Deep Sky Observations with Vespera January to April 2023

Conditions | Observation Overview | List of Observed Sky Objects | References

Since the end of July 2022, I own a Vaonis Vespera telescope for observing and taking photos of deep sky objects. On this page, I collect information about observations from January 2023 on. The photos that were taken during this phase are presented elsewhere (on the detail pages for the DSO).

Conditions

Sky Region and Objects

From January until April 2023, I observed mostly the following sky area (some observed objects are indicated):

Click the map for a larger version - it opens in a new window (Image Courtesy of SkySafari Astronomy, www.simulationcurriculum.com)

Note: I observed some of the marked objects with the eVscope 2.

Observation Time

The observations in this phase took place from January to April 2023. They typically took place shortly after dusk, when it was sufficiently dark for a successful initialization of the Vespera. In January, this was typically after 6 p.m.; in April it was after 9.p.m.!

Observation Location

The observations took place in Mühlhausen/Kraichgau (Germany):

Coordinates: 49° 15′ N , 8° 43′ E
Coordinates (dec.): 49,25° N, 8,72° E

Equipment Used

When observing with the Vespera, I only needed the Vespera and my iPhones or iPad.

General Conditions

In general, the sky above Mühlhausen/Kraichgau is "light-polluted" (SQM 20.5) and does not invite you to search for deep sky objects. For astro photography, however, light pollution is not as disturbing as for visual observations.

