February / March 2023 Stargazing Photos

I finally found a clear night where everything went according to plan. March 21 was a great night for stargazing. The sky was clear. Little was happening in Marymoor Park so it was darker than normal. My equipment worked perfectly. I had chemical hand warmers to keep my tablet from getting too cold. I was feeling good and I was wearing all of my cold weather gear. I even had extra battery packs for my heated gloves.

I really enjoyed my night of stargazing. As I was sitting quietly in the dark, I was amazed at how much I could hear all around me. The whirring of the telescope’s gears. Occasional gusts of wind. Nocturnal critters in the bushes. I could hear people’s voices from at least half a mile away. I started out the night anxious until everything came together. Then I started having fun. My emotions kept going back and forth between excitement and peacefulness. Sometimes I was relaxed and sometimes I was concentrating. I spent a lot of time just looking up at the stars while I waited for my images to build. I kept going until about 1am and only stopped then because I had to get some sleep so that I could go to work the next day.

In the end, I attempted to view dozens of celestial objects and took scores of pictures. I picked the best images for this blog entry. There are about two dozen of them including a couple of pictures from February. I have already photographed and published the most dazzling objects that are visible this time of year but I think this new set of pictures is still very interesting. I think you will be pleased to see them and read about them.

(I will have to wait at least a couple of months before going out again so that there will be more interesting objects to see in our night sky.)

Galaxies

While these pictures don’t contain galaxies that appear to be as large or as bright as some of those seen in other images in other blog entries, several of them are quite interesting. I think you will enjoy them.

This picture contains three galaxies that are collectively called Leo’s Other Triplet because it is the second triplet found in the constellation Leo the Lion. The first galaxy is Messier 105 (M105) in the center of the image. It is a barred spiral galaxy about 33 million light-years away. NGC 3384 is the second galaxy in the triplet. It is to the left of M105. NGC 3384 is an elliptical galaxy that lies 35.1 million light years distant. NGC 3389 is the third galaxy in the triplet and is in the lower left corner of the image. NGC 3389 is an S shaped spiral galaxy that is dimmer because it is twice as far away; almost 72 million light years.

This picture surprised me. I was trying to get a picture of M105. As the picture evolved, I notice that there was something extra in the picture. Eventually, I realized that there had to be two extra galaxies in the picture. After a little internet research, I discovered that I had accidentally photographed Leo’s Other Triplet.

Messier 100 (also known as M100 or NGC 4321) is a grand design intermediate spiral galaxy in the southern part of the mildly northern constellation of Coma Berenices, Berenice's Hair. It is one of the brightest and largest galaxies in the Virgo Cluster and is approximately 55 million light-years from our galaxy, its diameter being 107,000 light years, and being about 60% as large as the Milky Way.

The Antennae Galaxies are undergoing a galactic collision. Located in the NGC 4038 group with five other galaxies, these two galaxies are known as the Antennae Galaxies because the two long tails of stars, gas and dust ejected from the galaxies as a result of the collision resemble an insect's antennae. (The tails [antennae] are not visible in this picture.) The galaxies are 45 million light years away.

The nuclei of the two galaxies are joining to become one giant galaxy. Most galaxies probably undergo at least one significant collision in their lifetimes. This is likely the future of our Milky Way when it collides with the Andromeda Galaxy.

About 1.2 billion years ago, the Antennae were two separate galaxies. NGC 4038 was a barred spiral galaxy and NGC 4039 was a spiral galaxy. 900 million years ago, the Antennae began to approach one another. 600 million years ago, the Antennae passed through each other, looking like the Mice Galaxies. 300 million years ago, the Antennae's stars began to be released from both galaxies. Today the two streamers of ejected stars extend far beyond the original galaxies, resulting in the antennae shape.

Pretty cool, huh?!?

M94 is a spiral galaxy located 16 million light-years away in the constellation Canes Venatici, the Hunting Dogs. It was discovered in 1781. The galaxy has an apparent magnitude of 9 and can be spotted through a small telescope.

Although M94 was initially believed to be roughly 30,000 light-years in diameter, two faint spiral arms (not visible in this image) were recently discovered outside of its core region that extend far out into space. This discovery has effectively tripled the galaxy’s known diameter. M94 is also notable for its deficiency of dark matter relative to other galaxies. Astronomers do not know why it lacks the normal amount of dark matter, but the galaxy has been the subject of extensive study as a result.

