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
Dumbbell Nebula

LCOGT 1Meter Scope - Sinistro
20 points

We went on a mission up to Sedgwick with a group of friends and coworkers. OK conditions but the .8 meter provided good views as usual.

This was the first time I got a good look at the dumbbell Nebula. Larger than I expected, has a peculiar bow-tie shape to it. Near Zenith this time of year so the bad seeing near the horizon was lessened here. Very cool object.

Lagoon Nebula

LCOGT 1Meter Scope - Sinistro
20 points

The Lagoon nebula has always evaded me. I think it is too faint/diffuse for smaller scopes. Good thing I had a huge telescope with a guidance system.

Large nebula with visible dust lanes. Could almost pick out some features near the center of the FOV.

Trifid Nebula

LCOGT 1Meter Scope - Sinistro
10 points

The Trifid nebula was the first nebula I ever observed when I was first getting into amateur astronomy. At that time, it was faint white smudge in the middle of an unbelievable mass of stars in Sagittarius.

On the .8m at Sedgwick the FOV is narrower, but the features are more impressive. Some dust lanes can be discerned, but it's still a mostly featureless blob.

Wild Duck Cluster

LCOGT 1Meter Scope - Sinistro
20 points

I think the Wild Duck Cluster is often overlooked, but is an awesome target. Plenty of stars and structure to stare at.

Mars

Naked eye
100 points

Up early to go to the Edward Tufte course and saw Mercury, Venus, Mars Saturn and Jupiter all in the sky at once. Fantastic!

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