29 3 29 4 29 5 30 6 30 26 23 56 0 56 1 56 2 57 3 57 4 57 5 57 5 57 December 3 0 24 1 24 2 24 3 24 4 24 5 25 6 25 7 25 10 0 51 1 51 2 52 3 52 4 52 5 52 6 52 7 52 17 1 19 2 19 3 19 4 19 5 20 6 20 7 20 8 20 24 1 47 2 47 3 47 4 47 5 47 6 47 7 47 8 48 31 2 14 3 14 4 14 5 15 6 15 7 15 8 15 9 15

The table above is correct to the nearest minute for 2006. Because the year is not equal to a whole number of days, the Sidereal Time for other years varies by some fraction of four minutes. In leap years, after Feb 29th, add three minutes to times in the above table (except for 2008 when you add only two minutes.) The correction to the table for other years is as follows:

Year Correction in minutes To get a rough idea of what's on the meridian, you 2007 -1 may ignore all yearly corrections and still be 2008 -2 accurate to within four minutes. The increase in 2009 +1 Sidereal Time for each day is four minutes. Keep 2010 zero this lookup table handy with your observing 2011 -1 2012 -2 notes so you can estimate what's up when. 2013 +1 2014 zero 2015 -1 2017 +1 2018 zero 2019 -1 2020 -2 2021 +1 2022 zero 2023 zero 2024 -1 2025 +2 2026 +1 2027 zero 2028 -1 HORIZON 21

The Event Horizon

October 2006 December 2006 4th: Outreach - East Canton Schools at Camp 1st: Planetarium Show & Public Viewing Night Wanake, 8:00 PM 7:30 PM at TWC – Clear or Cloudy! 5th: Outreach - Inspiration Hills Campground, 8:00 PM NO CLUB MEETING IN DECEMBER 6th: Planetarium Show & Public Viewing Night 7:30 PM at TWC – Clear or Cloudy! 13th: Outreach - Ashland/W.Holmes Vocational January 2007 School, 8:30 PM 5th: Planetarium Show & Public Viewing Night 20th: Alternate Date - Outreach - 7:30 PM at TWC – Clear or Cloudy! Ashland/W.Holmes Vocational School, 10th: Planning Meeting – 7:00 PM at John 8:30 PM Waechter’s house 27th: WCAC Meeting - 7:30 PM at Mount 26th: WCAC Meeting - 7:30 PM TWC-IB Union College Program: TBD Program: Megellanic Clouds by Dr. Peter Lucke Refreshments: TBD Refreshments: TBD

February 2007 2nd: Planetarium Show & Public Viewing Night November 2006 7:30 PM at TWC – Clear or Cloudy! 3rd: Planetarium Show & Public Viewing Night 23rd: WCAC Meeting - 7:30 PM TWC-IB 7:30 PM at TWC – Clear or Cloudy! Program: TBD 8th: Planning Committee Meeting Refreshments: TBD 7:00 PM at John Waechter’s Home 24th: WCAC Meeting - 7:30 PM TWC-IB Program: TBD Refreshments: TBD