Sunday night saw clear skies attract several observers out to the alternate site, where even a cold, stiff breeze couldn’t dampen our spirits. The air was not too transparent, but very steady and the wind kept the telescopes dry.

Jim’s 9.25″ pulled in a variety of objects, while Don showed spectacular views of Saturn through his 5″ refractor. Ann ran a marathon through a large part of the Messier list with her 6″ Dobsonian, and Jackie provided encouragement and coffee to all. I, naturally, brought my small but mighty 80mm refractor. Like Don, I took a few pictures of the moon. Here’s the Earthshine, also known as the ashen light, nestled in the overexposed arms of the sunlit crescent.

The Moon seen through my 80mm refractor.

My main objective was to photograph Mars next to the M44, the Beehive Cluster. I tried to get this shot last week but I was clouded out. That same night last week, Bob Christmas got a beautiful shot from his observing site up north. Compare this shot that I took last night, to his shot seen in his blog entry below (“Bob Christmas’ Images from Spectacle Lake” April 12, 2010).

Mars and M44 imaged through a camera being piggybacked on my 80mm scope.

Notice how much Mars has moved relative to the cluster. Mars is moving away from the cluster now, but still looks beautiful in binoculars or a wide-field scope. Be sure to check it out yourself.

A good night of observing is almost always the result of good company, and last night sure was a good night.

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FUTURE OPPORTUNITIES

Later this year, as the M44 sinks into the west, there will be another planetary encounter. On June 20th, Venus will pass even closer to the Beehive than Mars did. Venus moves appears to move across the sky quicker than Mars, so there are only a few days centered on the 20th to catch this sight.

For a really close encounter, wait until July 6th, 2011. Mercury will pass directly through the heart of the cluster. Knowing how fast Mercury moves in its orbit, you only have one chance to see this sight! The night before and the night after, Mercury will appear near the cluster, but only on the 20th will it appear as an extra star in the cluster.

Enjoy!

John