SingAstro

For the past few nights i have been bring my scope out trying to locate the faint Andromeda Galaxy. However, i has been a frustrating experience for me as after more than a week of trying, i still am unable to locate it it see it through my eyepiece.Weather today has been good but still, to no avail . Can anyone share their experiences with this celestial object and any tips? Ive heard that this galaxy is one of the easier messier objects to spot and look at. I own a 5 inch newtonian and often observe in a 20mm eyepiece( 50x) maginification. Should i get a bigger eyepiece like a 35mm one (28x) to view such messier objects? Thank you!!!

Hi Haejae

As bright as it is, with the haze present, you will not be able to see it. Try again once the haze clears. Are you able to see complete constellations in the sky? If not, the sky condition is likely to be too poor at the moment.

There shouldn't be any issue with the scope/eyepiece combi. It is a sky condition issue. None of us are able to do any observing during this point in time either.

Yup. Not under the present hazy conditions. Even when not hazy, you will need darker and clear skies to make it out clearly although viewing it through a Bino would easy if you know where to look. I can feel your excitement entering this new hobby haejae because I felt the same way when I first started but sadly, astronomy needs good skies to see something. And worse, at the moment, there are no bright planets in view at night. Most of the planets rise very late. So I think for now, just get yourself a bino and scan the skies instead until the skies improve.

Haejae : as Ivan and airconvent mentioned it all boils down to sky condition. Not trying to be a wet blanket and douse your enthusiasm but this hobby is an exercise in patience there is really nothing wrong with your current gear and setup.

Let me give u an example of an ecp photo. if u see skies like this just before full dark


Then is possible to go for challenging targets. In sg we have a tedency to suffer from "high clouds".

But to be truthfully honest..if u are able to go to darker sites in mersing next year, you will see how much different the night sky from a rural place compared to sg. Look out for RCJ's thread on mersing trips/expeditions. (Most of us are..haha)

Regards
Junwei

To add on to what junwei says, light pollution is also accentuated when high clouds/haze is present, because the city lights tend to reflect off high clouds. In Singapore with heavy light pollution, then, sky transparency and the absence of high clouds and haze is even more important.

Of course, one could venture off to dark skies, but there is still lots that is possible in Singapore. On clear nights, the flower shape of M42 is discernible in a 5" scope, and so is the bright core of M31. Clusters, be they open or globular, are easy yet satisfying targets. Of course, planets, with their high surface brightness, make them the easiest targets in light polluted skies.

Reiterating what the others have said, astronomy is a weather dependent activity and it does not just require the absence of thick clouds. It demands decent sky clarity with low haze and absence of excess high clouds. I guess part of the satisfaction we derive is that in waiting for that one clear night, we tend to appreciate it more than if it were freely granted to us.

Hopefully when the haze clears, you will still be able to keep up your enthusiasm. If overseas travel is not a viable option for you, we have lots of local sessions during clear weather periods. Be sure to come down and join us then! Astronomy is much easier when you have others around

Go well!

Wake up early this week before school (4-5am) and point east. You'll at least get a glimpse of Jupiter and Venus. One look at Jupiter through the eyepiece and I was hooked!

P.S. This morning was great. No guarantees for the rest of the week though!

Thanks for all the encouragement from all of you. Anyone willing to share how they started off your venture into astronomy?

Hi guys. Today i went off for a short observation session at the lagoon in east coast park:). Didn't see anything in the sky beside a couple of stars even with 10x50 celestron binoculars. Any of you guys had any observation sessions today? Please share it with me! Thank you

Nope most of us have to work tomorrow. Another example of high clouds : moon looks murky and has a halo. If sky is really cloud free the moon will be sharp.

http://www.jma.go.jp/en/gms/index.html? ... 0&mode=UTC
You can also use this link to check the cloud situation. Select NW quadrant to show msia and sg region. Hope it helps

Regrads
Junwei

Okay thank you junwei