Short observation trip to Batu Layar 20 Mar to 21 Mar 2004

[weixing]

Hi,
Richard Low (rlow) and me will be having a short observation session trip to Batu Layar next weekend (20 Mar 2004 to 21 Mar 2004).

Those who are interested in joining us can PM me or Richard Low.

Have a nice day.

[rlow]

Please note that this trip is catered especially for those who don't drive or have no means of transportation, and it is open to all Singastro members, with or without a telescope.

We will be meeting for lunch at Changi Village at around 1pm on Saturday 20 Mar 04, taking a boat from Changi Point to Pengarang (Johor), then by taxi to Sungei Ringgit for dinner and stocking of provisions and on to Batu Layar for one overnight of deepsky observing. We will be back at Changi Village for breakfast on Sunday morning around 9am.

Expenditure is minimal for transportation and meals only and the cost will be split evenly among all participants. Those interested should contact and confirm with either Weixing or me asap, and latest by Friday 19 Mar 04.

regards
rlow

[weixing]

Hi,
Site:
Batu Laya - somewhere near the beach

Date/Time:
20 Mar 2004 17:00 to 21 Mar 2004 05:30

Equipment:
Nikon 10x42 Binocular (Richard Low),
William Optics Megrez 80 SD (Richard Low) with Mattfoto Tripod and
Sky-Watcher 150 F5 Newtonian with Vixen GP mount

Weather:
Very windy until 21 Mar 2004 04:30
Partly cloudy and hazy from 17:00 tp 21:00
Sky glow at the west sky after sunset
Clear with fast pasting cloud from 21:00 to 04:30

Richard Low(rlow) and I arrived at the site around 17:00. After setting up our scopes, we observe the sun for a while using the Megrez 80 SD (with solar filter of course). It had been a very very long time since I saw the Sun through a telescope, so I was very excited after I saw five tiny sunspots on the sun... .

After sunset, the sky is still quite cloudy and we thought that we will be having a "chit chat" party instead of a Star Party... then Venus appear from the cloud, follow by Jupiter and Saturn. The site was very windy, so high magnification viewing was quite a challenge...the planets are dancing in the Field of View :roll: . Some guys who were camping at the beach also join us to view the "dancing" planets.

At around 21:00, the sky start to clear up with some fast pasting cloud... It party time... I manage to see quite a lot of the objects thanks to the help of the "biological GOTO SYSTEM" (Richard Low)... ha ha ha . He is really good at finding objects with his binocular, before turning his Megrez 80 SD to it and help me to locate it using my 6" Newtonian... learn a lots of practical observation technique from him. Also, quite amaze of how he can find and observe those fade galaxy and nebula using his binocular and Megrez 80 SD, while I find it difficult to observe it even using my 6 inch scope... Now realize that experience and a trained eye is actually more important than a bigger telescope. The site is actually quite good, but may be too windy for imaging( the wind was so strong that I gave up) and had no mosquito until the wind stop at 04:30 and we forgot to bring the "Weapon of Mass Destruction". Lucky, I'm quite used to mosquito bite, but not Richard Low...

Anyway, below is the list of the objects that we observe:
1. Sun (5 tiny sunspots),
2. Jupiter,
3. Saturn,
4. M3,
5. M4,
6. M5,
7. M6,
8. M7,
9. M8,
10. M13,
11. M19,
12. M20,
13. M22,
14. M36,
15. M37,
16. M38,
17. M41,
18. M42 (Great Orion Nebula),
19. M43,
20. M44 (Beehive Cluster),
21. M46,
22. M47,
23. M50,
24. M51 (Whirlpool Galaxy),
25. M56,
26. M57 (the Ring Nebula),
27. M62,
28. M63,
29. M65,
30. M66,
31. M67,
32. M68,
33. M78,
34. M79,
35. M80,
36. M83,
37. M71,
38. M92.
39. M93,
40. M104,
41. NGC2244,
42. NGC2392 (Eskimo Nebula or the Clown Face Nebula – I was wondering did I really see it),
43. NGC2516,
44. NGC2808,
45. NGC3372 (Eta Carinae Nebula),
46. NGC3293,
47. NGC3532,
48. NGC3628,
49. NGC4755 (Jewel Box Open Cluster),
50. NGC5128 (Centaurus A),
51. NGC5139 (Omega Centauri Globular Cluster – just three words to describe it: WOW WOW WOW),
52. NGC6144,
53. NGC6231,
54. IC2391,
55. IC2602,
56. CR399 (Brocchi's Cluster or the “Coathanger”).

