Brian Ventrudo

IC 4665, the “HI” Star Cluster

August 18, 2015 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Deep Sky

The open star cluster IC 4665 in the constellation Ophiuchus. — The open star cluster IC 4665 in the constellation Ophiuchus (credit: Wikipedia)

One of the best targets for a quick stargazing session this time of year is the pretty but underappreciated open star cluster IC 4665. It’s a snap to find, beautiful to behold, and like most sky sights on Cosmic Pursuits, it’s visible from the northern and southern hemispheres.

IC 4665 is spread out over a full degree, more than twice the diameter of the full Moon, so it looks fainter than its integrated magnitude of 4.7. In dark sky, IC4665 is just barely visible to the unaided eye roughly 1° NE of the star Celebrai in the constellation Ophiuchus. Celebrai, or β (beta) Ophiuchi, is one of the stars in the distinctive asterism called Taurus Poniatowski, the “little bull”. If you’re battling light pollution, you’ll need binoculars to spot the cluster [Read more…] about IC 4665, the “HI” Star Cluster

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Comet 67/P Springs a Leak at Perihelion

August 14, 2015 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Solar System

A jet erupts from below the surface of Comet 67/P on July 29, 2015, two weeks before the comet reaches perihelion (credit: ESA).

Comet 67/P (Churyumov-Gerasimenko) reached its closest point to the Sun on August 14, 2015. It also became the first comet to enter the inner solar system and reach perihelion with a man-made companion, namely the magnificent Rosetta spacecraft operated by the European Space Agency. Rosetta has studied the comet for the past year, dropped the little Philae probe in late 2014 to land on the comet, and now enjoys a close-up view of the comet’s fulminating nucleus as it warms and ejects plumes of gas into space. Two weeks before perihelion, Rosetta captured a spectacular image of a brilliant jet erupting from “neck” of the bi-lobed comet (see above). The jet was the brightest yet seen by Rosetta, and the fireworks lasted nearly 20 minutes [Read more…] about Comet 67/P Springs a Leak at Perihelion

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View of the Veil Nebula

August 11, 2015 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Deep Sky

Image of the eastern section of the Veil Nebula (NGC 6992 and NGC 6995). Credit: Jeff Johnson.

The Veil Nebula is a sprawling supernova remnant in the constellation Cygnus and is one of the most intricate and beautiful objects visible with a small telescope. The nebula was formed by two stars that exploded 18,000 and 5,000 years ago, approximately. The stars were just 2,000 light years away, close enough to create a spectacular display when they detonated. Each must have shone as bright as a crescent Moon and cast shadows by night for weeks, but there are no records of these prehistoric events carved on a cave wall anywhere, at least none yet discovered [Read more…] about View of the Veil Nebula

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Tele Vue DeLite Eyepiece Review

August 7, 2015 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Astronomy Equipment

The Tele Vue DeLite line of eyepieces (credit: Bill Paolini)

Looking for an eyepiece that makes stargazing a little easier? The new Tele Vue DeLite series of eyepieces might fit the bill. These new eyepieces feature a modest 62º field of view, a far cry from the super-wide Nagler and Ethos line of eyepieces from Tele Vue, but the DeLites excel in one important feature: they’re easy to look through. Read this full review of the DeLite eyepiece line by William Paolini, author of the book Choosing and Using Astronomical Eyepieces. It’s available at the new astronomical community website called Astronomy Connect.

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Astonishing View of Moon Transiting Earth

August 6, 2015 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Solar System

NASA’s Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR) satellite captured an astonishing series of images of the Moon transiting Earth. In the above animation made from the still images, we see the far side of the Moon, illuminated by the Sun, as the Moon passes across the face of the rotating Earth from a distance of about one million miles [Read more…] about Astonishing View of Moon Transiting Earth

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