18 October 2005

Observing Location	TotL
Observational Period	2145-2215 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	It was supposed to have been mostly cloudy and possible rain tonight the last time I saw a weather forecast so I scheduled a movie. It turned out being very clear with not much haze at all. There was no ring around the nearly full moon. The temperature was mild too, especially for such a clear night. Transparency Very Good Seeing Unknown
Instruments	Naked Eye Observing
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

One of my other friends wanted to see Wallace and Gromet so last week we scheduled it for tonight when it was supposed to be mostly cloudy and possibly rain. It is also a Jewish holiday so theater attendance was likely to be lighter than normal. It turns out today was a beautiful afternoon and evening. I had thought about at least taking my compact binoculars with me to do a little solar observing before the movie but was cutting my time close so left with no equipment, no PDA, and not even a pen to write notes on a business card. I was surprised that nobody else was out observing so there was nobody to help me with constellation identifications. So I need to back out what I saw tonight before I forget it. I was able to identify all of the constellations I saw but two or three.

Naked-eye Limiting Magnitude Observations

N 4.27 E 3.97 Zenith -- W 3.94 S 4.39 Star Magnitude Aquila, The Eagle Alshain β Aql 3.73 Altaair α Aql 0.79 Tarazed γ Aql 2.74 Deneb el Okab 3.01 δ Aql 3.38 η Aql 3.92 θ Aql 3.25 Sagitta, The Arrow γ Sge 3.49 δ Sge 3.84 β Sge 4.39 α Sge 4.39 Cygnus, The Swan Deneb α Cyg 1.27 Sadr γ Cyg 2.22 Alberio β Cyg 3.10 δ Cyg 2.89 Gienah Cygni ε Cyg 2.48 Lyra, The Lyre Vega α Lyr 0.05 ε Lyr 5.0/6.1/5.2/5.5 δ Lyr 5.6/4.3 Sulafat γ Lyr 3.26 Hercules, The Strongman ε Her 3.94 Sarin δ Her 3.16 Ophiuchus, The Serpent Bearer Rasalhague α Oph 2.10 Ursa Minor, The Little Bear Pherkad γ UMi 3.07 Kochab β UMi 2.10 5 UMi 4.27 Polaris α UMi 2.0 Ursa Major, The Great Bear Dhube α UMa 1.7 Merak β UMa 2.39 Cassiopeia, The Queen Caph β Cas 2.29 Schedar α Cas 2.25 ζ Cas 3.68 γ Cas 2.49 Ruchbah δ Cas 2.70 Segin ε Cas 3.40 Perseus, The Hero Miram η Per 3.78 τ Per 3.97 γ Per 2.95 Mirfak α Per 1.8 Algol β Per 2.14 Gorgonea Tertia ρ Per 3.41 Auriga, The Charioteer Capella α Aur 0.10 Al Anz ε Aur 3.01 Haedi ζ Aur 3.77 Hoedus II η Aur 3.19 Hassaleh ι Aur 2.71 37 Aur 2.6 ν & τ Aur 3.99/4.54 Menkalinan β Aur 1.92 Taurus, The Bull Alnath β Tau 1.67 Aldeberan α Tau 0.87 M45 seen Andromeda, The Chained Maiden Almaak γ And 2.28/4.86 Mirach β And 2.08 δ And 3.29 Alpheratz 2.08 μ And 3.89 Pegasus, The Winged Horse Algenib γ Peg 2.85 Markab α Peg 2.51 Scheat β Peg 2.44 μ Peg 3.50 γ Peg 3.97 Enif ε Peg 2.41 Cetus, The Whale Diphda β Cet 2.06 Pisces Austrinus, The Southern Fish Fomalhaut α PsA 1.18 There was some twinkling in the area of the α Per Association. The moon was causing problems when looking to the north and east.

Target	Moon and Mars
Constellation	Ari
Category	Planet
Time	20Oct05; 2200 EDT
Comments	Mars was 5.9° below and to the left of the nearly full Moon. Even given their proximity Mars brightness did not appear to be diminished. Moon Mars Age 15d 15h 31m   Illuminated 96.8% 97.7% Phase 20.5° 17.3° Magnitude -12.3 -2.1 Angular Size 32'01" 19.8"