Grand Est, spring 2025

Talma (Grandpré), 25 April - blog 1 of 4

The last time I blogged was for the night of 5 August 2024, the session in which I logged my latest deep sky observations. This year's February trip to Cornillac, originally planned for January but postponed due to inclement weather and despite a much better forecast for the following month, was a dud. I had every reason to gripe and complain about not having gotten any quality telescope time in well over half a year. Yes, my astro-itch was getting worse by the day. I mean night.

In March, the weather continued its dreadful spell at all of my favorite sites. The forecast for the first of two weeks in the second half of April, when the Moon allowed for observing, wasn't much better. To make matters worse, all locations I visited before in the French Alps were booked for the month, or at best already occupied for multiple days in the last week of April. It was that week I had been clinging onto, hoping for a change in the forecast and maybe, just maybe... the chance to throw together an observing plan, pack the car and make the drive.

With no opportunity to make it to the south of France, the French Ardennes (formally Grand-Est) would be my only chance for a spring astrotrip. But where to go?

As I pondered my options, I received a message from astrobuddies Dick and Han, together with whom I made the last trip to Boureuilles in August. Once or twice every year, they spend a weekend at a large house in Talma (Grandpré) with their astronomical association Sterrenwacht Rijswijk. Their group is a healthy mix of observers and photographers. Trips like this used to be open to members only, but others have since been able to join in. I was asked if I perhaps would like to accompany them for their spring trip?

As if the celestial God's were listening in, the weather forecast changed for the better. Much better. With that, I gladly accepted the invitation, dusted off my February observing plan, updated it with constellations further along in right ascension and gathered my gear. It was happening and I was thrilled.

The afternoon of 25 April locations were shared on our Whatsapp astrotrip group chat and one by one our avatars started moving southwards through the Netherlands and Belgium, funneling to a spot about 50 kilometers south of the French border. I was one of the last to arrive and received a warm welcome and a cold Warsteiner. With darkness not happening until about eleven, there was no hurry to install.

At the location, most astrophotographers prefer to set up on small hill constructed by the owner of the place for exactly that purpose. Up there it was crowded already and not wanting to haul my 14" up Mount Talma, I stuck to the lower terrain. Having visited the site once before in October 2018, I decided to park my scope at the same spot as before, as it had suited me well.

Awaiting nightfall the satellite imagery indicated completely clear skies just before midnight. That left ample time to dial in the mount and scope.

Having completed a thorough drift alignment and good collimation check, a selection of double stars was first on my target list. A good way to start off any session while settling in at the eyepiece and simultaneously improving dark adaptation. The last of the clouds had departed just after eleven and with half an hour to go until midnight, the sky's transparency was rapidly improving. It was going to be a good one.

7 Doubles in Ursa Major grazed my eyepieces, for starters. The best of these was Aitken 1593 (WDS11329+5525).

Aitken 1593
AB split. Quite a nice double.
A is bright yellow, a distinct, quite deep color. B is a white-grey pinprick WSW of A.

Double star observations in Ursa Major

Minutes past midnight, I slewed the scope to a piece of sky that for years has remained a gaping hole in my observing log: Coma Berenices. So much left to target in that constellation. Finally, the opportunity had arrived. I set out to target the galaxies in CSOG's 12-14" Gx-10 observing guide. Many of the galaxies in this guide were sure to make for above average observations as lots of them pack details for us stargazers to pick out.

With my first deepsky observation since, well: forever, I was not done observing double stars just yet. Half the field of view of my 17mm. Nagler to the northeast of NGC4539 is one of the best in the sky. 24 Comae Berenices sports a bright yellow primary flanked by a light blue companion. As pretty as this double may be, I found the NGC to the southwest easier to observe with 24 Coma outside the field of view, allowing for the elongated galaxy's core to reveal it is (visually) slightly offset to the west of the main body.

