It depends on how late you want to stay at MB. When several of us saw it a few
weeks ago it was, I think, after 2 am and the Helix was in the Southwest where the
sky is darker at MB.
Rich
I tried to see the Helix from MB a couple of weeks ago, and failed (through the finder and my C14 with 31mm but I was getting tired). The star hopping is pretty poor in that area of the sky, and so whenever I am able to see it, I see it in my 9x50mm finderscope. The next night I saw the Helix from Chews Ridge, clearly visible with the finder (no moon, 8/10 trans, 4.5/5 seeing) and then easily in the scope.
Perhaps we should see how many people can see it on the next moonless night at MB ??
Chris
rnapo wrote:
Hi Julius,
I wasn't the only one at MB who saw the Helix that night. While looking
through my binocular I aimed my green laser pointer at it and several other
people there were able to see it with their binoculars.
Rich
This year while watching the Perseid meteor shower from MB
open space I found the Helix Nebula with my 8x42 Leica BN
binocular. This was about 2 am when the Helix was in the southwest
where the sky is a little darker at MB, but MB is not what I would
call a dark sky site. This was without a filter. Just the bino and my
eyes.
Clear skies,
Rich
Well, you must have one heck of a 42mm bino, Rich. Me and my friend
observed at MB last year, 12.5" DOB and I had a 8" LX-200 and had a hard
time to find and see the Helix nebula.
Friend asked me to point the GOTO to the Helix, since he had a hard time to
find it with his DOB. I did, but it was hard to see in the 8" SCT. With the
LP filter it was better.
I also have a 100x25 bino, very good for DSO's from a dark site.
Julius
Some official coment on the Helix:
<" It is also one of the apparently largest planetaries known: Its apparent
size covers an area of 16 arc minutes diameter, more than half of that of
the full moon; it halo extends even further to 28 arc minutes or almost the
moon's apparent diameter (These dimensions were taken from Stephen J. Hynes
who quotes AAT and ESO photos). Although the nebula is quite bright, its
light is spread over this large area so that it is not an easy object for
visual observing; the Herschels have apparently never cataloged or observed
it. ">
Received on Mon Aug 30 17:20:16 2004