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Constellation Report |
| Our Constellation report is an easy way for people to become familiar with the nighttime sky. We’ll discuss myths associated with the various constellations as well as describing the numerous deep sky objects residing in the area. No equipment is required to view the constellations, though a star chart can be quite helpful. This ease of observing makes constellations a natural place to begin your journey to the stars.
 This weekend we move on to the constellation Eridanus the "River of Orion". Eridanus' long and winding shape has led to it being referred to in many cultures. For instance, it represented The Nile to the Egyptians, The Po to Italians, and the Yellow River to the Chinese.
Eridanus is the longest constellation in the sky, spanning over 50°.
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Deep Sky Report |
 Ok, let's start things off with Elliptical Galaxy NGC1199(mag11.5). This object has the distinction of being the northern-most of this weeks objects in Eridanus. So.. I'll bet that many will be able to find this one pretty quickly. Once you've tracked this galaxy down, you might be in for a treat. Depending on the aperture of your scope, you just might notice a whole bunch of companions. As the accompanying image shows, NGC1199 is the brightest in a fairly large grouping of galaxies. Check it out. |
 Next we'll hit Barred Spiral Galaxy NGC1300(mag10.5). Located about 6° south east of NGC1199, this should be another relatively easy find. You should be able to spot this in instruments as small as 4". However, to see the spiral arms, you'll need a bit more aperture. Probably 8-10" and a dark clear view to the south. Actually, dark and clear is probably a prerequisite for all the rest of this weeks objects. |
 Moving about 2.5° southwest of NGC1300 we come to Spiral Galaxy NGC1232 (mag9.9). This beautiful spiral is very photogenic as you can see. Spirals like this one are some of my absolute favorite viewing subjects. There is a certain grace to their appearance. At just shy of mag10 and a mere -20° declination, you guys ought to be all over this one.
This beautiful shot was taken by former Utah Skies Astrophotographer of the Month, Al Kelly. Have you been to Al's website lately? If not, you're missing out on some really incredible work.
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 Next we'll hit Spiral Galaxy NGC1532(mag11). Again, this is not the faintest galaxy we've ever sent you out after, but it's far southern declination of -32° will most certainly give you a run for your money :)
Remember... an objects height above the horizon is 90 - your latitude - the objects declination. So, in this case NGC1532 is 90-40-32=18° above the horizon. This example works for my viewing location here in Park City. |
 Moving on, we come to Barred Spiral Galaxy NGC1291(mag8.5). This is the brightest object in this weeks list. What do you think of as you view the accompanying image??? Exactly... Breakfast. This looks like a picture perfect sunny-side egg :) However, at -41° declination, this object will be a mere 9° above the southern horizon from my viewing location in Park City. This'll be a really tough catch for us "northerners" :)
My advice would be to save this for a trip to southern skies. Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Florida... or... perhaps a bit more exotic :) |
 Moving on, we come to Spiral Galaxy NGC1084(mag10.6). This tiny little galaxy can be found bordering the western edge of Eridanus... just about into Cetus. |
 Next up... for a change of pace... we've got a nice Planetary Nebula, NGC1535(mag9.6). This sweet shot was taken by... yup... you guessed it Al Kelly. It seems that Al owns Eridanus given the number of incredible shots from this constellation that he's taken.! Have you taken the time to checkout Al's Astrophotographer of the Month page? This is some of his best work (as of a couple of years ago, anyway)
Anyway... back to NGC1535. This beauty is fairly bright at mag9.6 and fairly small at only 44" in diameter. This ought to help you...giving it a fairly high surface brightness. Once you find this baby, cranking up the magnification ought to reveal some incredible detail.
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 Let's wrap things up with this constellations Utah Skies Challenge Object, Irregular Galaxy NGC1552(mag14). This faint little galaxy will put your deep sky searching skills to the test. Fortunately, it's pretty small -- 1.9'x1.4'. This raises it's surface brightness to a whopping mag 13 per arcmin2. Not exactly blazing, but it should be within the reach of an 8?-10? telescope.
While you're there (you did find it... didn't you :) Anyway... While you're there, see how many of NGC1552's neighbors you can find. As the accompanying image shows, there are a handful of faint neighboring galaxies to be seen as well. Aperture requirements will climb rather quickly for these. I'd throw in clear dark skies as well.
Good Luck!. |
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"As an adolescent I aspired to lasting fame, I craved factual certainty, and I thirsted for a meaningful vision of human life - so I became a scientist. This is like becoming an archbishop so you can meet girls." - Matt Cartmill |
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