Re: Messier Marathon Object Ordering (?)

Hi Tom,

Tom Polakis wrote:
Greg Crinklaw wrote:


I planned a marathon like this for the 26th and the rough ones are M74,
which will be very low on the western horizon during evening twilight,
and M30, which has a similar problem during morning twilight. If you
can get those two you should be ok. But all this is very subject to
latitude!

Yes, those are the two notoriously difficult ones. M77 is at nearly as
unfavorable of an altitude as M74, but is much easier to see thanks to
its bright Seyfert core.

Ok, I get it. I was wondering why the SAC list has M77 before M74; looking at them (and plotting them against my local horizon at the end of twilight) I'd have thought that M74 should be first. I hadn't thought of the bright core. That's good to know.

Greg's location is probably in the 99th percentile of s.a.a. for *not*
being murky or light polluted, by the way.

Assuming I can find a spot with a clear view of both horizons! ;-) Up here in top of the mountain there are too many trees. Most people go down to the desert, but then you have mountains blocking some of the horizon and you give up 4300 ft in elevation. To tell you the truth I'm not sure at all that I can get both M74 and M30 from the same spot.

Clear skies,
Greg

--
Greg Crinklaw
Astronomical Software Developer
Cloudcroft, New Mexico, USA (33N, 106W, 2700m)

SkyTools: http://www.skyhound.com/cs.html
Observing: http://www.skyhound.com/sh/skyhound.html
Comets: http://www.skyhound.com/sh/comets.html

To reply take out your eye
.

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