This page is dedicated to observations made with a 150mm Maksutov-Cassegrain.  The observing reports shown below should give you a flavour of what you can see with this type of instrument.

Observer:	jeff barbour
E-mail address:	barbour@ihwy.com
Web site:	astro.geekjoy.com
Date and Time of observation:	22:00-22:30 PST, January 27, 2002
Observing Location:	Backyard, Boulder Creek, CA, USA
Object Observed:	Jupiter
Viewing conditions:	8-/10 with variable thin clouds
Telescope	150mm MK67 MCT "Argo"
Eyepiece	25mm Ultrascopic with 3x Barlow (210x)
Observing notes:	Hello 150mm Reflectors (Refractors & Catadiptics)!, It's been almost a whole year since I last filed a Jupiter obs report (while using 150mm Argo) on Alistair's site. Over that time Argo's collimation has improved. And I've learned a lot about viewing low contrast detail on Jupiter's cloudtops. (Still a neophyte though.) Over the last several weeks, been very fortunate to catch a number of GRS progressions. And this report follows at least half a dozen earlier ones. So without further ado, Let the report begin! -------------------------------------------------------------- The good luck continues! Last year I couldn't catch the GRS if I had Carlton Fisk's Hall of Fame catcher's mitt! This year, Aye Carumba! Since I'm seeing so much of it as late, starting to get a better sense of things to look for. So tonight, under 8-/10 stability and variable skies payed a bit more attention to the Spot and environs... In General: Between 22:00 - 22:30 hours PST, three belts were obvious -NTB, NEB, SEB. One other belt could be seen with concentration (the EB bisecting the Equatorial Zone). Three other belts were hinted at: NNTB, STB and SSTB. There were definite albedo shadings visible in the SPR (to celestial east angling toward the south). In Particular By 22:00 hours, the GRS was visible rotating in with leading edge perhaps 1/5th Jupiter's globe diameter (~10 arc secs ingressed). At this point it took slight aversion to detect the southern arc of the GRS frontier, while the northern arc (abutting the Equatorial Zone) was obvious. The GRS itself appeared to be about 8 x 5 arc secs in overall dimension (including the "socket" which marks its frontier). No interior color was detectable -without the dark "shroud" encompassing it, the GRS could easily be described as a "large white oval abutting the South Temperate Zone". It is in fact, that shroud (or "socket") that seems to give the GRS any real definition and makes it appear "a pupil-less eyeball". All the above were things I already understood about the GRS from previous observations. What I didn't understand was the relationship between the two "sub-belts" (SEBn & SEBs) and the rift (SEBz) in the South Equatorial Belt. That rift as we all know, is a very light tan. While the two sub-belts that mark its frontier (north and south) are a darker tan-brown. Thus the whole effect is that of a "sandwich" or laminate... What I wanted to know was exactly what happens to that rift as it approaches the GRS??? First: Some 40 degrees angular rotation before the GRS, the rift begins to break up. The "sandwich" effect erodes and it becomes hard to tell whether there is any rift at all. BUT the rift is still there - it "dissolves" into a form of inchoate turbulence. This appears to be the result of the dark brown sub-belts "breaking in" at times on the rift. Second: As the rift approximates the leading edge (rotationally) of the GRS, the SEBs splits in twain. The southern strand proceeds south to arc around the GRS, while the rest of the rift reinforces the northern sub-belt on the frontier to the EZ. Thus the GRS's northern frontier is wider and more contrasty, while the southern (away from the EZ) is more difficult to resolve - especially if the GRS has not moved well in and away from the planet's ingressing edge. (The situation this evening early on.) NOTE: The 80mm Pup achromat is unable to resolve this southern frontier in any way, while 150mm Argo catches under 7/10+ decent transparency seeing. I had hoped to follow the GRS as it ingresses across Jupiters central meridian. Unfortunately, around 22:30 hours - with the planet well overhead and still under 8-/10 stability seeing, high clouds moved in and destroyed the definition of the features I wanted to see. Those features? Well right after the GRS is another 40 degree Jupiter rotation SEB region where a series of trailing "white ovals" appear before the rift in the SEB reorganizes itself. My question? Just how many of the puppies are there??? Now the final mystery is resolved! I know what happened to the "red" in the Great RED Spot. Somehow, the "red" has been juiced out of the GRS and used to "redden" the NEB! BTW: Anyone interested in the MK67 MCT scope used to make these observations may like to know that Otto Piechowski has written up a pretty comprehensive scope review at: http://astro.geekjoy.com/scopes/ottos_MK67_review.html Save it for a cloudy night! Comment: Clear and Steady Skies to All, jeff

