Jack Oughton - Observational Journal 09-10

JACK OUGHTON
ð
sss lstu dabcdefghi lstu sss

Jack Oughton – Observational Journal 09-10: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-

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Our universe is a sorry little affair unless it has in it something for
every age to investigate … Nature does not reveal her mysteries once
and for all.
— Seneca, Natural Questions Book 7, c. first century.

Introduction:
Astronomical observation is both an important scientific tool and has
been a source of great pleasure for humans throughout the millennia.

As long as there have been skies to gaze at in wonder, there have been
awestruck humans admiring them, trying to better understand the
glittering skies

A greater understanding of the history and mythology behind the
constellations helps us better comprehend our ancestors and foreign
peoples. Many of the world’s cultures have their mythologies, creation
myths and legends intricately woven into the starry canopy. Australian
Aborigines believed the world was alive under the back of a great sky
animal. Mesoamerican cultures developed a fascinatingly complex
system of cyclic time, tied to and derived from their observations of
celestial motion.

The field of astrology, no longer considered a science, relies
completely on the same observation of celestial motion to make
fatalistic predictions. Millions of people still take very seriously the
implications of planetary movements upon their own lives. In ancient
days, life or death political decisions where made on the
interpretations of the stars and planets by a mystical class of
astronomer priest, the patterns in the skies were portents, direct from
the Gods themselves!

Even today, cosmologists and physicists use observation to test and
verify scientific theories with. Theoreticians turn to astronomers to
look for evidence of new scientific ideas. To them, the universe is not
so much a predictive tool but an immense laboratory, where the very
small and very massive alike can be studied in great detail. Though
human knowledge has advanced in leaps and bounds since those early
times, the mysteries of skies above still hold vital secrets, key to our
understanding of the very universe and life itself.

Some of the first known astronomical journals date back to the time of
the Mesopotamian era, around five millennia ago(Evans 1998, pp.296-
297). They show in meticulous detail the surprising level of knowledge
that these ancients had of the sky, and how important astronomy was
in day to day life. These people literally lived and planned their lives
around what the skies told them.

Material by Jack Oughton – writing@xijindustries.com | www.writing.xijindustries.com


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Needless to say, observation is an ancient and important art that will
continue to evolve and remain relevant as humankind ages. With
greater increases in optical technology will come more and more
stunning images. Perhaps the public at large will rediscover the night
sky? I would imagine that even the most disinterested observer would
find it hard not to appreciate the beautiful images that the Hubble
Space Telescope has given us.

I am by no means a practiced astronomer. My journal is nowhere near
as complex or informed as those kept by the ancients, or by active
astronomers today. However I have done my best to make an
informative read that will help the layman better understand the
cultural relevance of our cosmic ceiling, and familiarise themselves
with the sky in general by getting to know some of the starry patterns
that live in it.



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Case Study: Mesopotamian Star Diary
Most of the surviving Mesopotamian astronomical texts were written
between 650 and 50 BC. These clay tablets with cuneiform writing are
called astronomical diaries, and they are the unmistakable
observations of specialists: professional astronomer-scribes.

A typical diary entry begins with a statement on the length of the
previous month. It might have been 29 or 30 days. Then, the present
month's first observation - the time between sunset and moonset on
the day of the first waxing crescent - is given, followed by similar
information on the times between moonsets and sunrises and between
moonrises and sunsets, at full moon. At the end of the month, the
interval between the rising of the last waning crescent moon and
sunrise is recorded.

When a lunar or solar eclipse took place, its date, time, and duration
were noted along with the planets visible, the star that was
culminating, and the prevailing wind at the time of the eclipse.
Significant points in the various planetary cycles were all tabulated,
and the dates of the solstices, equinoxes, and significant appearances
of Sirius were provided.

The Babylonian astronomers used a set of 30 stars as references for
celestial position, and their astronomical diaries detailed the locations
of the moon and planets with respect to the stars. Reports of bad
weather or unusual atmospheric phenomena - like rainbows and
haloes - found their way into the diaries, too. Finally, various events of
local importance (fires, thefts, and conquests), the amount of rise or
fall in the river at Babylon, and the quantity of various commodities
that could be purchased for one silver shekel filled out the diligent
astronomer's report.

Source: Andrew Sachs - Babylonian Observational Astronomy,
http://www.jstor.org/pss/74273

A Babylonian almanac, mentioning future positions of the planets


Orion
The Hunter
“Artemis loved Orion and came near marrying him. Apollo took this
hard, and when scolding her brought no results, on seeing the head of
Orion who was swimming a long way off, he wagered her that she
couldn’t hit with her arrows the black object in the sea. Since she
wished to be called an expert in that skill, she shot an arrow and
pierced the head of Orion. The waves brought his slain body to the
shore, and Artemis, grieving greatly that she had struck him, and
mourning his death with many tears, put him among the
constellations." - Hyginus, Astronomica 2.34

ORION

Abbreviation Ori
Genitive Orionis
Pronunciation /ɒˈraj.əәn/
Symbolism Orion
Right ascension 5h
Declination +5°
Family Orion
Quadrant NQ1
Area 594 sq. deg.
Main stars 7
Bayer/Flamsteed stars 81
Stars with planets 5
Stars brighter than 3.00m 8
Stars within 10.00 pc 8
Brightest star Rigel (β Orionis) (0.12m)
Nearest star GJ 3379
(17.51 ly)
Messier objects 3
Meteor showers Orionids
Chi Orionids

Bordering constellations Gemini
Taurus
Eridanus
Lepus
Monoceros

Visible at latitudes
between +85° and −75°.
Best visible at 21:00 (9
p.m.) during the month
of January.


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Mythology:
There are several different stories about the birth of Orion. According
to one version of the myth, Orion was the son of a poor shepherd
called Hyrieus. Once, Zeus, Hermes, and Poseidon stopped by Hyrieus'
house. Hyrieus was so generous with his guests that he killed the only
animal he had-an ox.

Hyrieus was not aware that his guests were gods. The gods wanted to
reward Hyrieus' generosity by granting him a wish. Hyrieus' biggest
desire was to have a child. The gods told him to bury the hide of the
bull he had sacrificed to them and to pee on it. After nine months, a
boy was born in that place. The child became a very handsome and
strong man.

He was such a good hunter that he was hired by the king Oenopion to
kill the ferocious beasts that were terrifying the habitants of the island
Chios. Happy for his success, Orion said he would kill all the wild
animals on the earth. But. The earth goddess Gaia, who was the
mother of all animals, was not pleased with Orion's intention.

Gaia set an enormous scorpion on Orion. Orion soon realized that his
strength and sword were useless against that mighty beast. He tried to
escape, but the scorpion stung him to death. As a reward, Gaia placed
the scorpion in the sky as a constellation, which appears to be
constantly chasing after Orion, whose figure was also placed among
the stars.



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There are other versions of the Orion myth, depending on the identity
of his parents. The first of these identifies the sea-god Neptune as
Orion's father and the great huntress Queen Euryale of the Amazons
as his mother. Orion inherited her talent, and became the greatest
hunter in the world. Unfortunately for him, with his immense strength
came an immense ego, and he boasted that he could best any animal
on earth. In response to his vanity, a single small scorpion stung him
and killed him.

Another version of the Orion myth states that he had no mother but
was a gift to a pious peasant from Jupiter, Neptune, and Mercury.
"Orion supposedly was able to walk on water and had greater strength
and stature than any other mortal. A skilled blacksmith, he fabricated a
subterranean palace for Vulcan. He also walled in the coasts of Sicily
against the encroaching sea and built a temple to the gods there".

Orion fell in love with Merope, daughter of Oenopion and princess of
Chios. Her father the king, however, would not consent to give Orion
his daughter's hand in marriage--even after the hunter rid their island
of wild beasts. In anger, Orion attempted to gain possession of the
maiden by violence. Her father, incensed at this conduct, having made
Orion drunk, deprived him of his sight and cast him out on the
seashore. The blinded hero followed the sound of a Cyclops' hammer
till he reached Lemnos, and came to the forge of Vulcan, who, taking
pity on him, gave him Kedalion, one of his men, to be his guide to the
abode of the sun. Placing Kedalion on his shoulders, Orion proceeded
to the east, and there meeting the sun-god, was restored to sight by
his beam.

