best deep sky objects by month

NGC 1027, a magnitude 6.7 open cluster, shines 1.2° east of the nebula and spans 15'. A magnitude 8.0 star sits slightly southeast of the cluster’s center. Spend some time with this cluster at magnifications above 200x. This object shines at magnitude 12.6 and measures roughly 1.2' across. It will then reach its highest point in the sky at 22:03, 66° above your southern horizon. Prominent constellations that can be seen in October include Cetus, Pisces, Aries, Triangulum, and Andromeda. To find it, look 2° east of Algol. At magnitude 11.9, spiral galaxy NGC 1275 is the brightest member of the Perseus galaxy cluster (Abell 426). A dark dust lane bisects the galaxy and runs nearly its entire length. Use the autumn constellation patterns to locate the Andromeda Galaxy and other deep-sky objects. George and Laura Mishler/Adam Block/NOAO/AURA/NSF. more from Astronomy's weekly email newsletter. Through a 4-inch telescope, you’ll see about 20 stars spanning 12'. More? Although the Fornax Dwarf Galaxy’s stated magnitude is 8.1, its size (12' by 10.2') makes its surface brightness low. Notice how the bar near the core appears dimmer than it does farther out. List includes all Messier, Herschel, Caldwell, SAC's best of NGC, and ~150 additional DSOs. A 10-inch telescope reveals a symmetrical object with a noticeable but narrow central bulge. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); December 2020 — Night Sky Guide & Key Dates, The Camelopardalid Meteor Shower that peaks on October 5, The δ-Aurigid Meteor Shower that peaks on October 11, The ε-Geminid Meteor Shower that peaks on October 18, The Leonis Minorid Meteor Shower that peaks on October 24. This small-telescope target is also known as Stock 23. October 1, 2020 You’ll need a telescope to see its individual stars, but you won’t miss its overall magnitude 5.7 glow. Most of the stars range from 7th to 9th magnitude. Its been exactly a year since I got this scope and it widens the scope of objects I can observe with it. It’s a spectral class F star, which is hotter, and therefore should be just a bit whiter, than our Sun. Although equally as wide (1°) as the Heart, the Baby doesn’t cover as much area, so it appears more concentrated. At the cluster’s southwest edge sits a magnitude 8.5 star. Within that oval is the galaxy’s faint bar. M45 (mag 1.3) is visible in the evening sky, becoming accessible around 17:12 (PST) as the dusk sky fades, 28° above your eastern horizon. Its separation is only 7". Of course, you’ll also be able to spot them several months before and after this month. As winter melts into spring, we sample both familiar and overlooked deep-sky treasures in the "empty space" between Gemini and Leo, home of the Crab. The galaxy spans 8.9' by 6.5'. Welcome to Tonight's Sky. List of 7000 deep sky objects under magnitude 14 (which, under dark skies, are in reach of a moderate telescope). – The Orionids Meteor Shower is expected to peak on the night of the 21st/22nd, during which up to about 20 meteors per hour may be visible. Look through either a Hydrogen-beta or deep-sky nebula filter. Nonetheless, at about 03:00 (BST) on the morning of the 14th, Venus will be separated from the waning crescent Moon by about 3 degrees, just north of east, which should make for an interesting sight in binoculars. If you expect planetary nebulae to appear round, you’re not alone. Constellation: Aquila Through small telescopes, the core appears almost starlike. Adam Block/Mount Lemmon SkyCenter/University of Arizona. Sky This Month: December 2020; ... particular interest because they are immersed in a rich wonderland of deep-sky objects normally beyond the limits of the eye. Through a large scope, this galaxy’s nucleus has a slight east-west elongation, which puts it in the barred spiral category. The galaxy’s central area, one-third its width, will command your attention. Dozens of foreground stars populate the field, adding a third dimension to the view. Through a small scope, NGC 925’s figure appears indistinct, but an 8-inch or larger instrument reveals the spiral arms that fold back abruptly from a long bar. Plan a family 'staycation' exploring the night sky, 40 years after Voyager, scientists push for new missions to Uranus and Neptune, Hibernating lemurs may be the key to cryogenic sleep for human space travel. – Mercury reaches its point of greatest elongation on the first day of the month, but although it is located 26 degrees east of the Sun on this date, it sets very shortly after the Sun, which makes the planet visible for only a few minutes low on the horizon, at best. Look 39' east of Delta (δ) Ceti, and you’ll find this magnitude 10.6 spiral galaxy. William Herschel discovered that Polaris was binary in 1780. – Constellation: Canis Major. It all depends on your seeing. The list provides basic information about each object: magnitude, number of stars, page in Uranometria 2000, comments, common name, etc. – Coordinates: RA: 07h … There’s not much dispute about that. To find it, point your telescope 2° east of Gamma (γ) Trianguli. Through an 8-inch telescope at 100x, you’ll see the brightest 15 or so members in front of a haze of fainter stars. The Cascade is 15 stars that stretch 2.5°. Despite this though, Pierre Méchain, who discovered it, described