Observer:	Otto R. Piechowski
E-mail address:	Piechowski2@aol.com
Date and time of Observation:	4:00 to 6:30 AM EDT, Wednesday August 8, 2001
Observing Location:	urban; Lexington, Kentucky; USA
Object Observed:	moon, Saturn, Jupiter, Venus
Viewing conditions:	Steady (8 on a scale of 10), clear but some haze
Telescope	5.91" 150mm maksutov cassegrain
Eyepiece	30, 25.4, 28, 7, 5, 4 and 2x barlow
Observing notes:	EYE OF THE STORM and BRAGGING RIGHTS Though the stability of the atmosphere could not be called perfect, it was very steady. Due to the heat and humidity which has latched onto this part of the United States, in part caused by humidity being pumped into our area by tropical storm Barry, there is also substantial haze. The sky is always hazy and bright, reflecting any bright source of light, be it the gibbous moon or street lights. The Moon: Tonight was one of those memorable nights resulting from a steady sky and a scope being at thermal equilibrium. The down side was the haze, but the upside was the fact that the heat never allowed the dew point to be reached, so there was no moisture on the scope. All of this led to stunning views of the moon. The floor of Mare Nectaris was peppered with dark little craterlets. It seemed that there were rilles all over the place. The moon and my scope handled every magnification up to 900X (c. 150X per inch) with clear resolution up to 450X (c. 75X per inch). Of particular interest was the crater Piccolomini. Being near the terminator, its central peak cast a long thin shadow (even though the central peak appeared low and squat). Of interest to me was the notch that appeared at the very tip of the shadow of the peak. (Did you notice that Ray? And did you notice our horsehead giving a partial appearance in the highlands?) Saturn was stunning. It took every magnification up to 515X without the view of the cassini division deteriorating at all. The crispest view came with an 18 mm Paul Rini with a 2X shorty barlow...a powerful 35X per inch combination. 7, 5 and 4 mm orthos gave very good views. Cassine was a thin black line all around. The ring on the shadow-of-the-ball-on-the-ring-side seemed to intersect the ball of the planet at a lower point on the ball than the other side. The shadow on the ring was noticeable. I felt I could see a hint of the crepe ring on the shadow-of-the-ball-on-the-ring side but not on the other. Many of us have noticed a difference of detail on the two sides of the rings. Perhaps a hint of crows feet on the main large ring. Perhaps a hint of the Enche division...but I don't think so. I think this is a diffraction effect from the close proximity of the thin lined cassini next to a relatively thin white ring. Three, maybe four moons. Jupiter. It too was stunning, but as is well known, could not handle the same magnification as Saturn. 257X tops. Best clarity at 200X (35X per inch). The Fading Gray Spot (previously knows as the Great Red Spot) was visible with inner detail. The band it was imbedded in was split in two with a clearly delineated whitish strip between the two bands. The band on the other side of the equator was very dark, quite reddish and also separated into two and perhaps three parts. Definitive darkening on the two poles. The moons were also interesting in that they were all to one side and due, probably to their being behind and in front of the planet (coming and going in their orbits) the effect giving was a curving loop of planets, not unlike the curving loop of craters within Clavius on the moon. Definite balls with diffraction rings. Venus was its brilliant old self; stunning in its overdone makeup but revealing no inner mysteries or even surface detail. Just a brilliant orb manifesting all of the imperfections in the observers eyeballs. Eye of the Storm and Bragging Rights: My daughter went with a friend to the Gulf Coast of Florida, staying at Destin. The eye of tropical storm Barry went directly over Destin. Undoubtedly this will be something my daughter will remember and talk about for the rest of her life. I wonder what the Hurricane and its eye looks like with a 6 inch from the moon? Mars? Venus? Jupiter? Saturn?