After this he dwelt as a hunter with Diana, with whom he was a
favourite, and it is even said she was about to marry him. Her brother
[Apollo] was highly displeased and chid her [she was, after all, a virgin
huntress], but to no purpose. One day, observing Orion wading
through the ocean with his head just above the water, Apollo pointed
it out to his sister and maintained that she could not hit that black
thing on the sea. The archer-goddess discharged a shaft with fatal aim.
The waves rolled the body of Orion to the land, and bewailing her fatal
error with many tears, Diana placed him among the stars.

It is also stated in some versions that Apollo, worried for Diana's
chastity, sent a scorpion to kill Orion.

The myths of Orion resemble those of other mythical hunters from the
Boiotian region. The hunter Kephalos, for example, was also said to
have been seduced by the goddess Eos while hunting on Mount
Kithairon. Another, Aktaion, was killed during the hunt when he spied
on the goddess in her bath and, according to some, sought her for a
bride. And finally, the earth-born Boiotian giant Tityos attempted to



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violate the goddess Leto (as Orion had tried to violate Oupis) and was
destroyed by Apollon and Artemis with their arrows.

The passage "Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades, or loose
the bands of Orion?" is found in the Bible's Book of Job.

Astronomical Notes:
No other is more distinct or bright as this northern winter
constellation. From the northern hemisphere, the three bright stars
(Alnitak, Alnilam and Mintaka) in a straight line that form Orion's Belt
are easily visible on the southern horizon in winter evenings. The
bright star that forms Orion's left shoulder is Betelgeuse. The name of
this star means "The Armpit of the Central One" in Arabic, which
shows that like many other constellations, Orion was recognized
across many cultures.

Hanging down from Orion's belt is his sword that is made up of three
fainter stars. The central "star" of the sword is actually not a star at all,
but the Great Orion Nebula, one of the regions most studied by
astronomers in the whole sky. Nearby is the Horsehead Nebula (IC
434), which is a swirl of dark dust in front of a bright nebula.

The famous Orion's Belt makes the hunter easy to find in the night
sky. Orion looks very much like a person. First, you should spot
Orion's Belt, which is made of three bright stars in a straight line. One
of Orion's legs is represented by the bright star Rigel, one of the
brightest stars in the night sky. His two shoulders are made of the
stars Bellatrix and Betelgeuse. You can see Betelgeuse's reddish colour
without a telescope. Other bright stars make up the two arms, one,
which holds a shield, and another that carries a club. The famous
Orion Nebula is located in Orion's sword, which hangs from the belt. It
is so bright, that even the naked eye can see the fuzzy patch. It looks
spectacular even with a small telescope or binoculars.

From his belt there hangs a well defined dagger, which is known for
one of the most famous nebulas in the sky: The Large Orion Nebula
(M42).

The other corners of the constellation are formed by Bellatrix (gamma
Orionis) and Saiph (kappa Orionis). It was once thought that all women
born under the sign of Bellatrix would be fortunate and have the gift
of speech. The star's name is often translated as Female Warrior or
Amazon, and another name sometimes seen is "Amazon Star".
Around October 21 each year the famous Orionid meteor shower
reaches its peak. Coming from the border to the constellation Gemini
as much as 20 meteors per hour can be seen



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Logged Objects:

M42: Image Credit: Danny Sweeney
Date: 9th February 2010
Instrument: Cannon EOS 1000d
Exposure Time: 120 seconds
Filter: None

Right Ascension 05h 35m 17.3s
Declination -05° 23′ 28″
Distance 1,344±20 ly
Visual Brightness +4.0
Apparent Dimension 65×60 arcmins

Orion Nebula (M42, NGC1976) HII REGION that is easily visible to the naked eye
as the central object in the sword of ORION (RA 05h 35m.4 dec.05o27!). The main
part of the nebula is separated from a smaller part of the same cloud, known as M43
or NGC1982, by a dark absorbing region called the FISH’S MOUTH. The nebula
surrounds, and is excited by, the four young stars of the TRAPEZIUM (also known as
"1 Ori). The nebula is about 1500 LY away on the nearer side of the ORION
MOLECULAR CLOUDS and is little more than the inside of an incomplete spherical
hole in the side of the much larger dark nebula. The Orion Nebula is over a degree
across on the sky and thus some 25 to 30 LY in physical size. Its mass is several
hundred times that of the Sun.



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Ursa Major
The Great Bear
"The rule about bears is their unpredictability."
- Anonymous
URSA MAJOR
Abbreviation UMa
Genitive Ursae Majoris
Pronunciation /ˈɜrsəә ˈmeɪdʒəәr/, genitive /ˌɜrsiː məәˈdʒɒrɨs/
Symbolism The Great Bear
Right ascension 10.67 h
Declination +55.38°
Family Ursa Major
Quadrant NQ2
Area 1280 sq. deg. (3rd)
Main stars 7, 20

Brightest star ε UMa (Alioth) (1.76m)
Nearest star Lalande 21185
(8.31 ly, 2.55 pc)

Messier objects 7
Meteor showers Alpha Ursa Majorids
Leonids-Ursids

Bordering constellations Draco
Camelopardalis
Lynx
Leo Minor
Leo
Coma Berenices
Canes Venatici
Boötes

Visible at latitudes between +90° and −30°.
Best visible at 21:00 (9 p.m.) during the
month of April



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The Big Dipper/Plough is an asterism (a group of stars which isn't
technically recognised as a constellation) in Ursa Major

Mythology:
An Arab myth associates the Plough with a funeral. The quadrangle
represents a coffin and the three handle stars are people following the
coffin and mourning. The middle star (really the two stars Mizar and
Alcor) represents the daughter and son of al-Naash, the man in the
coffin, who has been murdered by al-Jadi, the pole star. Other
cultures, too, relate funeral processions to the Big Dipper.



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The Micmac Indians of Nova Scotia and the Iroquois Indians along the
St. Lawrence Seaway share one story about the Big Bear. In this story,
the quadrangle of the dipper represents a bear that is pursued by
seven hunters; the three closest hunters are the handle of the dipper.
As autumn approaches, the four farthest hunters dip below the
horizon and abandon the hunt, leaving the closest three hunters to
chase the bear.

The hunters are all named after birds. The closest hunter to the bear is
named Robin, the second closest is Chickadee, and the third is Moose
Bird. Chickadee is carrying the pot in which the bear will be cooked.
The second star in the handle is actually two stars [the famous double
star system] called Mizar and Alcor, which represent Chickadee and
the pot. In autumn, as the bear attempts to stand up on two legs,
Robin wounds the bear with an arrow. The wounded bear sprays blood
on Robin, who shakes himself and in the process colours the leaves of
the forest red; some blood stains Robin and he is henceforth called
Robin Redbreast. The bear is eaten, and the skeleton remains;
travelling through the sky on its back during winter. During the
following spring a new bear leaves the den and the eternal hunt
resumes once more.

A Roman myth involves both bears, Ursa Major and Ursa Minor. A
beautiful maiden, Callisto, hunting in the forest, grew tired and laid
down to rest. The god Jupiter noticed her and was smitten with her
beauty. Jupiter's wife, Juno, became extremely jealous of Callisto.
Some time later, Juno discovered that Callisto had given birth to a son
and decided that Jupiter must have been the father. To punish her,
Juno changed Callisto into a bear so she would no longer be beautiful.
Callisto's son, called Arcas, was adopted and grew up to be a hunter,
while Callisto continued to live in the forest. One day Callisto saw
Arcas and was so overjoyed at seeing her son that she rushed up to
him, forgetting she was a bear. Arcas thought he was being attacked
and shot an arrow at Callisto. Jupiter saw the arrow and stopped it
from hitting Callisto.

To save Callisto and her son from further damage from Juno, Jupiter
changed Arcas into a bear also, grabbed them both by their tails, and
swung them both into the heavens so they could live peacefully among
the stars. The strength of the throw caused the short stubby tails of
the bears to become elongated. Juno was even angrier with Jupiter and
managed to exact still more revenge on poor Callisto and Arcas. She
went to the gods of the sea and forbade them to let the two bears
wade in their water or streams on their long and endless journey
around the pole star.



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A Chinese legend tells the story of the four stars which make up the
bowl of the Big Dipper. These stars were the home of the "fates," the
Queen Marichi and all her attendants and the god of literature. Clearly,
it was a crowded home!

The story begins one time when a young lad by the name of K'uei who
was a literary student known for his great learning and brilliant wit.
Unfortunately, K'uei was also rather ugly, so ugly in fact that not even
the most kind-hearted person could help but shudder when their eyes
fell upon him. So although K'uei was smarter than any before him, and
witty, he had no friends.

