8 April – weblog 1 of three
Again to the Drôme. Similar area, completely different home: Rémuzat this time, throughout the valley from Cornillac that I visited twice earlier than.
This journey, I break up the inbound leg in two. A 7 hour drive to a resort north of Lyon on the primary day, with a cease in Luxemburg for gasoline, leaving solely 3 hours to go the following day. Doing so ensures a daytime arrival, which is all of the extra handy when visiting a brand new location. Additionally, if I had been to make the journey in a single 10+ hour stretch, that might be too fatiguing to even consider organising the primary night time.
Site visitors was cooperating on each days and after a brief cease in Crest for provides, just one hour remained till arrival in Rémuzat. Like the home in Cornillac, the a lot smaller gîte I used to be to spend the week in is an outdated sheep shed transformed into a vacation house. Opposite to Cornillac, this location is shut sufficient to the village for a good cellphone connection. Which additionally allowed me to spam the world with my astronomical and not-so-astronomical endeavours throughout the week.
Moonwise, this week was to be lower than optimum. Just one hour 20 minutes of full darkness on the day of arrival, step by step rising the next nights. However what are you going to do when that is the one week the home is offered, or for that matter, any appropriate location on this area..?
Weatherwise the forecasts had been chic. All apps uniformly promoted clear skies for the week. Time would inform how reliable that info was to be.
The unpaved, winding street main from the village to the gîte required some helmsmanship in a automotive loaded to the brim with astrogear, however I made it up the mountain in a single piece. Time to put in, setup and tune.
With the scope set on its pedestal and loads of time remaining earlier than darkness, I surveyed the fast environment of the gîte. Behind the gîte is an engraved slab that could be a memorial to the founding father of this dwelling. To the east are the mountains I’ve turn into conversant in throughout my two previous visits to this area. Few mountains to the north and south. To the west a sheer cliff as much as about 30 levels in elevation.
This space is a favourite for hikers and the cliff’s precipice, additionally reachable by a 20 minute automotive drive, is widespread with wildlife photographers because of the vultures that inhabit the area. A website I used to be certain to go to within the days forward.
Because the skies darkened and the primary star popped out, I drift aligned the mount. With the alignment set and time to spare earlier than the top of astronomical twilight, I checked my collimation. Now, I’ve made multiple journey like this when, regardless of numerous velocity bumps, countless hairpin turns and stretches over unpaved roads, the optics’ collimation has remained spot on. Not this time round: I imply, there’s poor collimation after which there’s… properly… this. Neglect close-to-concentric rings, or perhaps a donut. What a multitude. So off got here the dew cap, in got here the 5mm eyepiece, and with Regulus centered I tweaked Bob’s knobs for 10 minutes till all was properly once more. From there, in direction of Hydra for just a few STF doubles within the time that remained earlier than full darkness.
Already the SQM measured a wholesome 21.29. On my new meter, that was. As I famous again in 2021, my earlier SQM-L began to supply wonky readings. Website’s like this are 21+ any time. After I measured meager 20.5 or decrease readings from this identical space, then numbers within the 16’s from the Ardennes, it left little question the factor was bent. For some time it produced consultant readings every time the battery was changed and a studying was take instantly after, however that quickly ceased to be an answer, too. Having tried every part to repair it, as much as and together with the three foot drop, I declared it a goner. It served me properly although, since 2008, however it was time for a substitute.
To start out the session, eight doubles in Hydra handed my Naglers. STF1210 was simply the perfect with a clearly grey-blue hue of the secondary.
16mm Nagler T5: ABC break up.
A is vibrant white, B is grey-blueish, fairly a definite coloration, C is broad, faint and colorless.
1/3 FoV to the NW is a white magazine. 7.5 star (SAO116544).
9mm Nagler T6: Utilizing this magnification B is clearly grey-blue, A and B are distinctly contrasting. A ravishing double.
With doubles within the bag got here the top of astronomical twilight and with {that a} phenomenon that’s no stranger to mountainous areas. With the ambiance cooling down quick and creating vital temperature deltas, the winds picked up. Not just a bit, however fairly darn sturdy. Too sturdy not less than to permit observations, even with the dew cap eliminated. I had no to selection however to sit down it out, slicing a really quick session even shorter.
When the winds vanished as abruptly as that they had appeared, solely half an hour was left till Moonrise. I spent what little time was left to look at faint fuzzies in Leo Minor. Galaxies I had but to look at or that I did observe earlier than, however not from a darkish location.