Observer:	Jeff Barbour
E-mail address:	barbour@ihwy.com
Web site:	astro.geekjoy.com/
Date and time of Observation:	Sunday, August 5, 2001  9:30 - 11:15 PDST
Observing Location:	Backyard Boulder Creek
Object Observed:	Mars, Antares, Eta Draconis, Delta Cygni, Epsilon Lyrae, M69, NGC6645, 8622, 6818
Viewing conditions:	Transparency: 5.0 ZULTM, Stability: 7+/10
Telescope	150mm F12 MCT
Eyepiece	25/15/10mm Ultrascopics, 3X Ultrascopic Barlow
Observing notes:	Due to a slight change in schedule, The Ageless Jazz Quartet's Sunday evening performance at the World Famous Book Room (- they have ghost you know...) ended half an hour later than last week. After a shakey first set, the band pulled itself together for a solid second and nailed the third. A gig like this should have been enough for one evening. And it most certainly would have - had the Moon been visible upon return. But it wasn't, and the sky looked enticingly dark and stable. Mars lay near culmination. I multitasked putting away musical equipment and taking out the scope. By 9:30, I was at the eyepiece - quickly scanning Antares for tube currents (yes, some) and the presence of a companion. (Again the faded moth dancing around the primary's flame.) Sky conditions were favorable. All that was now needed was a little cooperation from the Red Planet... And the Red Planet came across. The sketch (and the view of the planet this evening) seems to suggest Syrtis Major - but this is not the case - at least based on MarsPreviewerII software. By fiddling with parameters, my best match was Time Zone +6 GMT, 19:00 hours, August 4, 2001. As such Mare Erythraeum has progressed Mars-east of the central meridian. It constitutes the bulk of the thumblike projection into the equatorial region. By this reckoning, the brighter region Mars southeast of Erythraeum is Pyrrhae Regio. Mare Boreum can be seen vaguely collaring a diminished North Polar Cap. Niliacus Lacus and Mare Acidalium are suggested beneath Erythraeum (and above Boreum). Eartheast of Erythraeum is a vague linear darkening that terminates in Tithoneus Lacus. Above that, lies the Sinai desert region. Still further south, Solis Lacus is seen and bordered in turn by a vague brightening (Thaumasia) - itself surmounted by a darker Bosporos Gemmatus. Like the North Polar Cap, the SPC was less than dominating. Took one look at the planet at 540X (sans filter). Despite reasonable edge focus, a dearth of detail - although the polar caps and mars-eastern limb haze was easily made out. 360X supported the blue filter quite nicely. As such the Erythraeum region became noticeable - along with brightish Pyrrhae Regio. There was also a hint of darkish Acidalium and Boreum. 210X was reserved for red filter use and detailed maria inspection. Spent the bulk of my time viewing the planet through this filter - mostly because "blue brightenings" are easier to locate and draw than "red darkenings". Despite a decent view of the planet, I remained mindful of an impending Moonrise. By 10:00 PDST - and with sketch complete, switched over to deepsky. Tracked down 7.7 magnitude 7 arc-minute sized M69. Followed this study with 8.5 magnitude 10 arc-minute open cluster NGC6645. Then off to find! the large (10 arc-minute) 9.4 magnitude galaxy NGC6822. Closed out the series of new studies with small 10x5 arc-second 10.5 magnitude planetary NGC6818. Globular M69 gives a general appearance similar to M80. Small, compact, moderately bright, and generally unresolvable. The cluster sits about 6 arc-minutes southeast of a bluish 7th magnitude star. Proximity to the star makes detection through the finderscope difficult. The 70X view was "rough" with incipient resolution. About half the clusters documented size was visible direct. The typical star-like core not seen, however. In its place, a round, bright core center, surrounded by a distinct core region. Flaring seen to the southeast on eye movement. Corresponding to flare was a sense of flattening to the west. I half expected to get some resolution at 180X - but this didn't quite pan out. Sure the sky could have been darker (ULTM=4.8) and higher sky position would have been