Observation Overview

Observation Dates

Date 2023	Observed Objects	Observed Objects, Details	Remarks	Further Remarks
Jan 18 MH	GN: M 42/43, NGC 1977, NGC 1980, NGC 1981	Order: M 42/43 , M 42/43 (mosaic), M 42/43 (mosaic, > 40min); in mosaics partly NGC 1977, NGC 1980, and NGC 1981 included in the picture	Vespera; iPad and iPhone 7 Observed also with the eVscope 2	Vespera: used from about 8:20 p.m. on until 11 p.m.; it initialized at the beginning "forever" and aborted; I then started a new successful initialization. SQM 19.4-19.6 during the observations Vespera aborted the first M 42/43 mosaic after 7 minutes, because the app no longer recognized the network, although it was "on"; with some effort, I turned Vespera off (after long pressing the power button) and then on again... The second initialization went faster! Second try with M 42/43 mosaic was stopped by me after a little more than 40 minutes.
Jan 29 MH	GN: B 33, NGC 2024	Order: Alnitak (+ B 33, NG 2024; mosaic), NGC 2024, B 33 (cancelled because of clouds)	Vespera; iPad	Vespera: used from shortly before 7 p-m-; SQM 18.9 after 10 p.m.; about half moon (in SW); up to nearly 10 p.m. (clouds) Mosaic 1.5 h (5700 s), NGC 2024 15 min (1220 s), B 33 cancelled soon because of clouds (880 s)
Feb 6 MH	OC: M 45	Order: M 45 in two runs and as a mosaic	Vespera; iPad	Vespera: used from 9:30 p.m., nearly full moon; SQM 18.4 (10:17 p.m.) M 45 in two runs (due to temperatur drop and AF renewal) > Nach 20 min beendet, M 45 as mosaic (nearly quadratic format) > Stopped after abour 40 min (because of clouds)
Feb 7 MH	OC: M 36, M 38 GN: M 1, M 78, NGC 1499	Order: M 78, M 1, M 36/38 (mosaic), NGC 1499 (AF renewed; 10 min), NGC 1499 (mosaic, >1:10 h)	Vespera; iPad Observed also with the eVscope 2	Vespera: used from about 6:30 p.m., still nearly full moon; SQM 19.3 (7:30 p.m.); SQM 19.1 (9 p.m.)
Feb 8 MH	OC: M 35, NGC 2158, NGC 2244, NGC 2264 GN: IC 405, IC 2118, NGC 2238, NGC 2261, NGC 2264	Order: IC 405 (Flaming Star Nebula) 30 min, IC 2118 (Witch Head Nebula) mosaic> cancelled after14 min, because I was unsure whether the target was OK (the mosaic markers had changed...), ditto once more (one mosaic run), M 35 with NGC 2158 (1700s), Rosette Nebula NGC 2238/2244 (a little more than 30 min), Cone Nebula/Christmas Tree Cluster NGC 2264/2261+OC (> 50 min)	Vespera; iPad	Vespera: used from about 6:30 p.m. (the moon rose at 8:30 p.m), SQM 19.4-19.6 (8:20 p.m.)
Feb 12 MH	OC: M 50, NGC 2169, NGC 2194 GN: IC 2177, NGC 2174	Order: NGC 2169 and NGC 2194 ( 2169 = Little Plejades; also called 37 Cluster; mosaic, ca 1 h = one run), IC 2177 (Seagull Nebula) + M 50 + further ( mosaic), Seagull Nebula alone, Seagull Nebula as a mini mosaic for a better section, NGC 2174 (Monkey Head Nebula, mosaic)	Vespera; iPad Observed also with the eVscope 2	Vespera from about 7:30 to 11:40 p.m. (the moon rose after midnight); SQM 19.8 (8:40 p.m.) and SQM 20.2 at 11 p.m.
Feb 13 MH	OC: M 36, M 37, M 38, M 46/47 GN: NGC 2359 G: NGC 891	Order: M 37 (about 10min), M 36, M 38, M 46/47 (mosaic disturbed > too low), NGC 891 (mosaic), NGC 891 alone, NGC 2359 (Thor's Helmet)	Vespera; iPad	Vespera from about 7:00 to nearly 11:30 p.m.; SQM 19.6 (7:10 p.m.) and SQM 19.8 at 10 p.m.
Feb 20 MH	OC: NGC 2374 GN: IC 1805, M 42, NGC 2359	Order: M 42 mosaic (DBFilter; one run took about 47 min; Running Man Nebula not visible with nebula filter!), IC 1805 mosaic (DBFilter; one run took > 54:30 min), NGC 2359 normal (DBFilter), NGC 2359 small mosaic with NGC 2374 (DBFilter, one run took about 35 min), M 42 mosaic (DBFilter, aborted before one run was finished) later with a darker sky. This session was mainly a first test of the Dual Band filter.	Vespera; iPad; Dual Band Filter	Vespera used from 8:30 to about 10 p.m.; SQM 17.5 (6:45 p.m.); SQM 18.6 (7 p.m.); SQM 19.5 (7:20, 8:00, 8:30 p.m.); SQM 19.7-8 (9 p.m.); SQM 20 (10:15 p.m.); new moon and clear sky Vespera used with Rollei Quick Exchange adapter on the tripod.
Apr 4 MH	OC: NGC 2244	Order: NGC 2244+Rosette Nebula as a mosaic (1) with CLS Filter (1 run, 31 min/45 min), (2) with Dual Band Filter (partial run, 42 min/60 min), (3) without a filter (partial run, 25 min/37 min) ) actual time longer	Vespera; iPad; Dual Band Filter, CLS Filter	Vespera: used from about 8:50 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. SQM 18.2 to 18.5 and downto 18.1; nearly full moon Goal: Compare filters, compare with no filter
Apr 5 MH	GN: NGC 2174	Order: NGC 2174 (rec: 60 min) (1) no filter (35 min) (2) with CLS Filter (35 min), (3) with Dual Band Filter (35 min)	Vespera; iPad; Dual Band Filter, CLS Filter	Vespera: used from about 9 p.m. to about 11 p.m.; full moon and clear sky Goal: Compare filters, compare with no filter
Apr 9 MH	GN: IC 405, IC 410	Order: IC 405 (rec. 60 min & targeted) as mosaic with IC 410 (rec. 90 min; moved inside the picture) with Dual Band Filter (4 rounds, 3 h)	Vespera; iPad; Dual Band Filter	Vespera: used from about 9 p.m. until midnight; SQM 19.3 (start, 9 p.m. to SQM 20 (9:40 p.m.), 20.1 (11:10 p.m.); after fulll moon, clear sky Goal: photograph two nebulae together (with Dual Band Filter)
Apr 14 MH	GN: IC 405, IC 410	Order: IC 405 (rec. 60 min & targeted) as mosaic with IC 410 (rec. 90 min; moved inside the picture) with CLS Filter (2 rounds, 2.5 h/1.5 h real???)	Vespera; iPad; CLS Filter	Vespera: used from about 9 p.m. until 11:30 p.m.; SQM until 20; moon not up, clear sky Goal: photograph two nebulae together (with CLS Filter, for comparison with Dual Band Filter)

Bold: First observation during this observation period; G = galaxy, OC = open star cluster, GC = globular star cluster, GN = galactic nebula, PN = planetary nebula, SP = star pattern, DN = dark nebula, C = comet, SN = supernova

List of Observed Sky Objects

Object details can be obtained via the links to the relevant deep sky objects.