To find out my targets I take advantage of – you guessed it – AstroPlanner. The applying highlights objects in a planfile for which an statement was logged and permits a special coloration to be consumer specified, for instance for observations from websites that may be thought of as ‘darkish’. This taught me that, utilizing CSOG’s 12-14″ planfile, I had 22 galaxies and galaxy teams left to (re)observe in LMi: objects highlighted in yellow had been solely noticed solely from a ‘non-dark’ website, objects highlighted in inexperienced had been noticed from a darkish website, object not highlighted had but to grace my optics.
First galaxy again within the eyepiece was NGC2859. The abruptly brighter core jumped out, together with a notably vibrant nucleus. The faint outer areas remained out of attain of my aperture.
A NNW-SSE elongated, vibrant glow that’s abruptly brighter in a spherical core with a vibrant nucleus that’s clearly seen with out AV. With AV the galaxy is extra elongated and the spherical core is barely bigger and notably vibrant.
1/4 FoV to the WNW is a vibrant white-yellow magazine. 8 star (SAO61446).
Subsequent was IC2497. A faint spherical glow, on the restrict of visibility and solely subtly brighter within the center with use of averted imaginative and prescient. “Hanny’s Voorwerp” due south was not seen.
NGC2955 was higher, sporting an elongated core.
A not-too-faint, NNW-SSE elongated glow, fairly abruptly brighter in a core that’s barely elongated in the identical course. With AV the core and the galaxy total are extra elongated and the core brightens extra step by step.
To the west is a magazine. 13 star.
Better of the session was NGC3003 – the “Little Whale Galaxy”. Certainly paying homage to NGC4631 in Canes Venatici, albeit significantly smaller and far fainter. The small knot that’s west-southwest of the brighter, irregular, offset core of the galaxy typically appeared to leap into view however I couldn’t maintain it.
Fairly a big, clearly ENE-WSW elongated glow, not very vibrant. Brighter in fairly a big core that’s clearly irregular with use of AV, that’s barely ENE of the center and that’s brightest WSW of the center (of the brighter core). The core is thereby brightest in the course of the galaxy as a complete. The galaxy step by step faints in direction of the WSW and faints extra abruptly on the ENE facet. A pleasant galaxy.
With AV the HII area WSW of the center typically appears to leap into view however can’t be held.
Though properly into darkness, I famous the SQM values didn’t enhance. The almost full Moon that was to lift its head over the horizon in about twenty minutes was an element, for certain, however there positively was one thing else contributing and it was not man-made both: zodiacal gentle. Towering upwards from behind the cliff within the east, stretching into the japanese components of Gemini and reaching as much as Castor & Pollux. Fairly a sight.
NGC3126, though faint, revealed its clearly elongated form together with a core and vibrant nucleus.
A NW-SE clearly very elongated streak, step by step brighter within the center and fairly abruptly brighter in a small core that’s elongated in the identical course. The intense nucleus is seen with out AV. With AV the galaxy is extra elongated and the brighter core is easer to differentiate. A pleasant, very elongated form.
Ultimate DSO was NGC3254. It too could be very elongated however with averted imaginative and prescient its core gave the impression to be barely offset.
A NE-SW clearly very elongated streak, fairly abruptly brighter in a small core that’s elongated in the identical course with a vibrant nucleus that’s seen with out AV. The galaxy abruptly faints in direction of the SW and faints extra step by step in direction of the NE. With AV it’s clear that the brighter core is barely SW of the center.
To the ENE are two white magazine. 9.5 stars aligned SE to NW.
Because the pillar of zodiacal gentle turned ever shorter within the west, it was changed by the sunshine of the approaching Moon within the east.
With this session being so quick as a result of winds and the early Moonrise, I took benefit of the Moon remaining tucked behind the mountains within the east to focus on just a few extra double stars, in Sextans. Regardless of it being previous Moonrise, the skies’ darkness nonetheless measured above 20.5, which is healthier than my yard (the place I observe most of my doubles) will ever get.
6 Extra STF’s in Sextans. One of the best being STF1404 and 1440, each offering for clearly contrasting colours.
AB break up. Fairly a pleasant double.
A is yellowish, B is white-grey, fairly clearly contrasting.
16mm Nagler T5: AB break up. A ravishing double.
A is vibrant white, B is light-blueish, a refined blueish hue.
9mm Nagler T6: Utilizing this magnification the sunshine blue hue of B is far clearer that it’s with 16mm., clearly contrasting.
With half an hour to go till midnight, the Moon peeked its head over a ridgeline. A brief session and never too many observations logged, however nonetheless per week to go on this attractive a part of France.
Observations
15 double stars
14 galaxies & galaxy teams
Whole: 29 observations
First time observations: 19 objects
Particulars of the objects noticed on this session are within the desk beneath.
click on right here for my observing log
