Astronomy Picture of the Day

Pictured here is the Orion Nebula which is located 1,500 lightyears from the Earth. This photo is a false-color view that spans 40 lightyears. The photo was constructed using the Spitzer Space Telescope. The center of the nebula contains the Trapezium Cluster and the red hues the protostars. One of the protostars, HOPS 68 was recently discovered to have crystals of the silicate mineral olivine.

Observations

Date: December 15th, 2013

Time:  7:00 - 9:00 PM

Place: Backyard 

Instruments Used: binoculars (10x50)

Sky Conditions: Mostly clear, with some faint & wispy clouds. Moon: full.

Instruments Used: naked eye observations, no binoculars/telescopes

Planets: Venus

Bright Stars noted: Deneb, Alberio, Gamma Andromeda, Betelgeuse, Rigel

Constellations noted: Taurus, Andromeda, Cygnus, Orion, Fornax

Binary Star: Alberio: one star bright blue, the other (lower to right) yellow. Gamma Andromeda: color difference - blue and golden. 

Deep Sky Objects: M45, The Pleiades: located in Taurus; seven brightest stars go under the name "The Seven Sisters"

M31, "The Andromeda Galaxy", located in Andromeda

"The Hyades": open, located in Taurus: "V" shaped, nine main stars

M42, "The Orion Nebula", celestial nursery, located in Orion, four star system known as "The Trapezium"

Observations

Date: October 29th, 2013

Time:  7:00 - 10:00 PM

Place: Casey Key

Sky Conditions: Slightly clear, with a number of relatively high clouds. Moon not present during time of observation, waning cresent.

Instruments Used: binoculars (10x50), telescope 26mm with F10 focal power.

Planets: Venus (neutral filter, quarter phase, slight fluorescent glow)

Bright Stars noted: Vega, Deneb, Altair (Summer Triangle), Antares,

Constellations noted: Lyra, Cygnus, Aquila, Scorpius, Virgo, Bootes, and Hercules. Cygnus ("v" structure found magnitude 5).

Binary Star: Alberio, one star bright blue, the other yellow. Polaris, secondary faint star location approximately 11 o'clock.

Deep Sky Objects: M13: globular, located in Hercules; in the telescope at 100 power, star cluster seen.

M11: open, Wild Duck Cluster. faint, distorted honeycomb-like cluster clouds.

Other: Venus located in constellation Ophiuchus.