At this time, it was customary for the emperor to present a golden
rose to the winning candidate at the metropolitan examinations. As
fate would have it, K'uei had won this honour. K'uei was very proud
when he approached the throne but alas, when the emperor, even
though he had been forewarned, laid his eyes upon the ugly K'uei, he
dropped the rose and there it lay shattered.
Poor K'uei was in disgrace, and so, broken-hearted and finding life
intolerable, he threw himself into the sea. As K'uei passed under the
cool, calmness of the waves he was aware that under his feet had
appeared a monster. The creature was one of those strange beasts that
inhabit the depths of the sea, and he was lifting K'uei back up towards
the surface.

The monster rose out of the waves with K'uei safely on his back and
continued to mount higher and higher in the air, until at last he had
reached the very sky itself. There, enthroned among the stars of the
Bear, K'uei now watches over the literary affairs of the world and is the
patron saint of all scholars.

Astronomical Notes:
Ursa Major (Latin: "Larger Bear"), is a constellation visible throughout
the year in most of the northern hemisphere.

Ursa Major contains several bright galaxies, including the paired M81
(one of the brightest in the sky) and M82, found above above the
bear's head, and Pinwheel Galaxy (M101), a striking spiral northwest of
Eta Ursae Majoris. Other notable spiral galaxies include M108 and
M109. Collectively, the constellation contains about 50 galaxies bright
enough to be seen through an amateur telescope

Seven stars within Ursa Major from Alpha to Eta form our well-
known asterism, and it goes by many names. It is worth noting that of
these seven stars only Alkaid and Dubhe are independent from the
group. The other five move through space together. Here are some of
the names the group has been called by.



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• The Big Dipper (US)
• The Plough (UK)
• The Great Cart (Germany)
• Kalavagnen ie, men's cart (Scandinavia)
• The Sapta Richi ie, Seven Sages (Asia)
• The Haunch (Egypt)
• The Drinking Gourd (Colonial America)
• Hunting Party and Bear (Native American)

The Big Dipper/Plough covers only half of the breadth of the bear, the
constellation itself is quite indistinct in shape and very large, it
extends much farther south, with its most southerly star, Xi Ursae
Majoris (Alula Australis), as far down as Leo and Cancer.

Over time the asterism will dissolve. It is only within the last 50,000
years or the familiar "dipper" shape has formed. As the stars move
their separate ways, the dipper will become ‘sharper’, with the pointer
star (alpha Ursae Majoris) moving further to the front from the rest,
south of its present position.

Deep Sky Objects:

Deep Sky Object: M82
Image Credit: Glamorgan University
Date: April 2010
Instrument: Canon EOS 1000D
Exposure Time: ?
Filter: None



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Declination +69° 40′ 47″
Distance 11.5 ± 0.8 Mly
Visual Brightness 8.41

Apparent Dimension 65×60 arcmins

M82 is one of the finest starburst galaxies in the sky; its turbulent shape is evident
even at low powers. The starburst galaxy is five times as bright as the whole Milky
Way and one hundred times as bright as our galaxy's centre. The Chandra X-ray
Observatory has detected fluctuating X-ray emissions from a location approximately
600 light-years away from the centre of M82. Astronomers have postulated that this
fluctuating emission comes from the first known intermediate-mass black hole, of
roughly 200 to 5000 solar masses!



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Auriga
The Charioteer
“He is not indolent, boarded on His chariot pulled by seven horses, when
He wills to make a move, He assumes two forms! O Sun, after arising ” -
Atharva Veda

AURIGA
Abbreviation Aur
Genitive Aurigae
Pronunciation /ɔːˈraɪɡəә/ Auríga, genitive /ɔːˈraɪdʒiː/
Symbolism The Charioteer
Right ascension 6h
Declination +40°
Family Perseus
Quadrant NQ1
Area 657 sq. deg. (21st)
Main stars 5, 8
Brightest star Capella (α Aur) (0.08m)
Nearest star QY Aur
(20.74 ly)
Messier objects 3
Meteor Showers Alpha Aurigids
Delta Aurigids
Bordering constellations Camelopardalis
Perseus
Taurus
Gemini
Lynx

Best visible at 21:00 (9 p.m.) during the month of Late
February to early March.



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Mythology:
This constellation may date back to Babylonian times as Rukubi, the
chariot. The Romans identified this constellation with Erichthonius, the
lame son of Vulcan (whom the Greeks referred to as Hephaestus)

The driver was considered to be a shepherd, usually one that had
flung a goat over its left shoulder (due to the resemblance of that area
to a lump), and had its kids (two bright stars) nearby, which is
represented by the star Capella (meaning she goat)

Pliny and Manilius treated the alpha star, Capella as a constellation by
itself, also calling it Capra, Caper, Hircus, and by other hircine titles.

Indian mythology has a charioteer, Aruna, or Arun, that resembles
Erichthonius in some ways. In the Hindu Pantheon Surya, the sun, is
shown drawn by seven horses (though in earlier depictions it was four)
with his charioteer, the lame Aruna, seated in front of him. According
to Hindu mythology, Aruna or Arun refers to the Charioteer of the
Sun, including the rising Sun. Aruna refers to the redness of the rising
Sun. He is believed to be a cripple (without thighs). This figure of the
Hindu mythology has the literal meaning, in Sanskrit, of the reddish
one. In India, Capella was worshipped as the heart of Brahma.

In one Greek legend, Auriga represents Erichthonius, a King of Athens
and the son of Vulcan and Minerva. Auriga was deformed and his
difficulty in walking led him to invent the four-horse chariot. This
invention brought him a place of honour in the sky. In another legend,
Auriga was the son of Mercury. He trained chariot horses and his
animals were said to be the fastest there were. The bright star Capella
also has some legend about it. It is reputed to represent the goat that
suckled Jupiter. At some point Jupiter accidentally broke off a horn.
Jupiter made this piece of horn magical in that it could be filled with
whatever the possessor wished for. It was given the name Cornucopia,
or "horn of plenty."



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Astronomical Notes:
Its brightest star is Capella (alpha Aurigae, 0.1 mag), which is visible in
the upper right from the center of the constellation.

The galactic anticenter is located about 3.5° to the east of β Aurigae,
the anticenter marks the point on the celestial sphere direcrly opposite
the location of the galactic core. Due to this location, the region of sky
with Auriga marks a less dense and luminous part of the dust band
which makes up the milky way’s spiral arms.
The milky way runs straight through Auriga, which has many open
clusters and other objects because of this. Its three brightest open
clusters are M36, M37 and M38; all being visible with binoculars or a
small telescope in reasonably light polluted skies, a larger telescope
resolves the individual stars contained within them.
Three more dimmer open clusters are NGC 2281, located close to Psi 7
Aurigae, NGC 1664, which is close to Epsilon Aurigae, and NGC 1893,
next to the Flaming Star Nebula, located around mid-way between M38
and Iota Aurigae. AE Aurigae, a runaway star, is a bright variable,
currently located within the Flaming Star Nebula.

Auriga hosts at least four meteor showers annually, all of which have a
low hourly activity rate. Its prime shower, The Aurigids, occur between
the end of January and late February and have amaximum of 18 per
hour between 9th and 17th February. At the beginning of the 20th
Century, reports note spectacularly large fireballs, though in the early
21st century this has currently reduced to an average of less than one
per hour.



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Date: ?
Instrument: Canon Eos 1000D
Iso: 1600

Right Ascension 5h 36m 12s
Distance 4.1 kly
Apparent Dimension 12′

M36 is dominated by a zigzag stream of stars, with fainter stars clumped around it.
The presence of this star cluster was first recorded by Giovanni Batista Hodierna
before 1654 and re-discovered by Le Gentil in 1749. However, it was Charles Messier
who took the time to carefully record its position for future generations. If this cluster
were 10 times closer, it would appear as conspicuous and very similar to the Pleiades.
Because the cluster is only about 25 million years old, it contains no red giants, in
contrast to nearby M37 and M38.



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Date: ?
Instrument: Canon Eos 1000D
Iso: 1600

Right Ascension 5h 52m 19s
Distance 4.4 kly
Apparent Dimension 24’

M37 is more uniform than M36 but has a system of dark lanes (starless regions or
perhaps dark nebulosity). It contains at least 150 stars that are around magnitude 12
and easily resolved by even small telescopes. Messier 37 would be later given its
NGC catalogue designation by John Herschel who was the first to make a guess at its
true stellar population: "Very fine large cluster, all resolved into stars of 10th to 13th
magnitude. It fills 1 1/2 field, but the straggling stars extend very far. There may be
500 stars."



