Last week the weather allowed for a few good days of observation. I wanted to finish off the Messier objects in Canis Major and Puppis before they went away for the year. M46 and M47 are open clusters that are very close to each other (1.5°) and subsequently fit into the same binocular field or wide field of view telescope setup. M47 is the easier of the pair to see as it has several bright stars. Just above M47 is NGC2423 which is easily observed in the same moderate field telescope setup.
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| M47 - Observation Record |
In skies away from light pollution M47 is visible to the naked eye. An image of the cluster I took is provided below.
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| M47 |
It is a relatively large open cluster being about half a degree in size. There are a lot of stars contained within it but it makes up for it in apparent magnitude. If you are ever out with binoculars stick the brightest star in the sky -- Sirius into your view and look directly East. This cluster should appear and be very bright. If you look carefully try to see the fainter M46 just below.
I hope you have the opportunity to come out to the observatory this weekend. The weather is supposed to be great and you will be able to see these clusters through a telescope. Jupiter will also be visible with its moons. Also, you will have the opportunity to see the Orion Nebula through a telescope. If you have never had this experience it is definitely worth the trip. For more information please check out the event page listed below.
https://www.facebook.com/events/1643865815921397/
Enjoy the great weather and make sure you look up and say goodbye to the winter constellations. Orion will soon be below the horizon at night not to be seen for many months.
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