LX200 (classic) Tuned Observing Lists-page 2
52 Finests Objects for Public Nights
52 Finest Objects for Public Nights List
52 Finest Objects Descriptions
Meade star numbers are noted with a *. To access a SAO number, push the Star key and then the Enter key on the classic keypad and use the up/down keys to select from the menu.
LX200 Public Night List Description
- M81 & 82 bright cores and fainter outer parts can be seen in a 10-inch scope at 80x.
- Xi Ursa Majoris forms a tight white pair (2.5-seconds) in a 6-inch.
- Gamma Leonis is a beautiful yellow pair, 4.5-seconds apart, easily split in a 3-inch.
- NGC3243 is one of the brightest and easiest of all planetary nebulae.
- M104, the Sombrero galaxy, shows the dark equatorial band in a 13-inch at 190x. Small instruments show only a hazy ellipse.
- Gamma Virginis, one of the best-known binary stars, has a white pair of nearly the same magnitude, nearly 5-seconds apart.
- 4 Coma Berenices, a 20-sec. pair show orange and blue-green, vivid in larger scopes.
- Cor Caroli, a 20-second blue-white double, is one of the best for small scopes.
- Mizar is a fine double, both white, 15-seconds apart, while Alcor is 12-minutes away. Excellent for comparing what the naked eye can see with what the telescope reveals.
- M51, the Whirlpool galaxy, shows hints of its spiral structure in a 10-inch at 80x. Its close companion, NGC5195, gives the appearance of a double nebula in wider fields.
- M3 is the first bright globular cluster of the spring skies. It is partly resolved in a 6-inch and completely so in a 13-inch.
- M5, a marvelous object in a 10-inch, rivals M13.
- Zeta Coronae Borealis a 6-second double consisting of nearly equally bright bluish and greenish stars. Colors definite in a 6-inch.
- 16 and 17 Draconis, 1.5-minutes apart form a triple, the brighter components are nearly equal, and the primary has a close companion.
- M13, the finest northern globular cluster, resolves well in a 6-inch.
- M12 and
- M10 are similar globular clusters only a few degrees apart, the best of many in Ophiuchus. They appear granular in a 4-inch and can be resolved in a 10-inch.
- Rho Herculis, a 4-second double, is attractive even in small scopes.
- M92 is a globular with a bright center. Often overlooked because of M13.
- Nu Draconis. A pair of perfectly matched white stars of equal brightness.
- 95 Herculis is a 6-second pair of bright stars, pale red and pale green in colour.
- M23 is a large, uniform, and fairly rich open cluster, striking in an 8/10-inch at 150x. 23.
- M8, the Lagoon nebula, appears as a nebulous patch traversed by a large dark lane and a scattered open cluster to one side.
- M17, the Swan or Omega nebula, can been easily seen in a 3-inch. The Milky Way background is quite rich here.
- M22 is rated as the finest globular cluster in the northern hemisphere after M13.
- M11, the Wild Duck cluster, is the finest open cluster north of -40 degrees for large instruments. Very rich and compact, it has a bright star near its center.
- Theta Serpentis is an easy pair of white stars, separated by 23 seconds.
- M57, the famous Ring nebula, rates as the authors' finest planetary. Its central hole is seen at 100x in a 3-inch. The faint central star needs a large scope to be seen.
- Epsilon Lyrae, the famous double-double, is the finest multiple star in this list. Both close pairs, 2.3 and 2.6 seconds apart.
- Alberio is a beautiful 35-second pair, orange and blue. These colors are much more vivid in smaller scopes.
- M27, the Dumbell nebula, is large and bright, pinched near the middle in 4-inch at 40x.
- Gamma Dolphin, a 10-second pair, appears delicately colored yellow and pale green.
- 61 Cygni, a famous long-period binary star, has orange components 28 seconds apart.
- Mu Cephei, long-famed as Herschel's garnet star, is a semi-regular, variable super giant. It is deep orange in an 8-inch, and yellow-orange in a 13-inch.
- 19 (TX) Piscium has a very red colour, apparent in all apertures.
- Alpha Piscium is a tight, white pair, 3 seconds apart.
- Gamma Arietis is a pair of equally bright white stars, 9 seconds apart.
- NGC 869 and 884 make up the double cluster in Perseus. Rated as the finest open clusters for small telescopes. Contrasting colors are discernible in larger scopes.
- 32 Eridani's components are yellow and blue-green, separated by about 7 seconds. Colour contrast is vivid in medium to larger scopes.
- M42, the Orion nebula, is the finest diffuse nebula in this survey- a magnificent sight!
- Sigma Orionis is a multiple star, three components being easily seen in a 3-inch, four in a 6-inch. The bright star has a very difficult close (0.3 second) companion.
- Lambda Orionis is a 5.5-second pair of white stars.
- M37 is the finest of the great open clusters in Auriga. It is rich and has an orange star near its center.
- M35, a large, uniform, and bright star cluster, needs at least a 30-minute field.
- UU Aurigae is a bright, very red carbon star, more vivid in an 8-inch than in a 13-inch.
- 12 Lyncis is a triple system, nice in a 6-inch.
- Castor. The two very bright, blue-white stars form a close binary whose separation is just under 2-seconds. The faint third star, a minute of arc away, is orange and just visible.
- NGC 2392 is a vivid blue planetary nebula with a bright central star. It is easy with a 6-inch at 100x, and a 13-inch at 600x permits dark structures in the disk to be glimpsed with averted vision.
- Kappa Puppis, easy in a 3-inch, is a 10-second pair of white stars.
- Zeta Cancri is an attractive but difficult triple. A 4-inch shows only two components about 6 seconds apart. The three, all yellow, are well resolved in a 10-inch at 320x.
- Iota Cancri is an orange star with a blue neighbor 31 seconds away.
- M67 is a rich swarm of faint stars, resolved in a 4-inch, is a fine sight in a 6-inch.
