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Original Message

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Subject: Don't forget Pluto
Date: Wed, 23 Jun 2004 12:30:44 +0100
From: Pete Lawrence <pete.lawrence_nospam_@pbl33.co.uk>
Reply-To: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Newsgroups: uk.sci.astronomy

Now (well not now precisely because it's daylight and raining
outside!) is a good time to look for Pluto (although the brightening
Moon will cause problems for a number of days. It's fairly easy to
find the field at the moment. If you can find Antares at around
midnight, create a ruler by looking at the distance between Antares
and the middle star in the claws of the scorpion (Dschubba). Look at
Antares and imagine it in the centre of a clock face. At around 10:30
(hour hand position) move out from Antares roughly twice the distance
you measured between Antares and Dschubba.

You should come to the mag +2.4 star Sabik (eta Oph). More or less
horizontally from this star and to the left, by a distance slightly
less than your Antares-Dschubba yardsitck, is a mag. +3.5 star (Xi
Serpentis).

Imaging Sabik & Xi Ser as the base of a squat triangle. This base is
approximately 6.5 degrees across. Subdivide the line in two and from
approximately the mid point, look up by 2.5 degrees (roughly half the
base length) and you should see a mag. +4.3 star Nu Serpentis.

Pluto is currently positioned more or less midway up on the line
joining the mid-point of the base-line with Nu Serpentis. If
anything, it's very slightly to the right of this point.

Point your scope at the area and take a photo or draw the star field.
Make sure to record the faint stars in the area. Leave it a few
nights and do the same again. If you pick up on one of the points
moving - you've got Pluto. It's very faint +13.8 so a dark site +
clear skies + good scope (the bigger the better) is needed.

I have it on a couple of images that I haven't posted yet. One image
was taken with a 10" LX-200 and the other with a Vixen 4" refractor.
It's fairly easy to see on both. I haven't tried for it visually yet
but hope to do so during the next clear, moonless spell.

Good luck if you have a go.
--
Pete Lawrence
www.pbl33.co.uk
Most recent images <www.pbl33.fast24.co.uk/recent_images.html>;

astro.neutral.org/200408pluto.html

With a modified TouCam to do 10second exposures. Shoud be well witin the limits of you folks with digital slrs

If it was up a little higher I reckon I'd see it in my 8".
I can regularly see the 13.5 mag star near M57 and my typical limit is about 14.5ish for that height above the horizon.
However, Pluto is down fairly low so it would require a very clear sky.
A 10-12" should do the trick though.

As for digital slr cameras, shouldn't be too difficult. A few 30sec exposures should pick it up, assuming this awful weather will ever clear! :?

Michael

Funny that we've come onto pluto at this stage as I cought a pic of it with the canon 300d.



homepage.eircom.net/%7Esac/graphics/outer/pluto1.jpg

Admittidely, I think this is pluto, starry night was not really acurate enough to give it.
It wasnt visible that night visually through the scope, but I have seen it on clearer nights.
If I have the arrows in the wrong location, PLEASE let me know.

Hi David,
Nice one!
Can you remember the settings of the 300 D for this pic?

I saw Pluto last friday in my 10" LX200 at 314x with Gratan Banister and Valerie Canty of Cork Astronomy CLub. It was a great evening for seeing. I didnt take a pic as it was all so low level
Regards,

Jouke

Dave,

Good shot!
I must try capturing it myself sometime.

Michael

Thanks Lads,
I had the camera set to iso 1600, and stacked 4x30 second frames, but since we're only talking about star points here, we can really process it well beyond what you can do with planets and nebulae.
I did see pluto only from my backgarden through the scope last year, but it was on a clearer night then the one I took the pic above.

All thats left now are Neptune and Mercury and catch a decent shot of Uranus and that will be all of them.... except Earth of course :wink: