U 448
09:00 to 10:12
-61° to -72°
Car, Vol
Dec-Jun

FEATURED OBJECTS: NGC 2842, NGC 3136, NGC 2808, NGC 3036, Ru 84, Tr 11, Ru 161, IC 2448, IC 2553, ESO092-SC005.

NGC 2842
ESO091-G004
RA 09:15:36
Dec -63° 04.2'
Galaxy

Discovered by Sir John Herschel at the Cape of Good Hope with an 18-inch f/13 speculum telescope. He recorded it as "F, vS, between two stars, in a field full of milky way stars. No doubt of the nature of the object."

The RNGC (Sulentic and Tifft 1973) notes that this is a unverified southern object.

NGC 3136
ESO092-G008
RA 10:05:47
Dec -67° 22.6'
Galaxy

Discovered by Sir John Herschel at the Cape of Good Hope with an 18-inch f/13 speculum telescope. He recorded it as "B, R, bM." On a second occassion he called it "pB,R, gbM, 40 arcseconds." His third observation was recorded as "pB, R, gbM, 40 arcseconds, south of a star 13th mag."

ASV Journal, Vol 24 No 3 June 1971: "oval shaped and easy in 10.5-inch 150x."

6-inch f/8.6 Newtonian: A bright stellar nucleus with a round fringe. Has a very small star very close north-east. In the half-degree eyepiece, the galaxy is flanked by two 9.5mag stars - one south, one north-west. This star has a small companion PA 135 degrees. (suburban skies, 6.0 naked eye) [AS]

NGC 2808
ESO091-SC001, GCL-13
RA 09:12:02.6
Dec -64° 51' 47''
Globular cluster

James Dunlop discovered the globular cluster while observing from Paramatta, New South Wales, and included it as No. 265 in his catalogue of 1827. Using a 9-inch f/12 telescope, he described it as "a very bright round nebula, about 3' or 4' diameter, very gradually bright to the centre. This has a fine globular appearance."

Observed by Sir John Herschel at the Cape of Good Hope with an 18-inch f/13 speculum telescope. He recorded it as "globular cluster, extremely compressed pretty gradually very much brighter to the middle; up to a perfect blaze; diam. in RA = 26.8 seconds; stars of 16th magnitude; equal. R.A. doubtful; the mirror being in a spring case (afterwards disused)." On the second occasion he described it as "globular cluster, 4' or 5' diameter first pretty gradually then pretty suddenly brighter to the middle; all resolved into stars 16 mag and a few 15 mag. A neat double star follows distance 1 field." His next observation records it as a "superb globular cluster, diam = 5', very much compressed almost to a nipple. Stars innumerable and very small; 13..15 magnitude." His final observation notes it as being "a truly beautiful and delicate globular cluster; diameter in RA = 45 seconds, that of the most compressed part 15 seconds; gradually very bright in the middle; all finely resolved into perfectly equal stars like the finest dust, which are seen with the left eye without effort, but the right requires to be somewhat strained to discern them. Runs up to a blaze in the centre."

E J Hartung writes: "In a fine field this beautiful object is a splendid example of the symmetrical strongly compressed type of globular cluster, composed of innumerable faint stars. It is about 5' across and a 6-inch will resolve it; to smaller apertures it is a bright nebulous haze with strong central condensation."

11x80: This bright globular cluster lies between the False and Diamond Crosses in the southern milky way. In binoculars it appears as a bright, extended, diffuse patch, easy to see even while sweeping. [AS]

6-inch f/8.6 Newtonian: The low-power sweeper eyepiece (50’, 43x) shows a very bright, woolly globular cluster on a field with large and small stars. The cluster covers some 6 arcminutes, and brightens gradually to a broad centre 1.2’ wide. There is no resolution at all, not even mottling across the disk. Several faint field stars congregate near the cluster; much further out, 12 arcmin east of the nucleus, is a close double star. (suburban skies, 6.0 naked eye, seeing very good) [AS]

15.5-inch f/9 Newtonian: At 220X, this very beautiful globular cluster looks much like a smaller version of 47 Tucanae. Its stars are crowded towards a dense nucleus, and then gradually fade to the edges, finally disappearing about 3 nucleus-diameters away. A breathtaking spectacle, the stars are very densely packed together, and the gradual thining out from compact nucleus to black sky is beautiful. (suburban skies, approx. 5.5 naked eye) [AS]

NGC 3036
ESO126-SC027
RA 09:49:15
Dec -62° 40.0'
Open cluster

Discovered by Sir John Herschel at the Cape of Good Hope with an 18-inch f/13 speculum telescope. He recorded it as "the chief star, 10th mag, of a cluster class VIII of scattered stars 10' diameter. It is on the borders of the milky way."