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Hercules
The Hero
“A buffoonish Hercules (Heracles) comes to the house of his friend
Admetus…Hercules overindulges, as usual.” – Euripides, Alcestis

ABBREVIATION HER
Genitive Herculis
Pronunciation /ˈhɜrkjʊliːz/, genitive /ˈhɜrkjʊlɨs/

Symbolism Heracles
Right ascension 17 h

Declination +30°
Family Hercules
Quadrant NQ3
Area 1225 sq. deg. (5th)
Main stars 14, 22




Brightest star β Her (2.78m)
Nearest star Gliese 661 (20.62 ly)

Messier objects 2
Meteor showers Tau Herculids

Bordering constellations Draco
Boötes
Corona Borealis
Serpens Caput
Ophiuchus
Aquila
Sagitta
Vulpecula
Lyra

Visible at latitudes between +90° and
−50°.



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month of July.



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Mythology:
The Phoenicians called it their god Melkarth, the Greeks called it the
Phantom. We know it most commonly as Hercules, the hero who had



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12 labours to perform to demonstrate his courage and heroism.
Hercules death was a sad story, we are told that our hero put on a
tunic that contained a deadly poison. So tortured by this he was that
he climbed a mountain, built a funeral pyre and perished in its fires.
Jupiter was so touched by this that he had a cloud descend to
Hercules, pick him up and carry him to his place in the sky.

Astronomical Notes:
Hercules first becomes visible in the east in April, and works his way
high across the night sky through October. From the southern
hemisphere, he appears low in the north. Four relatively bright stars
form what is commonly known as the Keystone. Hercules' arms and
legs extend from this central square. By far the most exciting object to
see in Hercules is the magnificent globular cluster M13, which is
visible in dark night skies even without binoculars or a telescope. This
cluster of 300,000 stars appears as a faint fuzzy spot to the naked eye.

Logged Objects:

Date: 19th February 2010 Time: 15:41
Seeing: 6 Instrument: EM01 - 2m
Faulkes Telescope North, located at Haleakala, Hawaii

Exposure Time: 120 Right Ascension 16h 41m 41.44s
Seconds Declination +36° 27′ 36.9″
Distance 25.1 kly
Visual Brightness
5.8
Apparent Dimension 20 arcmins


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Filter: RGB+ND

Perhaps the finest globular cluster in the northern sky, M13 is easily resolved in a 5-
inch (12.5-cm) or larger telescope. Like other globulars, it looks much more three-
dimensional in the telescope than in photographs because the eye can see brightness
distinctions that the camera does not record. Look for streams and other patterns in
the stars.

Faulkes
Telescope North, located at Haleakala, Hawaii

Exposure Time:
Right Ascension 17h17'07"
120 seconds
Declination 43°08'11"
Filter: RGB+ND
Distance 26 kly
Apparent Dimension 14' arc minutes

If M92 were not so close to M13 it would be considered a showpiece. As it is, not
only does M13 overshadow it, but M92 is hard to find without computer aid because
there are no bright stars nearby!



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Cygnus
The Swan
“Swans sing before they die - 'twere no bad thing should certain persons
die before they sing.” - Samuel Taylor Coleridge

CYGNUS
Abbreviation Cyg
Genitive Cygni
Pronunciation /ˈsɪɡnəәs/, genitive /ˈsɪɡnaɪ/
Symbolism The Swan or The Northern Cross
Right ascension 20.62 h
Declination +42.03°
Family Hercules
Quadrant NQ4
Main stars 9
Brightest star Deneb (α Cyg) (1.25m)
Nearest star 61 Cyg
(11.36 ly)
Messier objects 2
Meteor Showers October Cygnids
Kappa Cygnids
Bordering constellations Cepheus
Draco
Lyra
Vulpecula
Pegasus
Lacerta

month of September.



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Mythology:
One story tells us that Cygnus represents Orpheus who was changed
into a swan at his death and placed beside his magic harp (Lyra) in the
sky. Another story says this represents Cygnus, son of the King of the
Ligurians who was stricken with grief over the death of his friend
Phaethon. Touched by this, Apollo took pity on him, changed him into
a swan and placed him among the stars. Another story says the swan
is Orpheus, who was murdered by the Thracian women while under
the influence of Bacchus. Upon his death, the celebrated musician was
placed in the heavens to spend eternity by his harp, Lyra. Yet another
variant says that the swan represents the form taken by Jupiter when
he deceived Leda and fathered Pollux.

According to Ovid, the swan was once Cygnus, son of Sthenele and a
close friend of Phaethon. Phaethon died in the river Eridanus after
attempting to drive the chariot of the sun, and Cygnus was overcome
with grief that Jupiter could have struck down his friend:
As he mourned, his voice became thin and shrill, and white feathers
hid his hair. His neck grew long, stretching out from his breast, his
fingers reddened and a membrane joined them together. Wings
clothed his sides, and a blunt beak fastened on his mouth. Cygnus
became a new kind of bird: but he put no trust in the skies, or in
Jupiter, for he remembered how that god had unjustly hurled his
flaming bolt. Instead, Cygnus made for marshes and broad lakes, and
in his hatred of flames chose to inhabit the rivers, which are the very
antithesis of fire.

Astronomical Notes:
Cygnus, the Swan, is also known as the Northern Cross because of its
distinctive shape. The constellation forms a lower case "t" shape, with
additional stars off the sides to show a bend for the wings. The tail of



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the swan is marked by the bright star Deneb, which is Arabic for "tail".
Three fainter stars cross the line between Deneb and the head of the
swan, Albireo, largely regarded as the most beautiful double star in
the heavens. Cygnus flies southward along the summer Milky Way, and
into the Summer Triangle.

The constellation is one of the easier to find in the night sky. The
mythology of Cygnus tells the story of Zeus who took the form of a
swan to seduce Queen Leda. From this union were born the twins
Castor (an eclipsing system made up of six stars!) and Pollux, which
can be found in the constellation Gemini.

The tail and bill of the swan are both magnificent stellar sights. Deneb
is a bright, blue supergiant star, and a mere baby in age compared to
many other stars, it marks the tail of the swan or the top of the
Northern Cross. The brightest star in Cygnus, at magnitude 1.3, it is
also one of the corners in the Summer Triangle. Albireio is the swan’s
bill, or bottom corner of the Northern Cross. It is actually a binary
system which exhibits a vibrant amber and blue contrast. The brighter
star of Albireo (or Beta Cygni) is magnitude 3.1, and the dimmer is
magnitude 5.1. The stars are approximately 380 light-years apart.

Cygnus is also interspersed with a variety of nebulae. The North
American Nebula is located just a few degrees east of Deneb, named
for its resemblance to the North American continent. The Veil Nebula,
an ancient supernova remnant, is seen several degrees south of the
easternmost wing.

Less than two degrees from Sadr, or Gamma Cygni, the 2.23-
magnitude star at the centre of the cross, is M29. M29 is an open
cluster at magnitude 6.6. The other Messier object in Cygnus is M39,
an open cluster found around 9 degrees northeast of Deneb. M39 is
magnitude 4.5: and can sometimes be seen by the naked eye.
Returning to Sadr, NGC 6910, a 7.4-magnitude open cluster, lies just a
half-degree from the star to the north.

Another nebula to see with binoculars is the Veil Nebula, NGC 6992.
The Veil Nebula spans a large expanse of sky a little south of Epsilon
Cygni, the eastern star in the cross's arm. This entire region is called
the Cygnus Loop and is the remains of a star that went into a
supernova around 5,000 years ago.

Logged Objects:



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Deep Sky Object: NGC 6826
Date: April 2010
Faulkes Telescope North, located at Haleakala, Hawaii

Exposure Time:120 secs
Filter: RGB+ND

Declination +50° 31′ 30.3″
Distance ~2000 ly
Apparent Dimension 27 x 24"
The central star in this
planetary nebula is much brighter than the surrounding nebulosity. The star and the
nebula compete for your attention; the “blinking” effect occurs because the star pops
in and out of view as you switch from direct to averted vision, or so the folklore says.

The bright double star 16 Cygni (SAO 31898, NexStar Star 9426, mags. 6.0, 6.2, sep.
40′′) is just out of the field to the west. Several other doubles are nearby.



