Orion and Auriga

It is getting cold at night here in California, but I ventured out a couple of nights ago as the forecast is for cloud and rain for the next two weeks.

I got my 1st view of Orion in the CPC 1100 since getting the telescope a year ago - and my observing skills have progressed substantially since then. M42 and M43 looked great at all magnifications – particularly through the Ethos 13, where the Trapezium and surrounding nebulosity were very clear and impressive. I tried out the Orion Ultrablock (H-beta and OIII) filter on these nebulas. Although the nebulas were definitely more defined with the filter, I didn't find the difference to be really substantial.

I then moved over to M78, but couldn't see it - even with the filter in place. I don't think this was an issue with the goto, as many other objects were placed clearly inside the FOV - so I imagine this was a function of local light pollution and perhaps the poor transparency that evening (clouds were coming in throughout the observing session). That being said, I will certainly try for M78 again as soon as we get a clear night.

I next turned my attention to some of Orion's double stars. Meissa (Lambda Orionis) was easily split as it is only a 4.4 arc second separation. There is a noticeable difference in magnitude between the two stars. Meissa is part of the Collinder 69 cluster, which contains a striking 3-star asterism.

Sigma Orionis is a 5-star system, four of which were easily resolved - but I couldn't split A and B, as they are only 0.25 arc seconds apart.

I then shifted over to open clusters in and around Orion and Auriga: NGC 1981, M35, M36, M37 and M38. M37 was my favorite - clearly the brightest of the bunch, containing around 500 stars.

My last target of the night was the Crab Nebula, M1. Again, as with M78, no luck - even with the nebula filter. M1 has very low surface brightness, so will probably require a dark site location to snag this one.