M77 as a nebula, while William Herschel described it as a star cluster. Constellation: Virgo. This object is a chance alignment of stars first described by the late Franciscan amateur astronomer Father Lucian Kemble, who found it through binoculars. The three brightest (magnitudes 7.1, 8.1, and 9.3) form an isosceles triangle near NGC 1545’s center. Constellation: Ursa Major. If you still have trouble spotting the nebula, try increasing the magnification to 150x or beyond. (An Oxygen-III filter will reduce what you can see.) Through even a 4-inch telescope at a dark site, you’ll see NGC 1365’s bar and brighter central region. NGC 1499 spans 160' by 40', so if even that view isn’t wide enough, slowly move the telescope back and forth. Seeing — the steadiness of the air above your observing site — is the key to discerning the individual spiral arms. When you switch to a telescope, select your eyepiece that provides the lowest magnification. Through an 8-inch telescope, you’ll see NGC 1097’s core as a bright disk surrounded by an oval haze. Magnitude: 9.0 - 15.0. The head appears denser, while the body surrounds a small star cluster within. This magnitude 6.2 open cluster lies 2.3° east of Lambda Persei. The object. Ignore the bright core and search the disk surrounding it for signs of mottled structure. In it he explored the dim denizens of the deep sky — asterisms, double and variable stars, open and globular clusters, nebulae, and galaxies. A nebula-filtered view shows two large regions that form the head and body. Through a 6-inch telescope, it appears twice as long as wide (7.3' by 3.3') and aligned nearly east-west. The exception is the 5th-magnitude sparkler SAO 12969 that sits in the center. It’s tiny (1'), so use a big scope. View it through a 3-inch telescope at a magnification of 50x, however, and you’ll spot two dozen stars spread across an area 15' wide. The winter deep-sky targets in the Orion constellation are arguably the best of the Northern Hemisphere. As a further point of interest, this phenomenon also occurs on the moons of other planets in the solar system, in which case it is known as “planet shine”. This magnitude 6.4 open cluster lies 1.6° east-northeast of Lambda Persei. This shower is created by debris shed by the comet 21P Giacobini-Zinner. With magnifications of 200x or more, the brilliant core appears surrounded by an oblong haze. Look for it as a faint, fuzzy star with your naked eyes. Start with a magnification of about 75x, then gradually increase the power. Deep-sky objects AT2018cow , a large astronomical explosion detected on 16 June 2018. An 8-inch scope will show nearly 100 stars. It’s a relatively bright magnitude 9.3, and you can star-hop to it if you first find a triangle of three faint stars, Chi1, Chi2, and Chi3 Fornacis. Use a magnification around 100x to catch all three galaxies at once. Although a 4-inch telescope will reveal magnitude 10.0 NGC 1232, I recommend instruments with at least 12 inches of aperture. Through larger scopes at magnifications above 350x, however, you’ll note that the magnitude 11.5 planetary is ever-so-slightly oval in an east-west orientation. Find astronomy targets and generate object lists for your observing and astrophotography sessions. Deep-sky Hunting in Cancer, the Crab. Here are ten of the best: With my recent addition of a modified Canon T3i and 12nm ha filter, I am anxious to capture these nebulae in a new way. View our Privacy Policy. And I list them in order of right ascension, so if you start observing selections at the top of the list, subsequent objects will rise higher as the night goes on. Medium and large telescopes should reveal the planet in the constellation Aries, about ten or so degrees to the southward of the constellation’s brightest star, Hamal (alpha Arietis). From a dark site, sharp-eyed observers can spot the California Nebula with their naked eyes — almost. The following is adapted from my personal viewing list: "The Guy Pirro 777 Best and Brightest Deep Sky Objects." You’ll find Cleopatra’s Eye, a magnitude 9.6 planetary nebula, 4° east-northeast of Zaurak (Gamma Eridani). To find it, look 5.6° northeast of Alpha Fornacis. At magnitude 1.2, this large, scattered group of stars is obvious to the naked eye. Look for Mars in the constellation Pisces, about 7 degrees from the fourth-magnitude star Alrisha (alpha Piscium). To find it, scan 5.3° northeast of Eta Persei. Look for the tightly wound spiral arms — the brightest one lies southeast of the core. At the southeast end of Kemble’s Cascade, in the same field of view, sits the tight open cluster NGC 1502 (7' across). – Jupiter / Saturn will continue their joint progression across the sky during October, until they will reach what is known as their “great conjunction” during the second half of December 2020. While there are many mythological stories about this giant, one of the most beautiful objects in the heavens resides within its borders. The brighter northern half’s lane enters from the east and is thin. Links to constellation maps are offered for all stars and deep sky objects. Orion StarBlast 4.5 Astro Reflector Telescope. A 12-inch scope resolves about 20 more stars. Each requires at least an 8-inch telescope and a dark sky. NOTE: Other meteor showers during October include-. This emission