It’s been a terrible few weeks weather-wise, and it feels like ages since I’ve been out with the scope. In fact, not since the 22nd of September, and even that was a brief binocular session on a night with a very bright, first quarter moon. As it was I checked out a variety of colourful stars (including Arcturus and Capella), and the M34, Double and M13 star clusters, and, of course, the moon itself. Checking in my observing log I see I recorded that the blue and golden yellow double star Albireo was ‘… one of the best views ever!’. So, a worth while session after all. Incidentally, M34, the Spiral cluster, is ideally placed right now (to the right of Perseus and below Andromeda) and is well worth a look.
This week I’m very pleased to feature another guest astronomer. Melanie Jones is very famous in amateur astronomy circles, and her website is a must-read. Her guide to collimating a Newtonian reflector telescope, for example, is the definitive word on the matter, and she’s a regular, and extremely helpful contributor to the Stargazerslounge.com astronomy forum.
Name: Melanie Jones
Twitter handle / website / blog address (optional): astro-baby.com
How, when and why did you get in to astronomy in the first place?: Long story – introduced as a child to astronomy and space by the space race. Saw the moon landing, etc. Started astronomy in 1979 more seriously but gave up when kids were born. Restarted about 10 years ago.
What’s your setup (what equipment do you have)?: Skywatcher 200 8’ Newtonian, TAL 100 4” refractor, Skymax 180 8’ Maksutov, HEQ5 Pro mount, plus a collection of exotic eyepieces.
Do you specialise in a particular area?: No – I am a kind of night sky tourist.
Most memorable ‘wow moment’?: View into the Orion nebula with the Skymax 180.
When were you last out and what did you see?: About 2 years ago – viewing the Orion Nebula.
Favourite bit of kit: TAL 100RS refractor – beautiful to look at as well as look through.
What does astronomy give/do for you?: Puts early worries into perspective, enjoy the peace and quiet away from crowds of people.
A big thanks to Melanie for her input. Do visit her website; there’s a wealth of astronomy-related information there.
What’s up?
With no moon around at this time of the month, it’s an ideal time to get out observing. As mentioned last time, Auriga is climbing higher in the Northeast, and the three large star clusters – M38, 36 and 37 – should be clearly visible, and are well worth a visit. To the right of Auriga (so, basically in the East at around 10PM) will be the Pleiades, and below them the constellation of Taurus. Most noticeable will be the large orange star Aldebaran (about 65 light years away), in the asterism known as the Hyades (a V-shaped cluster). Fun fact: According to the Wikipedia page for Aldebaran, the Pioneer 10 planetary probe launched in 1972 is currently heading in the general direction of Aldebaran, and should pass by in about 2 million years!
Late October/early November will see the occurrence of the Taurid meteor shower, seeming to come from this direction (typical rate will be around 5 per hour).
If you’re up early in the morning (half 5 or 6 o’clock) look to the east and you should see Mars, Jupiter and Venus shining bright, just below the constellation of Leo.
Clear skies!
Kevin Quinn is an amateur astronomer based in Cerne Abbas, he is the proud owner of a ten-inch reflector and a hefty pair of binoculars. He tweets via @CerneAstro, blogs via theastroguy.wordpress.com, and his book ‘Demystifying Astronomy – A beginner’s guide to telescopes, eyepieces and accessories for visual astronomy’ is widely available.
©Kevin Quinn