NGC4539
Quite a large, clearly east-west elongated streak, quite suddenly brighter in a large core that is elongated in the same direction and that is brightest west of the middle. With AV a nucleus seems to jump into view in the brightest part of the galaxy but it cannot be held.
To the SSE is a mag. 13.5 star, to the SE is a mag. 14 star, 1/2 FoV to the NE is the double star 24 Comae Berenices; the galaxy is clearest when this star is outside the FoV.

24 Comae Berenices
Observed simultaneously with the galaxy NGC4539, 1/2 FoV to the SW: A very beautiful double, a bright yellow mag. 6 star with a light blue mag. 7 star to its west (just a bit WNW), ±271°. Clearly contrasting.

Vorontsov-Vel'yaminov 571 = KPG 346 is an interesting, irregular glow that reveals some detail and that has a star - that, as I have found, likes to be confused for a knot - superimposed over the southeastern part.

A clearly irregularly round glow that is brighter in the eastern part. With AV the eastern part is slightly elongated NE to SW, flattened on the east side on a line from north to south, slightly bulging on the SE side a gradually fainter towards the west where the galaxy is more round with the bulge towards the west. With AV a knot or superimposed star is visible on the SSE edge of the bright part (the southern edge of the bulging part), a stellar dot (is the star 4UCAC547-051030). With AV the galaxy is slightly irregular in the SE bulging part. A nice galaxy.

Messier 91 proved underwhelming, for a Messier galaxy.

An irregular round glow that is suddenly brighter in a small, round central part with a bright nucleus that is clearly visible without AV and that is inside a small, even brighter round core. It is clear that without AV only the brighter central part of the galaxy is visible. With AV the central part of the galaxy is slightly elongated NE to SE, containing the smaller, brighter, round core and with AV slightly more of the outer parts of the galaxy is visible, especially towards the SSE that is clearest. On the NW side the galaxy is flattened on a line from NE to SW.
Resembles NGC4571 that I observed earlier but is slightly larger and much brighter. Not spectacular for a Messier galaxy.

The pair that is Holmberg 445 = KPG 351 revealed both its members, just a someone stopped by to come take a look what I was up to. Excellent timing, as this is definitely one to share.

Both galaxies are visible.
The SSE galaxy A - NGC4634 is brighter and larger than the NNW galaxy B - NGC4633 is, a clearly NNW-SSE very elongated streak, quite suddenly brighter in a large core that is elongated in the same direction
The NNW galaxy B - NGC4633 is a bit fainter than the SSE galaxy A - NGC4634 is, a NE-SW elongated streak, without AV subtly brighter in the middle, with AV slightly larger and gradually brighter in the middle. To the west is a mag. 13 star.

It was around this time when my neighbors to the south decided to align their mount. Or rather, make an attempt at it, as it was clear they were encountering some trouble. Apparently, going by their heated discussion, there were electronic issues, a faulty cable and there was a misaligned polar finder. The root cause of their problems soon became evident: they were simply unable to determine which star was Polaris.

Any other night I would gladly have given them some advice and assistance. I decided not to, as they more and more resorted to the use of white light. Being the guest in this group, I decided to just sit it out, tucking my head in my parka to shield my dark adapted eyes from the mayhem that was unfolding beside me. Others on the hill were less patient, simply insisting the two to knock off their behavior.

I did not know it at the time, but the two were in fact members of the same astronomical society, but had not signed up for the weekend; they simple arrived unannounced and plonked down their mount on the field without even caring to greet the bulk of the attendees. Only to then demonstrate sheer unfamiliarity with both their gear and the sky.

Anyways...

Arp 189 (NGC4651) made for a nice observation, even when its faint namesake extension is out of reach of my aperture.

Quite a bright, east-west elongated glow that is quite suddenly brighter in an oval core that is slightly elongated in the same direction, that is just a bit SW of the middle and that is irregular with AV. With AV the nucleus is visible centrally in the brighter part. The galaxy is quite suddenly fainter towards the SW and more gradually fainter towards the NE. A beautiful galaxy. The star 4UCAC533-053773 on the ENE edge is not visible. The faint extension towards the east that gives this galaxy its name is (of course) not visible.