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Draco
The Dragon
"It was as huge as the Serpent that twines between the two Bears in the
sky, if its full length were seen uncoiled" – Ovid - book III of
Metamorphoses

DRACO
Abbreviation Dra
Genitive Draconis
Pronunciation /ˈdreɪkoʊ/, genitive /drəәˈkoʊnɨs/
Symbolism The Dragon
Declination +65°
Family Ursa Major
Quadrant NQ3
Main stars 14
Bayer/Flamsteed 76
stars
Stars with 6
planets
Stars brighter 3
than 3.00m
Stars within 7
10.00 pc
Brightest star Gamma Draconis (2.24m)
Nearest star Struve 2398
(11.52 ly)
Messier objects 1
Meteor showers Draconids
Bordering Boötes
constellations Hercules
Lyra
Cygnus
Cepheus
Ursa Minor
Camelopardalis
Ursa Major
Best visible at 21:00 (9 p.m.) during the month of July.



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Mythology:
Draco represents Ladon, the dragon sometimes depicted with one
hundred heads that guarded a sacred spring and slew the soldiers of
Cadmus (the first king of Thebes).
The eleventh of the Twelve Labours of Heracles was to steal the golden
apples.



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Heracles asks Atlas to gather the apples while he and Athena held up
the sky. Atlas, thinking he could trick Heracles into holding the sky
forever, gladly accepted the mission. When he returned with the
apples, Heracles slipped the sky back on Atlas' shoulders.
"Some also say this Draco was thrown at Minerva (Athene) by the
Gigantes (Giants), when she fought them. Minerva snatched its twisted
form and threw it to the stars, and fixed it at the very pole of heaven.
And so to this day it appears with twisted body, as if recently
transported to the stars." [Hyginus, Astronomica 2.3] "Today we see
him forever asleep as the much-knotted, battered, and twisted Draco"
[Minerva threw the dragon to the stars — or slung it. A German word
for snake is Schlange "which is probably related to 'sling'",

A Babylonian creation story tells of Tiamat, who turned herself into a
dragon but was later defeated and split into two parts. One part
became the heavens and the other, the Earth.

A Chinese tale sees the stars as the dragon who eats the Sun or Moon
(possible represented by the north star Polaris) in an eclipse. During a
real eclipse, ancient Chinese would make as much noise as possible,
banging on pots and pans to try and scare away the dragon which was
eating the Sun or Moon.
A Norse creation myth tells of a dragon who gnaws at the roots of
Ygdrasil, the tree that covers the world.
The Persians have regarded Draco as a man-eating serpent called
Azhdeha.
In early Hindu worship, Draco is given the form of an alligator known
as Shi-shu-mara.

Because Thuban was the pole star 5000 years ago the ancient
Egyptians keenly observed it. Some of Draco's stars were part of their
constellation of Hippopotamus and some were of the Crocodile. They
appear on the planisphere of Denderah and the walls of the
Ramesseum at Thebes. The hieroglyph for the Hippopotamus was used
for the heavens in general while the constellation is supposed to have
been a symbol of Isis Rathor, Athor, or Athyr, the Egyptian Venus.
Draco's stars were also said to represent the falcon headed god Horus.
Around 800 BC, the prehistoric Adena people who lived in the Ohio
area of the United States created Serpent Mound which is believed to
mirror the constellation Draco. This huge mound is nearly a quarter
mile long.

Astronomical Notes:
Draco the dragon is a circumpolar constellation, which means it
revolves around the North pole. It can be seen all year round. Draco is
only present in the Northern Hemisphere, so those living in the
Southern Hemisphere will never see this long constellation. The easiest
way to spot Draco is by finding the dragon’s head. It consists of four



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stars in a trapezoid, found just north of Hercules. Draco's body is
made up of a chain of stars that arc towards polaris, before coiling
back towards the head, followed another turn that takes it between the
two dippers. Perhaps we can see the resemblance to a coiled
serpentine creature?

From the head, Draco’s tail winds through the sky, ending between
the Big and Little Dippers. The end of the constellation is held by
Thuban (Alpha Draconis), which was the pole star over 4,000 years
ago. This little group of constellations in named circumpolar, as they
are far enough north to circle the pole star

Draco's brightest star is Elatin, or Gamma Draconis. It shines at
magnitude 2.24 and lies 148 light years away. Draco's third brightest
star is located in the head. It lies 362 light years away from here and is
named Rastaban, shining at magnitude 2.79.

The final named star in Draco can be found between the end two star's
of the Big Dipper's Bowl and Polaris. It is a magntiude 3.82 star named
Lambda Draconis, or Giausar.

Around 20,000 years from now the sky will look a little different. The
process that moves the North Celestial Pole is called precession, and is
caused by periodic wobbles of the earth on it's axis. It is believed that
Draco's star Thuban will one day be located where Polaris is, and will
be the 'new' pole star. . Interestingly enough, after about 26,000 years
one cycle of precession takes roughly 26,000 years, and so after this
26,000 years Polaris will be back where we see it now. The dragon will
have its day (or millennia?) hosting the pole star.

You may also be interested to know that there is a cat's eye hiding in
the dragon’s body. NGC6543, or the Cat's Eye Nebula, is located one
third of the way from Eltanin to Polaris. It is somewhat hard to detect
at magnitude 8.8 but can be seen under dark skies with a telescope.

Logged Objects:
None



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Cepheus
The King
"The Ethiopians were the first who invented the science of stars, and
gave names to the planets, not at random and without meaning, but
descriptive of the qualities which they conceived them to possess” -
Lucian
CEPHEUS
Abbreviation Cep
Genitive Cephei
Pronunciation /ˈsiːfiəәs/ or /ˈsiːfjuːs/; genitive /ˈsiːfiaɪ/
Symbolism The King/King Cepheus
Declination +70°
Family Perseus
Quadrant NQ4
Main stars 7
Bayer/Flamsteed 43
stars
Stars with 1
planets
Stars brighter 1
than 3.00m
Stars within 3
10.00 pc
Brightest star α Cep (Alderamin) (2.45m)
Nearest star Kruger 60
(13.15 ly)
Messier objects 0
Meteor showers None
Bordering Cygnus
constellations Lacerta
Cassiopeia
Camelopardalis
Draco
Ursa Minor

Best visible at 21:00 (9 p.m.) during the month of
November.



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Mythology:
This constellation represents King Cepheus of Ethiopia. Although
probably best known as the husband of Queen Cassiopeia and father
of Andromeda.

It has also been said that Cepheus was one of the Argonauts and that
he accompanied Jason on the quest for the golden fleece. For his
honour and bravery, he was placed in the sky. The Chinese regarded
these stars highly and associated them with royalty by calling them
the Inner Throne of the Five Emperors. The Arabs saw in these stars a
shepherd, his dog and a flock of sheep.

He was deemed worthy of a place in the sky because he was fourth in
descent from the nymph Io, one of the loves of Zeus – and having Zeus
as a relative was always an advantage when it came to being
commemorated among the constellations. The kingdom of Cepheus
was not the Ethiopia we know today, but stretched from the south-
eastern shore of the Mediterranean southwards to the Red Sea, an area



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that contains parts of the modern Israel, Jordan and Egypt. Ptolemy
described him as wearing the tiara-like head-dress of a Persian king.

The later Hindus knew Cepheus, or Kepheus, as Capuja, adopted from
Greece
In the Chinese sky, Alpha and Beta Cephei were part of a nine-star
group called Gouxing, the celestial hook; the stars in this group were
associated with omens regarding earthquakes. To the south of
Gouxing, the stars Delta, Epsilon, Zeta, Mu and Nu Cephei formed
Zhaofu, named after the legendary charioteer of the emperor Mu
Wang.

This constellation is believed to date as far back as 23 centuries and
that is was recognized by the Chaldeans.

Astronomical Notes:
Cepheus looks like a house. The point on top is a special star called a
cepheid. These stars are used to measure long distances. The
constellation of Cepheus lies near the north celestial pole. Its most
celebrated star is Delta Cephei, a pulsating supergiant star that varies
in brightness every 5.4 days.

Cepheus is located close to Polaris, and in the Northern Hemisphere
never sets. To locate it, draw a triangle between the constellations,
Cassiopeia, Cygnus and the Little Dipper. WIthin that triangle will be a
pentagon, or house shaped collection of stars, this is the King himself.

