Sky Charts can be Misleading! If you look at the Big Dipper constellation (Ursa Major) using a computerized star chart, it appears to be at the center of a large collection of galaxies! But looks can be deceiving–consider these three galaxies: The is M51, the Whirlpool Galaxy. It can be found just above the first […]
Island Features | Full Article
Markarian’s Chain This is Markarian’s Chain. It’s a cluster of eight galaxies located in the constellation Virgo. (The other faint galaxies in this image are much further away and just happen to be in the line of sight of the telescope.) The two bright galaxies to the right are M86 and M84. They were both […]
Island Features | Full Article
An Interesting Pair These are M81 (on the right) and M82. If they look close together, that’s because they are! Currently, the centers of the galaxies are about 150,000 light years apart. A couple of hundred million years ago, they were even closer together. Both galaxies were discovered by Johann Bode in 1774. Charles Messier […]
Island Features | Full Article
The Green Comet I was lucky enough to get a very good evening of astrophotography on January 24. As a result, I got this image of comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF). Both the color and shape of this comet are rather unusual. Most comets are predominantly yellow-bodied, with a blue tail. This comet is green! That’s […]
Island Features | Full Article
Need Something to do after the Party? Take a Look at the Orion Nebula! If you walk outside after celebrating New Year’s Eve and look to the south, you should be able to spot M42, the Orion Nebula. With a visual magnitude of +4.0, it is visible to anyone with normal eyesight, (unless it’s cloudy.) […]
Island Features | Full Article
Dark, clear skies mean great star viewing in December! This is NGC 2237, the Rosette Nebula. It’s a huge emission nebula with a bright star cluster located at the center. The cluster (NGC 2224) was discovered in 1690 by John Flamsteed, but it took over 100 years before the surrounding nebula was identified. The stars […]
Island Features | Full Article
November is a great month to study Jupiter and Saturn! If the skies are clear on November 1, you will be able to spot Saturn and Jupiter as soon as it gets dark. Saturn will be about 30° above the southern horizon and Jupiter will be about 36° above the southeast horizon. Saturn is the […]
Island Features | Full Article
What’s behind the Veil? Thousands of years ago, there was a massive super-nova explosion in the constellation, Cygnus. The remnants of that explosion formed a nebula called the Cygnus Loop. It looks like this: Cygnus Loop is about 120 light years across and has a magnitude of +5. It is believed to be about 20,000 […]
Island Features | Full Article
This is M31, the Andromeda Galaxy. It is the nearest large galaxy to the Milky Way. And with every passing day it gets a little closer. In fact, M31 is due to collide with the Milky Way in about 4.5 million years! M31 has a visual magnitude of +3.28 and a surface area larger than […]
Island Features | Full Article
This is M8, the Lagoon Nebula. M8 is about 4.3 thousand light-years away from us and has a visual magnitude of +6.0. It is a star formation area. M8 was discovered by Giovanni Battista Hodierna in the mid-1600s. Charles Messier cataloged it in 1764. You might be able to spot M8 with your naked eye […]
Island Features | Full Article