Messier 99 or M99, also known as NGC 4254, is a grand design spiral galaxy that is also in the northern constellation Coma Berenices approximately 49 million light-years from the Milky Way. It was discovered by Pierre Méchain on 17 March 1781. The discovery was then reported to Charles Messier, who included the object in the Messier Catalogue of comet-like objects. It was one of the first galaxies in which a spiral pattern was seen.

Messier 63 or M63, also known as NGC 5055 or the seldom-used Sunflower Galaxy, is another spiral galaxy in the northern constellation of Canes Venatici with approximately 400 billion stars. M63 was first discovered by the French astronomer Pierre Méchain, then later verified by his colleague Charles Messier on June 14, 1779. The galaxy became listed as object 63 in the Messier Catalogue. In the mid-19th century, Anglo-Irish astronomer Lord Rosse identified spiral structures within the galaxy, making this one of the first galaxies in which such structure was identified.

NGC 4656: This one is weird. I almost deleted this photo because I saw nothing in its center. (That’s also why I only spent 2 minutes creating this picture.) Right before I deleted the picture, I saw the faint horizontal smear in the upper left part of the picture. It turned out that that smear is actually the oddly shaped galaxy that has been stretched out because of other galaxies’ effects on it. My telescope did not center the galaxy in the image so I almost missed it.

NGC 4656/57 is a highly warped barred spiral galaxy also located in the constellation Canes Venatici and is sometimes informally called the Hockey Stick Galaxies or the Crowbar Galaxy. Its unusual shape is thought to be due to an interaction between the galaxies NGC 4656, NGC 4631, and NGC 4627. The galaxy is a member of the NGC 4631 Group.

Nebulae

As with the galaxies, I have already photographed and published pictures of the biggest, brightest, most colorful nebulae that are visible in March. Be that as it may, the new nebulae published in this blog entry are still worth viewing. And a couple of them are quite interesting.

The Smoke Ring Nebula is a little round planetary nebula that appears to be inside of a star cluster called M46. The nebula is on the northern edge of the cluster and is shown in the center of my picture. Even though the nebula appears be in the cluster, the nebula is most likely unrelated since it does not share the cluster's radial velocity. The nebula is in the constellation Puppis the Poop Deck. (Puppis was once considered part of a very large constellation called Argo Navis, the ship of Jason and the Argonauts.) The nebula is at a distance of roughly 1,370 light years.

M46 is also in Puppis. It is made up of around 500 stars with an average distance from the Earth of 4,920 light years.

The Flaming Star Nebula is an emission and reflection nebula in the constellation Auriga (the Charioteer) north of the celestial equator, surrounding the bluish, irregular variable star AE Aurigae. It shines at magnitude +6.0. The nebula lies about 1,500 light-years away from Earth.

My picture of the nebula is very faint and large. It is mostly visible on the lower right of the photo and appears to be reddish or maybe purplish.

Messier 78 or M78, also known as NGC 2068, is a reflection nebula in the constellation Orion the Hunter. It was discovered by Pierre Méchain in 1780 and included by Charles Messier in his catalog of comet-like objects that same year.

M78 is the brightest diffuse reflection nebula of a group of nebulae that includes NGC 2064, NGC 2067 and NGC 2071. This group belongs to the Orion B molecular cloud complex and is about 1,350 light-years distant from Earth. M78 is easily found in small telescopes as a hazy patch and involves two stars of 10th and 11th magnitude. These two stars are responsible for making the cloud of dust in M78 visible by reflecting their light. The two stars are clearly visible in my picture.

The Monkey Head Nebula is an emission nebula located in the constellation Orion and is associated with the open star cluster NGC 2175. It is thought to be located about 6,400 light-years away from Earth. The nebula is quite large and takes up most of the picture but, since it is so faint, it is hard to see. Look for patches of reddish haze in the image. The most visible parts of the nebula are in the lower right quadrant of the picture. When photographed the right way, the nebula really does look like a monkey’s head but you can’t see it that way when just viewed with visible light.

The Hubble's Variable Nebula (NGC 2261) is a reflection nebula located in the constellation Monoceros the Unicorn. It is famous for its unique feature of changing shape and brightness over time, which is relatively rare among nebulae. The nebula is illuminated by a young star, R Monocerotis, whose surrounding protoplanetary disk of dust and gas causes the observed variations. Studying Hubble's Variable Nebula provides astronomers with valuable insights into star formation and the evolution of protoplanetary disks.

