The final Messier object in Auriga that I observed last Friday was M38. M38 is an open cluster very similar to M37 except it has less stars and is about 3 times fainter. I had a difficult time determining the identity of this object. I moved the telescope past M36 and scanned the sky with the finderscope but had no luck. There were too many clouds interfering with the observation on a low power finderscope. I instead took to using the main scope to scan the sky. I found a very faint cluster of stars and kept it at that location for around 15 minutes. The clouds started to drift away and the cluster became brighter and I was able to identify it as M38.
A fainter cluster is only 30' away known as NGC 1907. I was unable to observe this cluster at the time due to the cloud cover and the jubilation of finding M38. When I have some time to revisit this area I will look for the apparent cross shape of M38 and NGC 1907. I also hope to have the opportunity to take a picture to add to my observation log below.
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| M38 Observation Record |
With fog, snow and temperatures far below seasonal for the next two weeks it seems as though there will be no opportunity for observations. Saturday seems like it will be the clearest evening which is fortunate because there is an open house at the Rothney Astrophysical Observatory. Orion, Taurus and Leo should make a great appearance. I look forward to showing people the Orion Nebula for the first time in their life and seeing the look on their faces.
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