Ray was very ill. I don't know what's happened to him.

 

Had a session with the Orion ST80 between 23:30 ~ 01:40 BST. My plan was to do some deep sky for about an hour, view Mars for around 40 mins, then observe the rising Moon. Conditions looked promising, it was a warm night around A~II with above average transparency.



I spent a lot of time in and around Cassiopeia and Perseus; the Owl Cluster, Ghost Goblet, M103, Stock 2, Double Cluster and all the usual suspects were good at 44x. This time I found M52.



The nearby Andromeda Galaxy was quite good at 13.3x and even had a touch of nebulosity. The transparency by this time had deteriorated and there was a dampness in the air. I decided to use a Baader Neodymium filter, but switched to a TS UCF1.



I turned to Arcturus and Ursa Major, Bode’s Nebulae were quite good at 44x, then I raised the tripod leg height to spend some time nearer the zenith in the Summer Triangle. I removed the UCF1 to view Albireo and M29 and M39 at 13.3x which were quite clear.




It suddenly dawned on me that Mars was now visible. Viewing it wasn’t like with the 90mm Mak earlier though and there was very little detail at all. I strained to see the tiny southern polar cap at 180x and 200x. If I hadn’t known it was there I’d have missed it entirely. I don’t know whether this was down to conditions or the fact that the little Mak is a better ‘planet killer’. I managed to spend a short while on the rising Moon at 118x ~ 167x with a Baader Single Polariser and MIN~VB (not stacked). Unfortunately the dew had other ideas so I ended the session.

 

The weather had been looking good all day, and dry, so I was quite optimistic. At around 00:15 British Summer Time my Orion ST80 was set up on the AZ5 at its maximum height, and I was all set to boldly split infinitives in the Summer Triangle. Seeing was a decent A-II and the transparency looked above average. There was very little wind and it was a dry, warm night. I didn’t need a coat.



First up was Albireo naturally. Easily split at 13.3x and 44x (30mm Vixen NPL, 9mm Orion Expanse). As I found Albireo so easily with the reflex sight (not easy at this elevation) and the RACI combination I decided on the Double Double next. I split these at 128.5x with a 60°, 7mm Sky-Watcher UWA/Baader Q-Turret combination.



I was getting a tad cocky now and thought I’d go for Brocchi's Cluster aka Collinder 399, although everyone refers to it as the ‘Coat hanger’. I suppose it does resemble an upside down coat hanger lol. I spent some time at 13.3x, 26.6x (15mm Vixen NPL), 44x and 57x (7mm UWA).



As I was trying to locate M 27 (I’ve always preferred Apple Core to Dumbbell nebula) the transparency started to change for the worse and eventually a thick blanket of cloud rolled in from the north east. I decided to call it a night at about 01:00. I had fun though, and that’s what counts.

 

I didn't look at the Apple core either, but it was in my list, well positioned in the sky too.

I was not aware Daneb, Vega and Altair were the summer triangle, but I looked at that place a bit too last night especially the path between Sadr and Albiero, a paradise at low power . And that place is packed with bright blue stars too..

Thanks for this report @Mak the Night. Very interesting.

 

Yeah, the Triangle is packed full of stuff, you can spend hours there.

 

I had a program to locate the blue stars there last night but I could not complete the exercise. I recently discovered an easy carbon star there from the list I have, it's really red.

RS Cyg a little gem.

 

I'll have to check those out thanks. I managed to find the Apple Core at 50x. I tried various magnifications, a broadband OIII filter made it brighter I thought.

 

Great report, Mak. The "Summer Triangle" is a beautiful starry landscape, and you're right, one can spend hours there. During this time of year, when I want to leave the solar system and go "deep sky", this region along with Sagittarius and Cassiopeia is a favorite. Speaking of Brocchi's Cluster, I got a good shot of it recently that I'll post. It does look like an upside-down coat hanger, lol! BTW, THe 9mm Expanse is one of my staple EPs; it's a consistent resident in my Maks for "planet-killing"

 

As promised, here is a shot I took of Brocchi's Cluster with my Nikon D3200 one beautiful, transparent summer evening:



Kinda looks like a hook from this angle, lol.

 

I'll have to check those out thanks. I managed to find the Apple Core at 50x. I tried various magnifications, a broadband OIII filter made it brighter I thought.

No problem, I think 80x was a good power for me to look at it in the past and had good results with nebula filter too. But this one, I prefer it without the neb filter.. because it has a nice star field surrounding it.. Usually to look at Sagitta and Velpecula surrounding wt's with the 34mm, then I see the dumbbell eventually, I find the scene at low power to be incredible. Then install higher power like 18mm, 12mm, 9mm to examine it ((;

Striking object, great memories.

@Orion25 thanks for the picture of that nice cluster, another classic.

 

You're welcome, Nebula. I love the "coat hanger". It's one of my favorites and I always look at it through my reflector this time of year, usually with my 19mm BST flat-field EP. That entire area of sky is a starry wonderland!

 

Thanks Reggie. I think you're right about Cassiopeia and Sagittarius as well. I reckon when many of these asterisms got named people were either using Newtonians or were using refractors without diagonals as the Owl Cluster is upside down as well lol. The 9mm Expanse is remarkably adaptable, although I tend to use mine on the ST80 for 44x, and a near 2mm exit pupil.

 

Nice shot. It's an interesting cluster with different magnifications and you can spend a lot of time there.

 

I tested my new Oklop Maksutov case yesterday. It can carry any of my Mak's (90mm, 102mm and 127mm) but it's perfect for carrying the 102mm.

http://oklopbags.com/



This enables me to set up the 102mm Mak in one journey as I can carry this case and the AZ5 tripod/mount (in its own case) together relatively easily.



The zips and clasp aren't too problematical and the carrying handle is a nice touch.



There are three Velcro edged dividers included and this lid tray can be pulled out completely. It also has Velcro strips on its edges. The compartment easily holds a Rigel, a 6x30 RACI and several eyepieces in bolt cases.



The 102mm Mak, a compartment divider and a diagonal fit quite snugly in the main body.

 

That's a nice bag. It would be perfect for my 127mm Mak. I've never heard of this company before. I'll have to look it up

 

They're Swedish in origin, so not cheap lol.

https://www.astroshop.eu/carrying-bags/oklop-padded-bag-for-maksutov-90-102-and-127/p,55897

Astroshop sell them.

 

they look well made and effective. Another step to facilitate the transport of the kit.

Congratulations @Mak the Night, the perfect transport bag!

 

It cost 50 quid, it'd better be well made lol. It's perfect for Mak's and I can even squeeze the ST80 in.

 

Good find, Mak!