One of the best observations of the night was for NGC4710. What made the experience even better, was following NGC4758. These two galaxies visually appears as "mirrored brothers", even when the preceding galaxy is considerably brighter.

A nice, NNE-SSW clearly very elongated, irregular streak, brighter in the middle. With AV is is clear that the elongated brighter part is SW of the middle with the brighter part containing an even brighter NNE-SSW elongated part that is slightly irregular with AV and that is slightly towards the NE, clearly not in the middle of the brighter part. No nucleus visible. Towards the SSW the galaxy tapers and abruptly becomes fainter, towards the NNE the galaxy gradually becomes fainter. A very nice galaxy with a somewhat "dagger" shape.
To the ESE is a mag. 11.5 star.

A fainter "vertically mirrored brother" of NGC4710 that I observed before this one, a clearly NNW-SSE elongated glow, clearly fainter in the NNW part that is elongated in the same direction. Quite suddenly fainter on the NNW side and gradually fainter towards the SSE.
To the NE of the brightest part of the galaxy is a mag. 14 star (4UCAC530-054472).

Messier 64 is part of the guide I was using for this night's observations and even though this was the 7th time I added an entry for it to my log, it has not ceased to please me. Its black eye was prominent and due to the brightness of the galaxy overall, I found its main feature easier to observe without the use of averted vision.

A large, bright, oval, NW-SE elongated glow, gradually brighter in the middle with a bight nucleus in a small round core in which, without AV, the NW-SE elongated dark part to the NE is visible. With AV the outer glow of the galaxy is slightly larger and slightly brighter which causes the dark part to be less obvious; the dark part is easier to discern without AV.

An observation that took a bit more time and effort was the small, offset core(?) of NGC5012A (Vorontsov-Vel'yaminov 559). With patience, I was able to just make it out on the southwestern edge of what is the faint glow of the main body of this galaxy.

A very faint, NE-SW elongated glow, without AV at the limit of visibility. After observing it for a while, using AV, it can be observed that the SW part of the galaxy is subtly brighter in a small NE-SW elongated part, NE thereof the faint glow of the galaxy is visible. Faint but nice.
Just over 1/2 FoV to the WNW is NGC5012.

A very faint pair that nevertheless made for a nice observation is Vorontsov-Vel'yaminov 1618. The image below is from CSOG's KPG edition for this object. The two galaxies that form this pair are nothing special by themselves, but together they form what can best be described as a "fuzzy double star". Averted vision helps and so does their east-west alignment.

Without AV a faint, east-west elongated glow, no detail visible.
With AV both galaxies are visible, just separated, as if it were a double star that is just split. Both galaxies are small, faint, round glows, no detail visible. A "fuzzy double star".

MCG+03-34-044 (Vorontsov-Vel'yaminov 88, PGC47506) provided for an "object in an object" observation. Averted vision teased out the small HII region on the south-southwestern edge.

A faint, NNE-SSW elongated glow, even in brightness without AV, with AV subtly brighter in a north-south elongated part on the SSW edge of the galaxy (HII region PGC5903279).

My rowdy neighbors had since given up on getting anything done. The mount was wrapped in plastic and they had departed the premises. With that, the peace of the night returned.

Having spent a good hour and a half at the eyepiece prowling through Coma, I took a hike up Mount Talma to see what was going on. The sight of multiple mounts and scopes with only their dim leds giving away their positions, pointed at various directions in the clear dark sky, indicated everyone was making the best of a very good night.

Galaxy observations in Coma Berenices

A good half hour later I returned to my scope for observations in Boötes. Leftovers from various CSOG guides that, in my plan, I refer to as my "X-guides".

Of the 19 galaxies and galaxy pairs observed, none were spectacular but some are worth sharing even when they're not showpieces.

MCG+04-34-019's (PGC51253) elongation and very elongated core make for a nice observation.