Cepheus' brightest star is Alpha Cephei or Alderamin. It lies 45 light
years away and shines at magnitude 2.45, it is found in the bottom
right corner of the pentagon. The other, more distant star at the
bottom of the pentagon is Zeta Cephei

45 lightyears distant is the star that marks the roof in Cepheus; Errai
or Gamma Cephei. It is magnitude 3.21. Lastly at the top of the
pentagon is Gamma Cepheo.

Logged Objects:
None



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Cassiopeia
The Queen
“Cassiopeia, having boasted herself equal in beauty to the Nereids,
drew down the vengeance of Poseidon, who sent an inundation on the
land and a sea-monster which destroyed man and beast...” -
Apollodorus ii. 4; Hyginus, Fab. 64; Ovid, Metam. iv. 662

CASSIOPEIA
Abbreviation Cas
Genitive Cassiopeiae
Pronunciation /ˌkæsi.ɵˈpiː.əә/ Cássiopéia, colloquially /ˌkæsiˈoʊpiː.əә/ Cássiópeia;
genitive /ˌkæsi.ɵˈpiː.iː/
Symbolism the Seated Queen
Right ascension 1h
Declination +60°
Family Perseus
Quadrant NQ1
Main stars 5
Bayer/Flamsteed 53
stars
Stars with 3
planets
Stars brighter 4
than 3.00m
Stars within 7
10.00 pc
Brightest star α Cas (Schedar) (2.15m)
Nearest star η Cas (Achird)
(19.42 ly)
Messier objects 2
Meteor showers Perseids
Bordering Camelopardalis
constellations Cepheus
Lacerta
Andromeda
Perseus

Best visible at 21:00 (9 p.m.) during the month of November.



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Mythology:
The boast of Cassiopeia was that both she and her daughter
Andromeda were more beautiful than all the Nereids, the nymph-
daughters of the sea god Nereus. This brought the wrath of Poseidon,
ruling god of the sea, upon the kingdom of Ethiopia. Her name in
Greek is Κασσιόπη, which means "she whose words excel".

Cassiopeia is the legendary queen of Ethiopia and wife of the king,
Cepheus. The royal couple had a daughter Andromeda who Cassiopeia
was forced to offer up to a sea monster because she had offended the
sea nymphs boasting about her beauty. Cassiopeia was later
transported to the sky, where she sits on her throne and circles the
pole.

Cassiopeia was the beautiful wife of Cepheus, king of Ethiopia, and the
mother of Andromeda. She is most famous in connection with the
myth of her daughter, Andromeda. The queen made the mistake of
bragging she was more lovely than the Nereids, or even than Juno
herself. The goddesses were, needless to say, rather insulted, and went
to Neptune, god of the sea, to complain. Neptune promptly sent a sea
monster (possibly Cetus?) to ravage the coast. The king and queen
were ordered to sacrifice their daughter to appease Neptune's wrath,
and would have done so had Perseus not arrived to kill the monster in
the nick of time. As a reward, the hero was wedded to the lovely
Andromeda.

Although she was placed in the heavens by Neptune, the sea-god saw
fit to humiliate her one final time (and for all eternity). He placed her
so that she is seated on her throne, with her head pointing towards
the North Star Polaris. In this position, she spends half of every night
upside-down.



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This group of stars was also seen by the Arabs as a hand or a kneeling
camel. The Inuit called it the stone lamp.

Astronomical Notes:
Cassiopeia has a very distinct shape. She looks like a "W" or "M" in the
sky, depending on where she is. Cassiopeia is a northern circumpolar
constellation, so it can be viewed all year long. It is home to several
clusters, or groups of stars. M52 is a large cluster on the western edge.
With a telescope, many distant objects can be spotted. There are a few
nebulae within Cassiopeia, including the Bubble Nebula and IC 1805.
This nebula is located just to the east of the constellation. Finally, a
number of galaxies can be spotted, including NGC 185, which is a
small distance south of the "W".

γ Cassiopeiae is a peculiar variable star. The brightness varies from 1.6
to 3 magnitudes. γ Cassiopeiae is assumed to be a binary star
containing a Be star and a neutron star. It is the brightest X-ray binary
on the sky, no other X-ray binaries can be seen with naked eye.
Cassiopeia was the site of Tycho Brahe's supernova of 1572, and is
also the location of Cassiopeia A, the strongest radio source in the sky
(other than the sun). Cassiopeia A is the remnant of a supernova which
apparently occurred in about 1667, although there is no record of it
having been observed.
Logged Objects:




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Date: April 2010
Instrument: Cannon Eos 350D
ISO 1600
No Filter.

M52 can be found quite easily by extending the line from Alpha over Beta
Cassiopeiae by 6 1/2 degrees to the NW to 5th mag 4 Cassiopeiae; M52 is roughly 1
degree south and slightly west of this star. Amateurs can see M52 as a nebulous patch
in good binoculars or finder scopes. In 4-inch telescopes, it appears as a fine, rich
compressed cluster of faint stars, often described as of fan or "V" shape; the bright
yellow star is to the south-western edge.

Right Ascension 23h 24.2m
Declination +61° 35′
Distance 5.0 kly
Apparent Dimension 13.0'

Instrument: Cannon Eos 350D
Exposure: 23 Seconds
Iso: 1600



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No Filter.

M103 is one of the more distant open clusters in the Messier catalogue. It's distance is
estimated between 8000 and 9200 light years, with some uncertainty due to an
unknown amount of light absorption in the intervening space. If a distance of 8500
light years is used, the diameter of the cluster would be 15 light years. The brightest
star in the cluster is actually a binary, Struve 131, and coincidentally, is not physically
located within the cluster.

Right Ascension 01h 33.2m
Declination +60° 42′
Distance 10 kly
Apparent Dimension 6.0



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Hydra
The Many Headed Serpent
"This monster was so poisonous that she killed men with her breath,
and if anyone passed by when she was sleeping, he breathed her tracks
and died in the greatest torment." (Hyginus, 30)

HYDRA
Abbreviation Hya
Genitive Hydrae
Pronunication /ˈhaɪdrəә/, genitive /ˈhaɪdriː/
Symbolism the sea serpent
Right ascension 8-15 h
Declination −20°
Family Hercules
Quadrant SQ2
Area 1303 sq. deg. (1st)
Main stars 17
Bayer/Flamsteed 75
stars
Stars with 10
planets
Stars brighter 2
than 3.00m
Stars within 4
10.00 pc (32.62
ly)
Brightest star Alphard (α Hya) (1.98m)
Nearest star LHS 3003
(20.67 ly)
Messier objects 3
Meteor showers Alpha Hydrids
Sigma Hydrids
Bordering Antlia
constellations Cancer
Canis Minor
Centaurus
Corvus
Crater
Leo
Libra
Lupus (corner)
Monoceros
Puppis
Pyxis
Sextans
Virgo

month of April.



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Mythology:
This monster was the offspring of Typhon and Echidna, and was
brought up by Hera. It ravaged the country of Lernae near Argos, and
dwelt in a swamp near the well of Amymone: it was formidable by its
nine heads, the middle of which was immortal.

Herakles was sent to destroy her as one of his twelve labours, but for
each of her heads that he decapitated, two more sprang forth. So with
the help of Iolaos, he applied burning brands to the severed stumps,
cauterizing the wounds and preventing regeneration. In the battle he
also crushed a giant crab beneath his heel which had come to assist
Hydra. The Hydra and the Crab were afterwards placed amongst the
stars by Hera as the Constellations Hydra and Cancer.

The Egyptians said this group of stars was the river Nile's starry
counterpart.

Astronomical Notes:
Hydra is the longest constellation in the sky and is also the largest in
terms of area. It is so long that it takes more than six hours to rise
completely. Along it's northern side, we can observe the zodiacal signs
of Cancer, Leo, Virgo and Libra. The stars in the serpent's head appear
to be at the same distance but they are really very far away from each
other. The northernmost of the six stars in the head of the serpent,
Epsilon Hydrae, is a quintuple star - a system of five stars. Alphard
(Arabic for "the solitary one") is Hydra's brightest star. Hydra is home
to a fairly faint, but large, open cluster of about 80 stars known as
M48. This cluster is easily observed with binoculars and looks bigger
than the disc of the full Moon. Hydra is one of the most ancient
constellations. –

Logged Objects:
None



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Non-Deep Sky Observations
The Sun
The Bright Father
“The sun illuminates only the eye of the man, but shines into the eye
and the heart of the child” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
Observation:

Date: 6th April Time: 14:00
Seeing: Daylight
Exposure Time: ?
Filter: Solar Filter

This photograph was taken using a solar filter to protect the camera
and my eyesight. Seen magnified without a filter, it can be a literally
blinding sight. If you look carefully, you can see a solar prominence
emerging at the bottom right part of the sun. These are caused by
magnetic instabilities in the seething plasma that makes up the sun’s
structure.

