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Is M1 a difficult object from light polluted skies?
I live in a city, in an apartment complex with the usual "security" lighting. I see only the brightest stars with my naked eye. For example, in Orion, I see only Betelgeuse, Rigel, Bellatrix, Saiph, three stars in the belt, and 2-3 stars in the sword. I have tried for the last three nights to find M1 with no luck -- not even the faintest fuzzy appears. I'm using an XT-12, 12-inch dob; collimation is dead on. I've tried different eyepieces -- 35mm PanOptic (43X), 18mm Radian (83X), 10mm Radian (150X) -- no luck. I am starhopping using a Telrad and the instructions in "Turn Left at Orion" -- find Zeta Tauri -- very faint naked eye from my location -- then slightly NW of Zeta Tauri, toward El Nath. Have tried with OII and Orion UltraBlock filters -- not a wisp. For comparison -- M31 is not naked eye but is readily visible with 8X42 and 10X50 binos. With my scope, I see the glowing center surrounded by a fuzzy cloud but I can't see the long, elliptical extensions of M31 -- too much light pollution I assume. -- I can find M57, Ring Nebula, with no problem (takes a little searching). At 83X and 150X the ring structure is clear though I cannot see the star in the center. My scope has the Orion Intelliscope feature but I'm trying to find objects by starhopping. I guess my next step is to use the Intelliscope to find M1 -- if it's visible at all. Thanks. |
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