The first recorded observation of the nebula was by William Herschel on 26 December 1783, being described as considerably bright and 'fan-shaped'. NGC 2261 is 2,500 light years away from us. It got it’s nickname because the famed astronomer Edwin Hubble studied it in the 1940’s and was the first to document the nebula’s variability.

NGC 2452 is a planetary nebula located in the southern constellation of Puppis. This nebula is very small in my picture. It is pea sized and bluish in the center of the image. NGC 2452 was discovered by Sir John Herschel in 1847. NGC 2452 is located about 15,000 light-years (4.7 kiloparsecs) away from the Earth, and is about 40 to 50 thousand years old. In the sky, it appears close to the open cluster NGC 2453, and was previously thought to be a possible member of that cluster. However, it is merely a coincidence, and they are unrelated to each other.

NGC 2359 (also known as Thor's Helmet) is an emission nebula in the constellation Canis Major. The nebula is approximately 3,670 parsecs (11.96 thousand light years) away and 30 light-years in size. The central star is the Wolf-Rayet star WR7, an extremely hot star thought to be in a brief pre-supernova stage of evolution. It is similar in nature to the Bubble Nebula, but interactions with a nearby large molecular cloud are thought to have contributed to the more complex shape and curved bow-shock structure of Thor's Helmet.

This is another one of those faint pictures. You need to know where to look to see anything. In this photo, the nebula is mostly bluish haze that starts above the center and then goes down and to the right. There is some reddish haze along the bottom right of the nebula.

NGC 2467, nicknamed the "Skull and Crossbones Nebula", is a star-forming region whose appearance has occasionally also been likened to that of a colorful mandrill. It includes areas where large clouds of hydrogen gas incubate new stars. This region was one of the areas featured in the book Hubble's Universe: Greatest Discoveries and Latest Images by Terence Dickinson.

NGC 2467 had long been considered to be the nucleus of the Puppis I association. However, NGC 2467 does not represent a distinct open cluster; rather, it represents a superimposition of several stellar groups along the same approximate line of sight that have distinctly different distances (averaging 4,420 ly from us) and distinctly different radial velocities.

This nebula is more visible than several of the others included in this blog entry. And, the Yalie in me forced me to include it because of the Skull and Crossbones nickname.

NGC 2610 is a faint blue smudge in the center of this photo. NGC 2610 is a Planetary Nebula in the Hydra constellation, the Female Water Snake. NGC 2610 is situated close to the celestial equator and, as such, it is at least partly visible from both hemispheres in certain times of the year.

NGC 7129 is a reflection nebula located 3,300 light years away in the constellation Cepheus, the King of Aethiopia. A young open cluster is responsible for illuminating the surrounding nebula. A recent survey indicates the cluster contains more than 130 stars less than 1 million years old. NGC 7129 is located just half a degree from nearby cluster NGC 7142.

The nebula is rosebud-shaped; The young stars in the area have blown a large, oddly shaped bubble in the molecular cloud that once surrounded them at their birth. The rosy, pink color comes from glowing dust grains on the surface of the bubble being heated by the intense light from the young stars within. Unfortunately, my photo does not show the pink parts of the nebula. You can only see the white parts in the center of the nebula.

Planets

Earlier this year, Unistellar – makers of my telescope – upgraded the software in the telescope so that the light accumulation feature can now be used on planets. This was supposed to make it possible for larger, clearer images of the planets to be photographed. In my experience, this has only been partially successful. I am hoping that the new feature will work better on Jupiter and Saturn but they are not visible in the night sky this spring. Until they are visible, here are the improved pictures of planets I have been able to take so far.

I had high hopes for getting a great picture of Mars since it is the planet closest to Earth. The photo is better but not what I was hoping for. I was hoping for extra detail. The picture of Mars is much larger but it does not show much detail.

Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, being larger than only Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin atmosphere, and has a crust primarily composed of elements similar to Earth's crust, as well as a core made of iron and nickel. Mars has surface features such as impact craters, valleys, dunes, and polar ice caps. It has two small and irregularly shaped moons: Phobos and Deimos. Mars has been explored by multiple uncrewed spacecraft, beginning with Mariner 4 in 1965. Mars can be viewed from Earth with the naked eye, as can its reddish coloring. This appearance, due to the iron oxide prevalent on its surface, has led to Mars often being called the Red Planet.

This photo of Venus is also larger but does not contain more detail. In this case, the lack of detail was expected. Venus is cloud covered so there is no detail to see.