Mythology
The Sun has often been worshipped as a god by humans. Its obvious
power is clearly manifest in the form of blinding light and scorching
heat, a metaphor for omnipotent power. Even as far away from us as it
is now, it demands respect, for without the sun the earth would be
cold, dark and dead.

Ancient, Proto-Indo-European religion depicts the sun as traversing the
sky in a chariot. In Africa The Munshi tribe considers the Sun to be the



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son of the supreme being Awondo and the Moon as Awondo's
daughter. The Barotse tribe believes that the Sun is inhabited by the
sky god Nyambi and the Moon is his wife. In Ancient Pagan Eastern
Europe Svarog is the Slavic god of sun spirit and fire. In Ancient Rome
the feast of Sol Invictus (The Unconquered Sun) on December 25 was
celebrated with great joy, and eventually this date was taken over by
the Christians as Christmas, the birthday of Christ.

Tonatiuh
was
the
Aztec
Sun
God
in
the
Aztec
Civilization.
A
temperamental

deity,
he
had
to
be
persuaded
to
rise
every
day
with
multiple
human
sacrifices.
How

many
victims
had
their
hearts
cut
out
to
appease
him?
In
the
Aztec
calendar,

Tonatiuh
is
the
lord
of
the
thirteen
days
from
1
Death
to
13
Flint.

Astronomical Notes
Astronomically speaking, our sun is an unremarkable, middle aged, G
Class Star. On the Hertzprung Russell diagram it is on the Main
Sequence, which means that it is currently burning hydrogen into
helium, and as far as stars go, is rather stable. In about 4 billion years
it is predicted to start running out of hydrogen. This will cause it to
gradually evolve into a red giant, burning heavier and heavier elements
in an attempt to remain stable.

The Moon
The Lunar Mother



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“I like to think that the moon is there even if I am not looking at it” –
Albert Einstein

The Moon has fascinated mankind throughout the ages. By simply
viewing with the naked eye, one can discern two major types of
terrain: relatively bright highlands and darker plains. By the middle of
the 17th century, Galileo and other early astronomers made telescopic
observations, noting an almost endless overlapping of craters. It has
also been known for more than a century that the Moon is less dense
than the Earth. Although a certain amount of information was
ascertained about the Moon before the space age, this new era has
revealed many secrets barely imaginable before that time. Current
knowledge of the Moon is greater than for any other solar system
object except Earth.

Observation:

Time and Date: 22:18, 9/10/09
Object(s) Viewed: The Moon
Equipment Used: Naked eye observation
Observations made from: Treforest, Rhonda Cynon Taf
Notes: I went out to observe the moon after a car journey from
Merthyr Tydfil with a friend. I noticed the particular, dark yellow hue
of the moon and found it to be rather frightening. The moon can
appear this way when it is low in the sky and when there are a lot of
dust particles in the atmosphere. The optical phenomenon is caused
by some of the light being refracted by the dense particles in the air,
high up in the atmosphere, and this is the same phenomenon
responsible for the orange hues we sometimes see in the setting sun.



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Mythology
The mythology of the moon is often linked to a female goddess who is
paired with the male sun. She symbolizes emotions, feelings, instincts,
day to day habit patterns and routine. The Moon is very strongly
related to mother, home and family, and the cycles of the moon are
intricately tied to feminine moods and menstrual cycles. The moon
was thought to effect people’s mental states, with the term Lunacy
coming from Latin name for the moon, Luna. Lastly, there is the time
honoured western myth of the Were-wolf, the beast that emerges only
when the moon is full, and makes mischief on cloudless nights under
the pale moonlight

The Many Names Of The Moon
In ancient Greece the moon was called Selene and in Rome her name
was Luna. In the myths associated with these goddesses, the goddess
is paired with the god of the sun. He travels throughout the day and
she takes over the journey at night. She was typically considered to be
a passionate goddess who takes many lovers and who represents the
desire associated with the moon.

The Aztecs had Coyolxauhqui, which means "Golden Bells."
Coyolxauhqui was the sister of the Sun god, Huitzilopochtli.
Coyolxauhqui was a powerful magician and the leader of the Star
Gods, the Centzonuitznaua

However, not all of the deities associated with the moon are
goddesses. Tecciztecatl was a male Aztec deity, sometimes identified
as a rabbit. In some depictions he carried a large, white seashell on his
back, representing the moon itself; in others he had butterfly wings.

Mawu. In Africa, Mawu is a moon God who is forever linked in unity
with the sun goddess Liza. It is believed that lunar and solar eclipses
are related to the lovemaking times of the celestial couple.

Soma. This is a Hindu god that is associated with the moon. In Hindu
art, Soma is sometimes an embryo and sometimes a bull, and
frequently associated with Fertility. Soma's twenty-seven wives were
the star goddesses, the Nakshatras - daughters of the cosmic
progenitor Daksha. Daksha cursed Soma to wither and die, but the
wives intervened and the death became periodic and temporary, and is
symbolized by the waxing and waning of the moon



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In Greek myths, Selene was the Titan Goddess of the Moon
Incarnate. She was depicted as a woman either riding side saddle on a
horse or in a chariot drawn by a pair of winged steeds. Her lunar
sphere or crescent was represented as either a crown set upon her head
or as the fold of a raised, shining cloak.

Astronomical Notes:
The ‘impact’ theory suggests that our moon was formed as the result
of earth colliding with a Mars sized planet named Theia. Geologically
speaking, Luna is quite unremarkable, having no geological activity,
and being comprised mainly of cold dead rock. Its surface is of
immense value to astronomers who wish to study the environment of
the early solar system. Its many craters are ancient, and tell us about
how much debris was loose in the baby solar system.

The Moon is 384,403 kilometers (238,857 miles) distant from the
Earth. Its diameter is 3,476 kilometers (2,160 miles). Both the rotation
of the Moon and its revolution around Earth takes 27 days, 7 hours,
and 43 minutes. This synchronous rotation is caused by an
unsymmetrical distribution of mass in the Moon, which has allowed
Earth's gravity to keep one lunar hemisphere permanently turned
toward Earth .
-Source: Calvin J Hamilton http://www.solarviews.com/eng/moon.htm



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The Milky Way
The Starry Road
“The Milky Way is nothing else but a mass of innumerable stars planted
together in clusters.” - Galileo Galilei

The milky way is not one object, but is instead comprised of the
millions of observable stars and objects in the galactic plane of our
home galaxy. Truly one of the most magnificant sights in the sky, to
look at it is to truly feel the primal beauty of the universe. Sadly,
many urban dwellers have not been able to see the extent of the Milky
Way, if they have even seen it at all, and even small amounts of light
pollution are enough to obscure much of the ethereal detail of this
wonderous sight.

Observation:

Date: 19th February 2010
Exposure Time: Unknown



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Filter: None.

Mythology:
In Meteorologica Aristotle argued the Milky Way to be caused by "the
ignition of the fiery exhalation of some stars which were large,
numerous and close together" and that the "ignition takes place in the
upper part of the atmosphere, in the region of the world which is
continuous with the heavenly motions."

The Khoisan people of the Kalahari desert in southern Africa say that
long ago there were no stars and the night was pitch black. A girl, who
was lonely and wanted to visit other people, threw the embers from a
fire into the sky and created the Milky Way.

In Far Eastern Mythologies, the stars Altair and Vega were said to be
two lovers who were allowed to meet only once a year on the seventh
day of the seventh month, when a flock of magpies and crows formed
a bridge over the galactic river. That day is celebrated as Qi Xi, the
Seventh Night

In the Hindu collection of stories called Bhagavata Purana, all the
visible stars and planets moving through space are likened to a
dolphin that swims through the water, and the heavens is called
sisumãra cakra, the dolphin disc. The Milky Way forms the abdomen
of the dolphin and is called Akasaganga, which means "The Ganges
River of the Sky".

In Egyptian mythology, the Milky Way was considered a pool of cow's
milk. It was deified as a fertility cow-goddess by the name of Bat.