a boon (local sky stability ~ 5/10). But there was a distinct sense of dozens of resolvable members hovering just beyond the limiting threshold magnitude of the sky and scope. What may be two 13th mag outliers "scintillated" perceptibly. Generally I don't prefer to document Messier studies through less than ideal skies. Stability was as good as you can get - some twenty degrees above the horizon. However, the Moon had already forecasted its arrival - despite having yet to rise. I look forward to viewing M69 again. It should make a nice comparison to see it as the Moon approaches the fourth quarter. It may seem strange but I prefer to tackle NGC studies during moontide. This particular "lunacy" comes out of the fact that a parallel project I'm working requires definitive views of Messiers. So after characterizing M69, I shifted over to the three NGC's. First stop: Star Cloud M24 - and the 11.1 magnitude open cluster (NGC6603) which lies within it. Frankly, yesterday I was surprised that I could detect anything of an open cluster whose brightest members are of the 14th magnitude. Now, this kind of thinking kills. Despite finding the marker double of the previous evening, I was unable to make out the vague haze of the cluster against the richly endowed backdrop of innumerable stars. Like M69, this one deserves another viewing... From M24, moved north to the Swan Nebula. Contemplated this lovely vision then slewed a few degrees east and slightly south to 8.5 magnitude open cluster NGC6645. Now those who have followed this series may recall difficulties had turning up open cluster NGC1245 in Perseus early in the year. NGC1245's integrated magnitude of 8.4 is very close to the 8.5 of NGC6645. Both clusters have an apparent size of 10 arc-minutes. By the numbers, these clusters share an average surface brightness of magnitude 13. All this suggests that, under the 4.8 ULTM conditions of the evening, locating NGC6645 should have been near impossible... Well as it turned out, not only could the cluster be found - but it actually gave a pretty decent view. What first caught my eye (through the 70X eyepiece), was a vague haze sprinkled with perhaps two dozen 11th and 12th magnitude stars. This group gave the general appearance of a "hobby horse" - head - west, haunches - east, hooves - north. East of the "hobby horse", a 40 arc-minute line of four or five 7th magnitude stars shot down from the south - nearly brushing the cluster. On the centerline of the cluster and to the west was a faint double star. The double's tenth magnitude primary was, in fact, the brightest member of the group. It's eleven plus magnitude companion trailed some 5 arc-seconds west. Frankly, due to proximity to the brighter star, the companion was a bit dim for direct view. Bumping the magnification up to 180X helped but even so, it was still a difficult hold. However, at that higher magnification perhaps three dozen cluster members were possible under averted vision... To locate my next pair of studies required an 8 degree slew due east to Rho Sagittari - the little tea spoon above the teapot. From Rho, a quick jaunt north to a neighboring fifth magnitude finderscope field star, then east again another 3 degrees to a broken crescent of four fifth and sixth magnitude stars that mark the region of Galaxy NGC6822 and planetary NGC6818. The planetary was an easy find. Meanwhile, the Moon had already visibly brightened the sky to the south. So I tried for the 10 arc-minute sized 9.4 magnitude galaxy first. Now you may first ask, "What the heck is a galaxy doing this close to the Milky Way?" The answer: "Making itself as inconspicuous as possible." At best I was able to imagine a large, vague, roundish patch of luminescence slightly brighter than the quickly brightening night sky. So, like the 11.1 magnitude cluster in M24, I'll be revisiting 14.1 magnitude average surface brightness Galaxy NGC6822 real soon... As mentioned, the planetary was a cinch. Even with a sky rapidly approaching deepsky minimum (4.5 ULTM), it was an easy find. What piqued my interest was the sense of "annularity" about it. Even at a lowly 70X, this 10 