"Stefan Lilge" wrote
...
Rick, I don't really believe in limiting magnitudes as they are as much
dependend on one's eyesight as on the quality of the sky. That said I can
see mag 4.2-4.3 stars with averted vision in good nights and with direkt
vision in very good nights. I never can see even the slightest hint of the
milky way though, not even in the best nights.


Two weeks ago in Orlando Florida (just west of the airport) on several clear
nights I could see Venus....... that's it!!

From my camp on Indian Lake NY I can make out the Milky Way under full moon
and M-33 is a naked-eye object on a good dark night. Even the reflection of
the Milky Way on the lake is bright! Unfortunately, for the first time in 25
years, there is a slight light dome in the southwest!! One unusual
'observing aid' needed is a firearm since the local wildlife (bears, lynx,
coyotes) might consider astronomers a good midnight snack.

George N