DSO Details	Name	Constellation	Type	Remarks
B 33	Horse Head Nebula	Orion	GN/DN	Alone (aborted because of clouds) and together with NGC 2024 in a mosaic
IC 405	Flaming Star Nebula	Auriga	GN	Reddish nebula; as mosaic together with IC 410; with filters
IC 410		Auriga	GN	Reddish nebula, fainter than IC 405 (as mosaic together with IC 405); with filters
IC 1805	Heart Nebula	Cassiopeia	GN/OC	The galactic nebulae IC 1805, IC 1848, and IC 1795 (also named NGC 896) form a larger nebulosity region in the constellation Cassiopeia, not far away from the Perseus Double Cluster NGC 869/884.
IC 2118	Witch Head Nebula	Eridanus	GN	Not really recognizable...
IC 2177	Seagull Nebula	Monoceros	GNE	Together with M 50 (mosaic) and alone
M 1	Crab Nebula	Taurus	GN	Nice, but small
M 35	With NGC 2158	Gemini	OC	Nice star cluster, together with NGC 2158 in a mosaic
M 36		Auriga	OC	Nice star cluster, the smallest of M 36-38; with M 38 in a mosaic
M 37		Auriga	OC	Nice star cluster, the densest of M 36-38
M 38		Auriga	OC	Nice star cluster, the largest of M 36-38; with M 36 in a mosaic
M 42/43	Orion Nebula	Orion	OC	Nebula nicely captured; with mosaics sometimes also NGC 1977 and/or NGC 1980 are on the photo.
M 45	Pleiades, Seven Sisters	Taurus	OC	Too large for a regular photo with Vespera, but fits a mosaic; hints of the nebulae in M 45 recognizable...
M 46	Contains NGC 2438	Puppis	OC	Together with M 47 in a mosaic; includes NGC 2438 (PN)
M 47		Puppis	OC	Together with M 46 in a mosaic
M 50	With NGC 2177	Monoceros	OC	Together with IC 2177 (and more) in a mosaic
M 78	With NGC 2071	Orion	GN	Very nice to see with Vespera, together with NGC 2071
NGC 891		Andromeda	G	Seen from the edge (mosaic and alone)
NGC 1499	California Nebula	Perseus	GN	Red nebula that I really saw with the Vespera for the first time
NGC 1977	Running Man Nebula	Orion	DN	In mosaics of M 42/43 partly also NGC 1977 is included in the photo
NGC 1980	Lost Jewel of Orion	Orion	OC+GN	In mosaics of M 42/43 partly also NGC 1980 is included in the photo
NGC 1981		Orion	OC	In mosaics of M 42/43 partly also NGC 1981 is included in the photo
NGC 2024	Flame Nebula	Orion	GN	Alone and together with B 33 in a mosaic
NGC 2158		Gemini	OC	Close to M 35
NGC 2169	with NGC 2194	Orion	OC+OC	Together with NGC 2194
NGC 2174	Monkey Head Nebula	Orion	GN	Reddish nebula, also tried with filters
NGC 2194		Orion	OC	Together with NGC 2169
NGC 2237-39/46	Rosette Nebula	Monoceros	GN	Saw the nebula for the first time in full size.
NGC 2244	Star cluster in Rosette Nebula	Monoceros	OC+GN	OC at the center of the Rosette Nebula; partially observed with filters (mosaic)
NGC 2261	Hubble's Variable Nebula	Monoceros	GNR	Together with NGC 2264 and Cone Nebula; hard to see
NGC 2264	Christmas Tree Cluster and Cone Nebula	Monoceros	OC+DN	Large mosaic
NGC 2359	Thor's Helmet	Canis Major	GN	Resembles a helmet with wings
NGC 2374		Canis Major	OS	Hard to see; close to NGC 2359, both can be seen together in a mosaic
NGC 2438		Puppis	PN	Embedded in M 46, small

G = galaxy, GaC = galaxy cluster, OC = open star cluster, GC = globular star cluster, GE = galactic emission nebula, GR = galactic reflection nebula, DN = dark nebula, C = comet, PN = planetary nebula, SP = star pattern, HII = HII region (emission nebula in other galaxies)

References

Books

Michael Feiler & Philip Novak (2023). Deep Sky Reiseatlas (5th edition), Oculum Verlag (ISBN 978-3-949370-04-5)
www.oculum-verlag.de/detailview?no=608
Ronald Stoyan (2021). Deep Sky Reiseführer (6th edition), Oculum Verlag (ISBN: 978-3-938649-72-9)
www.oculum-verlag.de/detailview?no=603
Erich Karkoschka (2022). Atlas für Himmelsbeobachter, Kosmos Verlag (EAN: 9783440173602)
www.kosmos.de/buecher/ratgeber-naturfuehrer/astronomie/sternfuehrer-sternkarten/14810/atlas-fuer-himmelsbeobachter