Venus is the second planet from the Sun and is named after the Roman goddess of love and beauty. As the brightest natural object in Earth's night sky after the Moon, Venus can cast shadows and can be visible to the naked eye in broad daylight. Venus's orbit is smaller than that of Earth, but its maximal elongation is 47°; thus, at latitudes with a day-night cycle, it is most readily visible for up to a few hours following the start of sunset or before sunrise. At times, it has been seen in a completely dark sky. Venus orbits the Sun every 224.7 Earth days. It has a synodic day length of 117 Earth days and a sidereal rotation period of 243 Earth days. Consequently, it takes longer to rotate about its axis than any other planet in the Solar System. Venus does not have any moons, a distinction it shares only with Mercury among the planets in the Solar System. Venus is shrouded by an opaque layer of highly reflective clouds of sulfuric acid. That’s why it looks so much like a white star.

Again, this photo of Uranus is bigger but not more detailed even though the planet is much larger. I guess its size did not matter since it is so much farther away. It is cloud covered too.

Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun and has the third-largest diameter in our solar system. It was the first planet found with the aid of a telescope, Uranus was discovered in 1781 by astronomer William Herschel, although he originally thought it was either a comet or a star.

Stars

I heard an interesting story about Sirius. That’s why I decided to include its picture in this blog entry even though I have included it in an earlier entry. And, since I am including Sirius, the brightest star in Canis Major the Big Dog, I decided to also include Procyon, the brightest star in Canis Minor the Little Dog.

Here is a true story I just heard about Sirius… Sirius – for obvious reasons – is called the Dog Star. Starting in late July and lasting through the end of August, Sirius rises and sets with the Sun and can sometimes be seen during the day. In ancient Greek, “Sirius” actually means “Scorcher”. They thought Sirius caused the heat during the end of the summer so they named that part of the year "the Dog Days of Summer."

The brightest star seen from Earth is Sirius, the Dog Star. Its magnitude is -1.44. Sirius is easy to find in the Winter sky. Follow the line from the three stars that make up Orion’s belt down and to the left until you see a very bright star. That is Sirius. You can see that my picture of Sirius is bigger and brighter than any of the other stars in my entire blog.

Sirius is part of the constellation Canis Major, the Big Dog. It lies at a distance of 8.60 light years from Earth. Sirius is the lower point of the Winter Triangle that is made up of Procyon, Betelgeuse and, of course, Sirius. It is a blue, white star.

Sirius is the only star I know of that – on rare occasions – can be seen during the day. The next time this should be possible is on or around March 27, 2022. Look for Sirius high in the sky around an hour before sunset. Of course, very clear skies and haze free air will be needed to see the star.

Procyon is the brightest star in the constellation of Canis Minor, the Little Dog, and usually the eighth-brightest star in the night sky, with an apparent visual magnitude of 0.34. This system lies at a distance of just 11.46 light-years (3.51 parsecs) and is therefore one of Earth's nearest stellar neighbors.

A binary star system, Procyon consists of a white-hued main-sequence star in orbit with a faint white dwarf companion named Procyon B. (You can see it above and to the right of Procyon in my photo.) The pair orbit each other with a period of 40.84 years.

Procyon forms one of the three vertices of the Winter Triangle asterism, in combination with Sirius and Betelgeuse. The prime period for evening viewing of Procyon is in late winter in the Northern Hemisphere.

Star Clusters

NGC 2360 (also known as Caroline's Cluster or Caldwell 58) is an open cluster in the constellation Canis Major. It was discovered on 26 February 1783 by Caroline Herschel, who described it as a "beautiful cluster of pretty compressed stars near 1/2 degree in diameter”. Her notes were overlooked until her brother William included the cluster in his 1786 catalogue of 1000 clusters and nebulae and acknowledged her as the discoverer. It has a combined apparent magnitude of 7.2. It is 13 arc minutes in diameter. The cluster has a diameter of around 15 light-years and is located 3,700 light-years from Earth.

NGC 2301 (also known as the Great Bird Cluster) is an open cluster in the constellation Monoceros the Unicorn. It was discovered by William Herschel in 1786. It is visible through 7x50 binoculars and it is considered the best open cluster for small telescopes in the constellation. The brightest star of the cluster is an orange G8 subgiant star of 8.0 magnitude, but it is possible that it is a foreground star. The cluster also contains blue giants. The brightest main sequence star is a B9 star with magnitude 9.1. The cluster is 2,840 light years from Earth. Its nickname is the Great Bird Cluster because some people think it resembles a bird in flight but I don’t see it.