arc-second sized disk of pale blue-green light seemed to have a center punctuated by a small pinhole of darkness. More obvious was the impression of a central star - and if not a "star", then at least, an luminous core due to ones presence. Inspection at higher magnifications (to 180x) never quite revealed either the star or the hole - but it did help reinforce the validity of the impression. I continue to be engaged in evaluating challenges associated with doubles of disparate magnitudes. These range from Antares (1.3/5.4 2.4 arc-seconds), to Delta Cygni (2.8/6.4 2.4 arc-seconds) through Eta Draconis (2.8/8.2 4.8 arc-seconds). Each is equally difficult. Due to low sky position, I am least likely to catch an unambiguous view of Antares-B. Historically, and even under 6/10 local seeing stability, I rarely catch a solid look at this particular companion. Meanwhile, as Delta Cygnus proceeds towards culmination, its difficulty lessons - but still requires a solid 7/10 overhead stability sky and higher magnification for a sensible view. Eta Draconis is not as favored as Delta for sky position. 7/10 stability reveals Eta-B but only to lower magnifications (120X). All three pairs were possible tonight - none easy. Concentration and patience, the key... Meanwhile the Double Double was a nice clean split. Interestingly, the 12.5 come was a wee bit hard to hold direct while the 13.8 comites could be seen on eye movement. However, by the time I moved on to the double star / magnitude test series the Moon was well above the southeast horizon. Ring testing showed that the 13.08 star east of the planetary's ansae could be held with the slightest aversion. Meanwhile, eye movement would occasionally show the 14.6 magnitude star flanking the ring to the north. 180X is normative for this type test and the 10mm Ultrascopic was in use again tonight. Lyrae now culminates by 11:00 in the evening. Tilting my head way back, I could hold the 5.5 magnitude test star under moderate aversion. So as the Moon continues to wane into the third quarter - and despite its position well above the horizon to the east, things be getting darker. Just the way I've come to appreciate it...

Observer:	Jeff Barbour
E-mail address:	barbour@ihwy.com
Web site:	astro.geekjoy.com/
Date and time of Observation:	Thursday, July 12, 2001 - 9:30 - 11:30 PDST
Observing Location:	Backyard Boulder Creek, CA, USA
Object Observed:	Double Stars: Epsilon Lyrae, Delta Cygni, Zeta Bootes, STF2101, STF2104, Antares, Globular Clusters: M's 13, 5, 4, 19, 14, NGC6440, Planetary Nebulae: NGC's 6369 6445, M57
Viewing conditions:	Transparency: 5.6 ZULTM, Stability: 8/10
Telescope	150mm F12 MCT with Equatorial Mount
Eyepiece	35/25/15/10mm Ultrascopics & 3X Ultrascopic Barlow
Observing notes:	Last night's sky was excellent - especially for backyard Boulder Creek. Nary a cloud seen. Wonderful depth - even far south. Steady and deep. A fine evening for globulars and small planetary nebulae. Had no difficulty distinguishing the later from what might have been bloated star images... Double Double gave a fine split - with little of the intermittent image blur seen over the last week or so. A recheck at the end of the viewing session showed I could hold the 12.0 mag star in Epsilon-2's star haze region direct. Meanwhile, a survey of stars neighboring the King of Rings (M57) revealed that a 13.0 test star could be held direct at that same magnification (180x). (The Ring itself was incredibly present and showed wonderful contrast.) In addition and at extreme aversion, I could hold a 14.1 star to the southeast and a suspected 14.5 star along the Ring's north flank on eye movement. All this points to a ZULTM of 5.6. Add on another magnitude (say 6.6 or so) and I might have just made out the Rings central star with extreme aversion at 540x - something I never would have thought possible in a 150mm scope... At the time of the first Double Double check, Delta Cygni was maybe 45 degrees above the northeastern horizon. The 7.8 magnitude companion star was not obvious. So even moderate sky angle does matter. (I'm sure that later in the evening, had I checked Delta while it was