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Messier Marathon
| Title |
Messier Marathon |
| Explanation |
Gripped by an astronomical spring fever [ http://www.zzotto.com/rfc/CFTrip.htm ], it's once again time for many amateur stargazers to embark on a Messier Marathon [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/marathon/marathon.html ]! The Vernal Equinox [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960922.html ] occurs March 20, marking the first day of Spring for the Northern Hemisphere. It also marks a favorable celestial situation [ http://www.reflector.org/MESSIER.HTM ] for potentially viewing all the objects in 18th century French astronomer Charles Messier's catalog [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/history/biograph.html ] in one glorious dusk to dawn [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/marathon/hall.html ] observing run. This year [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/marathon/mm2000.html ] a bright full moon will interfere with dark skies near the actual equinox, so good nights near new moon for weekend marathoners are March 11/12 and April 1/2. (As an added bonus all the planets [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000310.html ] in the solar system can be viewed on these dates.) Astronomer Paul Gitto has created this masterful Messier Marathon [ http://www.cometman.com/messier.html ] grid with 11 rows and 10 columns of Messier catalog objects [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/history/m-cat.html ]. In numerical order, the grid begins with M1, the Crab Nebula, [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960626.html ] at upper left and [ http://www.seds.org/messier/m/m102.html ] ends with M110 [ http://www.seds.org/messier/m/m110.html ], a small elliptical galaxy in Andromeda (lower right). Gitto's images were made with a digital camera and a 10-inch diameter reflecting telescope. |
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Moon Over Andromeda
| Title |
Moon Over Andromeda |
| Explanation |
The Great Spiral Galaxy in Andromeda [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap051222.html ] (aka M31), a mere 2.5 million light-years distant [ http://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0511045 ], is the closest large spiral to our own Milky Way. Andromeda is visible to the unaided eye as a small, faint, fuzzy patch, but because its surface brightness is so low, casual skygazers [ http://www.physics.ucla.edu/~huffman/m31.html ] can't appreciate the galaxy's impressive extent in planet Earth's sky. This entertaining composite image compares the angular size [ http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/scale.html ] of the nearby galaxy to a brighter, more familiar celestial sight. In it, a deep exposure of Andromeda [ http://www.caelumobservatory.com/gallery/m31abtp.shtml ], tracing beautiful blue star clusters in spiral arms far beyond the bright yellow core, is combined with a typical view of a nearly full Moon. Shown at the same angular scale, the Moon covers about 1/2 degree on the sky, while the galaxy is clearly [ http://www.regulusastro.com/regulus/papers/ m31/ ] several times that size. The deep Andromeda exposure also includes two bright satellite galaxies, M32 [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap991103.html ] and M110 [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060908.html ] (bottom). |
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Messier Marathon
| Title |
Messier Marathon |
| Explanation |
Gripped by an astronomical spring fever [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/marathon/marathon.html ], this week many amateur stargazers embark on a Messier Marathon [ http://www.reflector.org/MESSIER.HTM ]. The Vernal Equinox [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960922.html ] occurs Saturday, March 20, marking the first day of Spring for the Northern Hemisphere. It also marks a favorable celestial situation for potentially viewing all the objects in 18th century French astronomer Charles Messier's catalog [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/history/biograph.html ] in one glorious dusk to dawn [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/marathon/results.html ] observing run. This year, interference from bright moonlight will be minimal as the the moon is near its dark or new phase. Astronomer Paul Gitto has created this masterful Messier Marathon [ http://www.cometman.com/messier.html ] grid with 11 rows and 10 columns of Messier catalog objects [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/history/m-cat.html ]. In numerical order, the grid begins with M1, the Crab Nebula, [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960626.html ] at upper left and ends with M110 [ http://www.seds.org/messier/m/m110.html ], a small elliptical galaxy in Andromeda (lower right). Gitto's images were made with a digital camera and a 10-inch diameter reflecting telescope. |
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