nebula combines two objects in one. The brighter one extends northward from the bar’s west end. From a dark site, you’ll find the Spiral Cluster with your naked eyes roughly 5° west-northwest of Algol (Beta [β] Persei). You won’t see much of the thin spiral arms no matter what scope you observe through. An OIII filter will dim it. This attractive, nearly face-on barred spiral galaxy glows at magnitude 10.1 and measures 12.0' by 7.4'. A magnification of 15x works best for framing the starry chain. Many group into whirls and other patterns. Although October sees the peaks of seven meteor showers, only three are worth staying up for. Caroline’s Cluster. Through a 16-inch or larger telescope, you’ll see the spiral arms extend in a north-northeast to south-southwest orientation. This galaxy appears small and nearly circular (3.2' by 2.3'). To find this spiral galaxy, look 5.4° east of Upsilon (υ) Ceti. Start in Sagittarius with an easy object that performs well in most any telescope. This magnitude 8.9 open cluster lies 5.7° west-southwest of Epsilon Persei. So, for this roundup, I chose the best deep-sky objects that can be seen throughout November. View my complete astrophotography equipment details The powerful radio source Fornax A is a bright (magnitude 8.9) spiral galaxy you can find 1.4° south-southwest of Chi1 (χ1) Fornacis. A short version of the Top 10 Night Sky Objects can be download as PDF and printed. Four cluster stars shine brighter than 8th magnitude, including double star ADS 2426 at the center. Located about 130,000 light-years away from the core of the Andromeda Galaxy‘s core, Mayall 11 is the biggest and most massive globular star cluster in the entire Local Group of galaxies. The core is quite a bit brighter, and ghostly hints of spiral structure appear at high magnifications. The Alpha Persei Association, as the name implies, surrounds the star Mirfak (Alpha Persei). For example, if a constellation is listed as best viewed in the summer in the month of July, in the southern hemisphere the constellation would be best viewed in the winter in January and would be upside-down. Think again. That said, I’ve spotted this object through a 4-inch refractor using a wide-angle eyepiece. Deep Sky Objects for Amateur Telescopes Your first step beyond the solar system can be taken with the naked eye. Keep the magnification under 20x. Tonight's Sky's mission is to provide an online tool for amateur astronomers to plan their observing sessions. NGC 1232 isn’t quite round. What color do you see? Through a 6-inch telescope, NGC 1535 has a sharply defined disk (18" across) surrounded by a faint envelope. Observers with good vision can spot more than that, with reports of up to 13 naked-eye stars within the cluster. NOTE: October has a Blue Moon, or second Full Moon, which occurs on the last day of the month. At the eastern edge of Cetus, 3.8° west of Azha (Eta [η] Eridani) lies a nice trio of galaxies highlighted by magnitude 10.5 NGC 1052. Through a 16-inch scope, an arm that radiates to the north of the core and turns abruptly to the west is quite prominent. This will make it visible as an early morning object for about three hours or so before dawn. The magnitude 3.5 primary appears white or “just a bit” yellow. The Hercules Cluster (M13) The classic Hercules Galaxy Cluster is a little more challenging to find. There sits globular cluster NGC 1049. The other arm, only slightly fainter, appears somewhat blotchy, revealing huge star-forming regions within it. It’s the Pleiades (M45). A fainter arm extends due east and ends near a 15th-magnitude star. Some can be viewed with a small telescope, but the majority will require a moderate to large telescope. – Mars will be the brightest it will ever be until September of the year 2035. Look for two crescent-shaped nebulae, a smaller one to the northeast and a larger one to the west. You’ll find this nice open cluster not quite 6° east-southeast of Epsilon Cassiopeiae. It’s more than 50 percent bigger than NGC 1052, but you’ll need at least a 16-inch scope to bring out any trace of the arms. To find it, look 3.5° northwest of Lambda (λ) Persei. However, while the two gas giants remain close, both will remain within about 15 to 16 degrees above the southern horizon as seen from the northern hemisphere. The big problem faced by non-professional observers is what to look at - what is visible at a particular time of year. Can you see three? Look for this galaxy about 0.7 degrees to the east-southeast of the fourth magnitude star Delta Ceti, and decide for yourself if the object resembles a nebula, a star cluster, or a galaxy. So, for this roundup, I chose the best deep-sky objects that can be seen throughout November. This is the best night of the month to observe the night sky, since light from stars and faint deep sky objects won't have to compete with bright moonlight. THE TRIFID NEBULA (M20) Magnitude: 6.3. This galaxy glows at magnitude 11.9. Prominent constellations that can be seen in October include Cetus, Pisces, Aries, Triangulum, and Andromeda. Remember … The Crystal Ball Nebula is a round, magnitude 10.9 hazy planetary that spans 114". You’ll find this mix of emission and reflection nebulosity 3.3° west-southwest of Omicron (ο) Persei. 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