Four stunning sights for stargazers
For the latest in our series of pieces with Cambridge Astronomical Association, we asked chairman Paul Fellows for his top sights for amateur astronomers to train their telescopes on...
1. The Orion Nebula
“In the winter, the main constellation to the south is Orion and it contains one of the most beautiful objects of all, which is the Orion Nebula,” says Paul Fellows, chairman of Cambridge Astronomical Association. “Any telescope will show it in nice detail. It’s easy enough to find and you can take some happy snaps with a digital camera.”
Orion is indeed mercifully easy to locate. Look for the line of three stars in a row – this is Orion’s belt. Above this are Orion’s shoulders – one of these is a giant red star called Betelgeuse, the other is Bellatrix. The two bright stars to the other side of the belt are his legs, including Rigel, a massive blue supergiant.
Hanging below Orion’s belt is his sword – another line of three stars and the Orion Nebula.
2. and 3. Planetary nebula
“In summer, there are a couple of objects known as planetary nebulae, which are in fact nothing to do with planets. But if you’d had Gallileo’s telescope in 1609, they looked a bit like a round blob. Nowadays we
can see them much better,” says Paul.
“They are like giant smoke rings caused when a star like the Sun reaches the end of its life. They puff off the end of their outer atmospheres. They have a central tiny white dwarf star.”
Two that Paul suggests looking out for with a telescope are the Ring Nebula and the Dumbbell Nebula.
To find the Ring Nebula, first look for the summer triangle – three very bright stars visible during the season, the brightest of which is Vega.
Vega is part of the constellation of Lyra, which also features a parallelogram. The Ring Nebula, also known as M57, is halfway between the two stars that form the short edge at the bottom of Lyra.
The Dumbbell Nebula, in the constellation of Vulpecula, is visible with large binoculars or a small telescope. First find the constellation of Sagitta, the arrow, which lies within the summer triangle, near the bright star of Altair.
The nebula, M27, lies above the pointed end of the arrow.
4. The Great Globular Cluster
“Another object I really like is the Great Globular Cluster in Hercules,” says Paul.
“You can see that even in binoculars as a small fuzzy round ball, but a telescope brings the magnification up and you can start to see it as a ball of half a million stars all clustered together.
“It is quite incredible when you see it against a dark background.
“It’s like a box of jewels in space – it’s amazing.”
To find the cluster, also known as M13, find the four stars known as the Keystone, which form the body of Hercules.
Between the two western stars you will find the Great Globular Cluster.
Share your astrophotography images with us by emailing paul.brackley@iliffemedia.co.uk
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Stargazing with Cambridge Astronomical Association chairman Paul Fellows
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