A faint, clearly NW-SE very elongated streak, without AV subtly brighter in the middle, with AV clearly brighter in a core that is very elongated in the same direction.
To the ESE (just north of the line of the galaxy) is a bright white-yellow mag. 9 star (SAO83300). The galaxy PGC51284 to the NE is not visible.

The pair that is Holmberg 641 surprisingly revealed both members. The north-northwestern galaxy, although extremely faint, isn't terribly small, thereby allowing its glow to be detected.

Both galaxies are visible.
A - NGC5603 is the SSE galaxy: Without AV an evenly bright, round glow with a bright nucleus that is clearly visible without AV. With AV gradually subtly brighter in the middle.
B - NGC5603B is the NNE galaxy: An extremely faint, round glow, even in brightness, no detail visible, only visible with AV.
To the SSE is the galaxy NGC5601, to the SE is NGC5598.

KPG 425 is another friendly pair.

Both galaxies are visible.
The WSW galaxy A - MCG+06-32-018 (PGC51415) is a round glow, brighter than the ENE galaxy B - MCG+06-32-019 (PGC51419) is, gradually brighter in the middle with quite a bright nucleus that is just visible without AV.
The ENE galaxy B - MCG+06-32-019 is a clearly NE-SW elongated little streak, without AV gradually brighter in the middle, with AV slightly more suddenly brighter in an elongated central part but no distinct core discernible.

The galaxies of Arp 241 were visible individually with help of averted vision, but neither revealed an extension.

Without AV a very faint, NW-SE elongated glow. With AV individual galaxies are subtly discernible, just separated, very faint, round patches, subtly brighter in the middle. The extensions of both galaxies are not visible.

Another faint and wide but worthwhile pair was Vorontsov-Vel'yaminov 324 a.k.a. KPG 438.

Both galaxies are visible.
The ESE galaxy A - MCG+06-33-004 (KPG 438B, PGC53039) is larger and subtly brighter than the WNW galaxy B - MCG+06-33-002 (KPG 438A, PGC53014) is, slightly elongated NE to SW and gradually brighter in the middle, no nucleus visible.
The WNW galaxy B - MCG+05-33-002 is smaller and slightly fainter than the ESE galaxy A - MCG+06-33-004 is, a round glow, quite suddenly brighter in a small, round core, without AV the quite bright nucleus is visible.
The faint, protruding parts of both galaxies are not visible.

Second to last observation of the night and final observation in Boötes was for Vorontsov-Vel'yaminov 1739 = KPG 454. Even when individual galaxies cannot be made out, the glow being notably brighter south-southwest of the middle and a nucleus visible in that part, leaves little room for interpretation.

A NNE-SSW (almost north-south) elongated glow that is clearly brighter SSW of the middle. In that brighter part the nucleus is (just) visible without AV. No individual galaxies are discernible but the offset brighter part betrays that these are probably 2 galaxies.
To the NNE is a mag. 14.5 star.

Galaxy observations in Boötes

There was an hour left before the start of morning astronomical twilight, but with the afternoon drive, setting up my gear and a circadian rhythm not yet adapted to the hours of stargazing all adding up, fatigue got the better of me.

The last photons of the night to pass through my 12mm Nagler were that of the quasar KUV 18217+6419 in the Dragon. It's the one that flanks the planetary nebula Kohoutek 1-16. Both featured as Deep Sky Forum's Objects of the Week in 2022. The glow of the planetary wasn't visible, even when its central star was, but the quasar was an easy observation as is mimics a mag. 12.5 star.

Clearly visible, resembles a mag. 12.5 star. Is the "star" in the southern tip (just a bit SSE) of an elongated triangle with the base on the north side aligned east (mag. 12) to west (mag. 13.5) (just a bit ENE-WSW). The western star is the central star of the planetary nebula Kohoutek 1-16, which is not visible.

With that, I called it a night. Finally I had fresh deepsky observations for my log and this trip wasn't over, yet.

Observations

1 HII Region
1 Quasar
54 galaxies & galaxy groups
9 double stars
Total: 65 observations
First time observations: 55 objects

Details of the objects observed in this session are in the table below.

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