Austin

AstroChallenge contributor

Points: 5562

Observations: 74

Kudos: 48

NameAustin Riba
LocationSanta Barbara, California
TimezoneAmerica/Los_Angeles
Latitude34.4058592738
Longitude-119.696321208
Altitude10m

Beginner astronomer, constant neck-ache, Admin of Astrochallenge.com

Clear
M89

Orion 10'' SkyQuest dobsonian
20 points

Yet another Galaxy visible in the "Galaxy walk" From Virgo to Leo.

M60

Orion 10'' SkyQuest dobsonian
20 points

Another galaxy in the chain, hard to identify from M59

M59

Orion 10'' SkyQuest dobsonian
20 points

Starting at Epsilon Virgo, this is the first (group?) of galaxies observable as we start to scan west.

Cigar Galaxy

Orion 10'' SkyQuest dobsonian
10 points

This is the companion object visible in my observation of M81 and M82. This galaxy is far smaller in angular size than Bode's galaxy, but does not appear much dimmer. It has a slightly elongated shape, appearing to be an edge on galaxy. Together, M81 and M82 make a very pleasant pair to observer.

Bode's Galaxy

Orion 10'' SkyQuest dobsonian
20 points

I knew M81 and M82 were good targets, but despite them never setting at my latitude, I had never tried to observe them until now.

I began the search at twilight while the sky was still fairly bright. I scanned the area above the line that connects Dubhe and the adjacent star that makes up the bear's "head" (Ursa Major) for any hints of smudges. No such luck. I then decided just to bring out the scope and put my wide FOV eyepiece in. After a few minutes 2 not so faint smudges showed up in my field of view: Bode's Galaxy and the Cigar Galaxy.

Bode's galaxy appears as a fairly high magnitude face on galaxy. No features visible. Scarce background stars. Averted vision shows a brighter core surrounded by diffuse light.

InstrumentObservations
Naked eye 7
Orion 10'' SkyQuest dobsonian 53
Orion Scenix 10x50 Binoculars 2
Mead LX200 (Cabrillo Observatory) 4
LCOGT 1Meter Scope - Sinistro 8