To the Māori of Australasia, the Milky Way is the waka (canoe) of
Tama-rereti. The front and back of the canoe are Orion and Scorpius,
while the Southern Cross and the Pointers are the anchor and rope.

Astronomical Notes:
The Milky Way is a barred spiral galaxy that is part of the Local Group
of galaxies. It is one of countless billions in the observable universe. It
is estimated to contain between 200 billion and 400 billion stars. Our
galaxy has a relatively low surface brightness due to the interstellar
medium that fills the galactic disk, like thick cloth draped over a
lightbulb, this prevents us from seeing the bright galactic centre with
the naked eye.

The Sun (and correspondingly our Solar System) may be found close to
the inner rim of the galaxy's Orion Arm, in the Local Fluff inside the
Local Bubble. We are at a distance of 25,000 light years from the
Galactic Centre; a region thick with stars and thought to be the host of



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an immense black hole, which acts as an anchor to all the material
within our galaxy, trapped in it’s gravitational pull.

Depending on which tribe you ask, the Aborigines of Australasia have
many different and fertile myths related to the Milky Way.
-Source: Malcolm Maloney Jagamarra: Marlu (Milky Way Dreaming)



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Jupiter
The King Of The Gods
“Whether they find a life there or not, I think Jupiter should be called
an enemy planet.” - Jack Handy
Jupiter is king in the planetary hierarchy, the largest of all the planets
in the neighbourhood. Like a Solar System in miniature, Jupiter has
scores of smaller moons and captured objects trapped by his strong
gravitational pull. Perhaps not the startling planet to look at, Jupiter
glows in shades of brown and ochre, and his fluid atmosphere is
streaked with ponderously moving lines that mark divisions in the
swirling gaseous chaos.

Jupiter’s incredibly strong magnetic field is immense. If it could be
seen from earth it would take up as much space in the sky as the full
moon. It reacts to electromagnetic excitation in the same way as our
own magnetic field and has its own beautiful aurora.

Mythology



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To the Romans and Greeks, Jupiter was the King of the Gods, son of
the titans and frequently made time to interfere in the affairs of
humans. The Romans called him Optimus Maximus -‘Father God, Best
And Greatest’ – and he knew it!

Jupiter was one of the most important of the Roman gods,
continuously evolving with Roman needs. In the early Republican era,
when Rome was an agricultural city, he first appeared as an
agricultural god in charge of sun and moonlight (Jupiter Lucetius),
wind, rain, storms, thunder and lightning (Jupiter Elicius), sowing
(Jupiter Dapalis), creative forces (Jupiter Liber) and the boundary
stones of fields (Jupiter Terminus).

As Rome developed into a city of commerce and military force, Jupiter
evolved into a protector of the city and state of Rome His main temple
was the "Capitolim Vetus", situated on the Capitoline Hill in Rome,
which he shared with Juno (his sister and consort) and Minerva, to
form the Capitoline Triad.

In Egypt he was called Ammon, and was depicted as a human with a
ram's head. He was one of the chief gods of the Egyptian pantheon. In
Babylon he was represented by Marduk, the patron God of the city of
Babylon, considered equivalent to the older Sumerian god Enlil. The
Assyrians in turn equated Enlil to their state god, Ashur. All were
often just referred to as Lord, and this title is preserved in Biblical
references to Baal or Bel.



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In modern astrology, Jupiter is the planet of expansion, and is
associated with leadership, principles, philosophy, law, politics, higher
education, travel, abundance, problem solving and rituals. Negatively
Jupiter is said to manifest as excess in our lives and this affliction may
be physical; such as addictions or spiritual, such as dogmatism.

Astronomical Notes
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and is the largest planet in the
solar system. If Jupiter were hollow, more than one thousand Earths
could fit inside. It also contains two and a half times the mass of all
the other planets combined. It has a mass of 1.9 x 1027 kg and is
142,800 kilometers (88,736 miles) across the equator. Jupiter
possesses 62 known satellites. The four largest are Callisto, Europa,
Ganymede and Io, and were named after Galileo Galilei who observed
them as long ago as 1610. The German astronomer Simon Marius
claimed to have seen the moons around the same time, but he did not
publish his observations and so Galileo is given the credit for their
discovery.

Jupiter has a very faint ring system, but is totally invisible from the
Earth. (The rings were discovered in 1979 by Voyager 1.) The
atmosphere is very deep, perhaps comprising the whole planet, and is
somewhat like the Sun. It is composed mainly of hydrogen and helium,
with small amounts of methane, ammonia, water vapor and other
compounds. At great depths within Jupiter, the pressure is so great
that the hydrogen atoms are broken up and the electrons are freed so
that the resulting atoms consist of bare protons. This produces a state
in which the hydrogen becomes metallic. This metallic hydrogen is
thought to be responsible for Jupiter’s immense magnetic field.
-Source:Calvin J Hamilton http://www.solarviews.com/eng/jupiter.htm

Observation:
Time and Date: 21:18, 16/10/09
Object(s) Viewed: Jupiter, Galilean Moons
Equipment Used: Meade LXD55 Telescope, 12x80LE BAK 4 Binoculars
Observations made from: Treforest, Rhonda Cynon Taf
Notes: Atmospheric conditions were clear. Observation was made in suburban back
garden so some glare caused by nearby streetlights hindered observing quality. My
observations differed from that of Danny, I could not distinguish any features on the
Jovian surface, whereas he could. Two of the moons were overlapping in my field of
view.



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Appendix I: Miscellaneous Images

Miscellaneous Photo 01: Though not deep sky objects, this is a picture
of Venus and Mercury as the sun sets, El Bosque, Spain, April 2010.

Miscellaneous Photo 02: A long exposure picture of University of
Glamorgan’s Astronomy and Space Undergraduates and Staff, taken
around the time of the first shot, El Bosque, Spain, April 2010.



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Appendix II:
Image Credits:

Mythological Images Exerpted from two historical celestial atlases:
i. Firmamentum Sobiescianum sive Uranographia* star atlas by
Johannes Hevelius. Published: 1690. © Expired.
ii. Urania’s Mirror** published by Samuel Leigh of the Strand,
London, circa 1825 © Expired.

* Hevelius was perhaps the most active observational astronomer of
the last half of the seventeenth century. His star atlas is notable for
many reasons. It contains fifty-six large, exquisite, double-page
engraved star maps. The star positions for the charts were derived
from Hevelius's own star catalogue, based on his own observations,
which was first published along with the atlas. It is unique among the
Grand Atlases in choosing to depict the constellations as they would
appear on a globe, that is, from the outside looking in, rather than
from a geocentric point of view
source: - Linda Hall Library Of Science
http://www.lindahall.org/events_exhib/exhibit/exhibits/stars/hev.htm

**Urania’s Mirror is a boxed set of 32 constellation cards first published by Samuel
Leigh of the Strand, London, in or shortly before 1825. The engraver was Sidney Hall
but authorship was coyly attributed to “a lady”. Peter Hingley, librarian of the Royal
Astronomical Society in London, has established that the true author was almost
certainly the Reverend Richard Rouse Bloxam of Rugby -
http://www.ianridpath.com/atlases/urania.htm

Star Maps Exerpted From: http://www.starryskies.com and are ©
Kathy Miles and Chuck Peters.

I have chosen to use images from two atlases as a comparison because both
illustrators represented the constellations quite differently, and in my opinion,
astronomy is as much an art as a science.

Constellation
Images
©
Jerry
Lodriguss
-‐
http://www.astropix.com

Jerry’s
Equiptment:

• Lens:
Astro-‐Physics
130EDT
triplet
apochromatic
refractor

• Focal
Length:
1040mm

·

Mount:
Losmandy
GM
100EQ

·

Camera:
Canon
EOS
20Da
DSLR,
Canon
EOS
1D
Mark
II
DSLR

• Processing:
Photoshop
CS



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Appendix III:
References
The majority of my astronomical notes were rewritten or partially
rewritten referring to Kelly Whitt’s constellation articles located at -
http://stargazing.suite101.com/

The majority of my constellation mythology was excerpted or partially
rewritten from the articles written by Kathy Miles at
http://starryskies.com/The_sky/constallations_html/ - as well as
additional sources.

Additional constellation mythology was sourced from
http://www.astro-tom.com/getting_started/mythology.htm


Jack Oughton - Observational Journal 09-10

Jack Oughton - Observational Journal 09-10

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