Pembrokeshire Astronomer

The Full Mackerel Moon will be upon us on Monday,  nearby I can hear a dog practicing its lunar howling! Up above, the slow moving clouds give way for generous views of the almost full fat gibbous Moon. Out came the tiny Jason refractor, and with the help of my ancient Samsung S2 android phone I  captured a couple of lunar images. I also made a sketch of crater Shickard, it being the most prominent feature along tonight's lunar terminator. Over the last two lunations I have only been able to spot the waxing Moon about three nights out of a possible 28..! I'm hoping this pattern will soon break. Looking forward to some more lunar sketching in the near future. Return of the Pleiades Tonight I am reminded of the Perseid meteor shower , which peaks this year on the 12th of the month. The Moon is badly placed for this years Perseids, but it is always worthwhile venturing out to have a look. With any luck I'll be out there on the 12th, an hour

Last night was the first time for a week that I've been able to drag the telescopes outside. With a magnification of x50 and a bit of juggling with my simple digicam, I managed to capture a few lunar images. June 2nd 2017 - 21h30m UT Other celestial objects of interest included:  (with 300mm/f5 Newtonian) Jupiter - various zones stood out, but no real definition or sharpness. I noted that the South Polar region is rather darker than the North Polar region, at the moment. With the 80a filter in place the planet returned a much more pleasing image. Arcturus in Bootes was shining in all its glory, whilst just below Arturus the asterism " Napolean's Hat " could clearly be made out at x50 magnification. Peeping around the corner of the house was the constellation of Hercules, the obvious target of globular M13 was easily found at x50. Though the contrast of M13 was somewhat diminished, maybe due to the gibbous Moon scattering that extra Moon glo

Theophilus chain - 300mm Newtonian. The rain and wind tonight put pay to any chance of observing the heavens. Never mind....more time to catch up on some poetry. Here's a favourite poem of mine by W.B Yeats , plus a sketch of a few craters from a recent observation. THE CAT AND THE MOON by: W. B. Yeats (1865-1939) The cat went here and there And the moon spun round like a top, And the nearest kin of the moon, The creeping cat, looked up. Black Minnaloushe stared at the moon, For, wander and wail as he would, The pure cold light in the sky Troubled his animal blood. Minnaloushe runs in the grass Lifting his delicate feet. Do you dance, Minnaloushe, do you dance? When two close kindred meet, W

07/05/2017 In awe, I watched the waxing moon ride across the zenith of the heavens like an ambered chariot towards the ebony void of infinite space wherein the tethered belts of Jupiter and Mars hang, for ever festooned in their orbital majesty. And as I looked at all this I thought... I must put a roof on this toilet. Les Dawson Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/l/lesdawson537829.html?src=t_jupiter In awe, I watched the waxing moon ride across the zenith of the heavens like an ambered chariot towards the ebony void of infinite space wherein the tethered belts of Jupiter and Mars hang, for ever festooned in their orbital majesty. And as I looked at all this I thought... I must put a roof on this toilet. Les Dawson Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/jupiter.html In awe, I watched the waxing moon ride across the zenith of the heavens like an ambered chariot towards the ebony void of infinite space wherein the tethered

Jason looks to the Moon - 2016 Tonight I was out observing with the little "Jason" 60mm/f15 refractor. It's a lovely scope for a quick peep at the heavens, or in my case this evening specifically the bright gibbous Moon. Whilst observing Clavius on the terminator, somewhere on the outskirts of our village I could clearly hear the cry of a cuckoo. Since our move to Crymych this was the first cuckoo that I have heard from our back garden. With the bright Moon above and the cry of the cuckoo,  I was reminded of the poet Basho.  Moonlight slanting by Matsuo Basho Moonlight slanting through the bamboo grove; a cuckoo crying. Sketching the Moon craters.  Here's a further sketch from last Monday's Beltane evening lunar observations. 01/05/17 - 300mm/f5 reflector "Oscar" It was beautiful outside tonight, not a cloud to be seen. Lets hope it's the first of many this year. Clear Skies everyone.

  “Sitting quietly, doing nothing, Spring comes, and the grass grows, by itself.”   Bashō Matsuo Oscar & Mark From the darkening Mayday sky the Beltane Moon was calling. Helen and I dragged out "Oscar" the beast of telescopes, our 12 inch reflector. The Theophilus chain (Theophilus, Cyrillus, Catharina) stood out well tonight, highlighted beautifully along the terminator. After taking a few more photographs I sketched the three craters using Conte pencil and Ink. 01/05/2017 - A:III 300mm/f5 Newtonian The five day old Moon Shows south Theophilus chain  three beautiful pearls Helen Lee

VENUS - February 26th 2017 - 18h 15m UT- Jason 60mm/f15 O.G. This chilly February evening still gripped by the days north wind didn't at first inspire confidence of an observation of Venus. But as the sky darkened and the many clouds turned to black, Venus in solitude shining brightly in the west silenced my wintry complaints. The Jason (60mm/f15) refractor was close to hand and within minutes was in the back garden, partially protected by hedge and shed wall. Tonight would allow a test of my new "plastic" Huygens eyepieces. Three oculars in all, a 20mm, 12.5mm and 4mm. I had no idea how well they would work on such a bright object as Venus. Being that all three are about the cheapest eyepieces you could buy I didn't have high expectations. The 20mm and 12.5mm eyepieces returned lovely sharp views of the planet, with no false colour noted. Next was the real test, the 4mm! Again a surprise, no false colour, no sparkly rainbow effects, just sim