The RNGC (Sulentic and Tifft 1973) notes that this is a nonexistent object. Their coded description reads NOCL S.

Ru 84
ESO091-SC019
RA 09:49:08
Dec -65° 15.1'
Open cluster

6-inch f/8.6 Newtonian: Tiny cluster south-east of mu Carinae (quite surprising to find such a delicate cluster near such a bright star). Seen while sweeping with the finder eyepiece. Readily seen as separate from the background, appearing as a distinct faint triangular grouping, like a mini-Hyades. The handful of stars making up the cluster form 2 brighter pairs plus a small diamond, spread out over a 4 arcmin area, forming a V shaped grouping pointing north-east. These distinct groupings mean there is no distinct concentration of the stars, which exhibit a restricted brightness range with all the stars about 10th magnitude. No star colours apparent. Eight arcmin to the north-west of the cluster, back towards mu Carinae, is a neat double star. (suburban skies, 6.0 naked eye, seeing very good) [AS]

Tr 11
ESO127-SC005, Cr 216
RA 10:04:54
Dec -61° 35.8'
Open cluster

Trumpler (Lick Obs Bul, Vol 14, No. 420) gives the diameter as 4' and the class as 2 2 p. He notes: “Found on Franklin-Adams Chart. Pretty well defined small cluster, not rich, but regular in outline.”

6-inch f/8.6 Newtonian: Hardly obvious in the sweeper (50’, 42x) eyepiece; a small clumping of 10th mag stars. Although not part of the background, this cluster does not stand out well since there are other clumps of stars in this wide field of view. At 144x, the cluster appears as a vague scattering of stellar lights within a narrow triangle of stars, one of which is orange. The long side of the triangle is 7.5 arcmin, and the cluster is scattered comfortably within. It is some 5 arcmin across, and has two 9.5 mag stars and five or so fainter ones scattered about. None of the cluster members are bright enough for colour to be detected. (suburban skies, 6.0 naked eye) [AS]

Ru 161
ESO127-SC009
RA 10:08:44
Dec -61° 15.0'
Open cluster

6-inch f/8.6 Newtonian: Not there! Perhaps too scattered for my narrow field (42x, 50’)?. (suburban skies, 6.0 naked eye, seeing very good) [AS]

IC 2448
ESO061-PN001, PK285-14.01
RA 09:07:09
Dec -69° 18.8'
Planetary nebula

Hartung writes: "This conspicuous planetary nebula was missed by John Herschel and discovered by Fleming spectroscopically; it is 8 arcsec across and the brightest object in a field of scattered stars."

Burnham calls this 12th magnitude, very small and round, appearing nearly stellar.

ASV Journal Vol 24 No 3 June 1971: "at limit in 4-inch 200x."

6-inch f/8.6 Newtonian: West-southwest of Beta Carinae. The sweeper (50', 42x) shows a small star. Higher powers (144x) shows the round, even, somewhat fuzzy non-stellar disk easily; double-checked with other stars, just in case. (suburban skies, 6.0 naked eye, seeing very good) [AS]

IC 2553
ESO127-PN010, PK285-05.01
RA 10:09:20
Dec -62° 22.5'
Planetary nebula

This 13th mag planetary nebula was discovered spectroscopically by Fleming at Harvard Observatory.

Hartung writes: "In a field sown thickly with stars it may be seen at once by its pale blue disk about 5 arcseconds across."

Small planetary in Carina, near the Diamond Cross region. This 11th magnitude planetary shares a 23’ (104x) field of view with three other stars, arranged in a long (3.5’) rectangle. As there stars are brought to focus, their images continue to shrink down to pointish size, while one leaves a clear, gray disc, even in light - the nebula.

ESO092-SC005
RA 10:03:14
Dec -64° 45.2'
Globular cluster