located in the skies middle third - the companion would have been obvious.) Early on, I also turned 540X Argo on .8 arc-second Zeta Bootis - if not a clean split, then as close as you can possibly get. A fellow amateur had sent me a series of charts to help locate obscure double stars. The doubles lie en route from the Great Cluster of the North (M13) to the King of Rings. After assessing sky conditions, and before full skydark, I turned Argo on The Great Cluster (decent but unexceptional view under ULTM 4.5 conditions) and started to "walk the walk". The first two doubles (STF2101 & STF2104) are located in the same 1 degree field some 3 degrees southeast of M13. Both were very satisfying doubles and well worth the effort needed to track them down. STF 2101: Secondary suspected at 70X. Obvious and direct at 180X. I thought the mags were 7&10 separation estimated at 3 seconds. Primary blue-white, secondary bluer than primary. Secondary trails to north. Nice pair! STF 2104: Bright n' easy at 70X. Mags 7&8. Primary blue white, secondary bluer than primary - orientation due north. Third star to southwest, magnitude 9 maybe 35" distant. Colors make this pair interesting. My main goal for the evening was to pick up the threads of my moon and sky-tattered observing plan. To do so, I shifted Argo to the south viewing station. Immediately I was transported by the depth of the southern sky. Picked out a magnitude 5.2 test star in Virgo (near Phi) just on my visual threshold. Conditions to the south were as good as they have ever been from Backyard, Boulder Creek... First stop: M5. Dim outer halo visible to 5+ arc-minutes from core at 70X. Two dozen stars resolved with soft eyes at that same magnification. Easily three times that many seen at 180x. Again, forget aperture - get yourself a dark sky! M4: Gorgeous and sprawling. Many stars at any magnification across its losely assembled core. M19: Maybe a dozen outliers at 180x - even as Mars did what it could to dominate the sky in the area. Realized I had yet to fully characterize the M14 globular in Ophiuchus. Had a little trouble turning up this largish (12') intermediate brightness (7.6 mag) in the finder - despite the better than average conditions. At 70X, a great deal of texture (roughness) visible. With extreme aversion, a few dim outliers could be held. No core point was seen, but the core region was large (4') and nicely gradient. This lead into a less than expansive bright halo that in turn, paradoxically led off into a large dim halo flaring noticeably to the east. The cluster appeared visibly flattened to the southwest. A widish 8 and 10 magnitude double lies 30 arc-minutes to the west. Just as I acquired the cluster, a dim earth-orbiting satellite grazed the southeastern limb of the core region and proceeded apparently undamaged by the encounter across the field of view... At 180X, M14 hinted at a rather uniform spread of 14th magnitude stars across the core region. This encouraged me to take out the "heavy iron" and inspect the cluster at 210, 360 and 540x. Although the core held at 360X, the best view was at 210. (Local stray lights and the gyrations of light mount on plywood deck made the attempt at 540X painful.) It's clear to me that M14 would be a really fine cluster, presenting a wealth of dim resolved stars under 6.0 ULTM conditions... With barlow in place. I turned Argo on Mars. Under the influence of "deepsky fever", and a night that held the promise of new finds, I quickly repressed any aspirations to sketch the planet or even take the time to try a few colored filters. Frankly, there was not enough visible detail to help me overcome the inclination to move on... I also checked in on Antares. Had a green filter been handy, the dimmish secondary would have been de rigour. As it was, the most suggestive view was at 180x. But lacking a visible airy disk, there was nothing definitive to be seen. (As a rule the secondary is usually only visible without green filter use when Antares-A shows an "airy disk".) It was now time for some fresh photons. First up: 12.9 magnitude / 30 arc-second planetary nebula NGC6369. Frankly, this dim