By the way, it is my first time to see the Milky Way… it look like a thin layer of white cloud most of the time, but when the sky become very clear at 21 Mar 2004 05:30 it really look like a river flowing across the sky with sparking crystals in it… Sadly the clear sky last only half an hour…

Anyway, it was a very good experience to observe under clear sky… (not so clear according to Richard Low standard) and we plan to come again next month (April 2004), hope that more people can join us this time…

Have a nice day.

[chrisyeo]

A very good haul!

Richard, your messier marathon target is within reach! I think next time round you should be able to complete it?

Clear skies,
Chris

[rlow]

Richard, your messier marathon target is within reach! I think next time round you should be able to complete it?

Actually, after discussing with Matthew and then reading some books, I found out that it is theoretically not possible to visually starhop to find all 110 Messier objects from the equator, the best count would be 109 Messier objects. Maybe can anyone refute or prove that statement to be incorrect?

Of course, finding 109 Messier objects is still a very good target for anyone, which I will try again in April and May. Hope we get clear skies then.

regards
rlow

[harlequin2902]

Wow, nice catch guys ! Seems like this Batu Layar is not a bad place for deep sky viewing too.

[rlow]

Yes, in my humble opinion, this is currently a good place for deepsky observation, especially for people who do not have their own means of transport.

There is faint reflected sky glow at the west horizon up to about 25 degrees and soutwest horizon up to about 10 degrees, hence, in terms of sky darkness near the horizon, it is slightly inferior compared to Tanjong Resang (Mersing).

But the overall sky darkness is generally good, for example, even though the sky was almost entirely blanketed with slight haze, unlit cumulus clouds and high altitude clouds on 20 Mar 2004, (I understand the sky conditions were similar at Mersing and S'pore that night), Weixing and I were able to observe the Milky Way and many faint galaxies there. So regardless of cloud condition, this place is much better than Singapore for deepsky observation. The constant sea breeze or insect attacks (when there is no breeze) are common at both Mersing and Batu Layar, but these issues can be addressed and alleviated.

Clear skies!
rlow

[Airconvent]

Yes, in my humble opinion, this is currently a good place for deepsky observation, especially for people who do not have their own means of transport.

There is faint reflected sky glow at the west horizon up to about 25 degrees and soutwest horizon up to about 10 degrees, hence, in terms of sky darkness near the horizon, it is slightly inferior compared to Tanjong Resang (Mersing).

But the overall sky darkness is generally good, for example, even though the sky was almost entirely blanketed with slight haze, unlit cumulus clouds and high altitude clouds on 20 Mar 2004, (I understand the sky conditions were similar at Mersing and S'pore that night), Weixing and I were able to observe the Milky Way and many faint galaxies there. So regardless of cloud condition, this place is much better than Singapore for deepsky observation. The constant sea breeze or insect attacks (when there is no breeze) are common at both Mersing and Batu Layar, but these issues can be addressed and alleviated.

Clear skies!
rlow

Hi Richard2, :-)
It looks like you had a jolly good time there! Looking at your list, one would have thought you had a goto onsite! And it being Weixong's first trip there...he must be star-studded...
anyway, I noticed that you left out M17. was it a typo lapse or you forgotten to see it? The swan is also a very beautiful object in Mersing...

As for the site, is it flat and clear like Mersing?
Also, most important of all, is it a shorter journey and more convenient to go than Mersing? If not, I'll rather stick to the great "M" since we have all have already marked our territorial boundary there...heh heh
From what I read, its also too windy there. Is this seasonal or is it so windy all year round?

Do attach a map to show us how you got there as well as show us some pics of the site (you did take some, right?).

rich

[rlow]

Hi rich 1

there were a lot of deepsky objects to see then around Sagittarius (and areas thereafter) at that time but the clouds rolled in and covered the whole sky until dawn so we did not get a chance to see many deepsky objects, including prominent targets such as M17, M18, M55, M11, M27 etc.

The site is flat and grassy, with only two sparse trees slightly blocking the SE horizon. The taxi is able to drop us and our equipment exactly at the 'doorstep' of our observation site. I think the overall trip is about 2 hours, probably shorter than the Mersing trip, and there is no potential heavy traffic or traffic jams or long queue for custom checks to contend with.

The wind condition is similar to Mersing and therefore it can be dealt with in a similar way. Though I have been to Batu Layar at least four times before, I cannot really comment if the wind is seasonal or all-year-round.

We don't have a map of that area but I can show you a sketch the next time we meet. I did not take any panoramic photos, as it wasn't anything spectacular... I wonder if Weixing did take any?

regards
rlow

[weixing]

Hi,
Actually, I didn't take much pictures also and I didn't take any pictures of the observation site...

Anyway, I upload two pictures that show most of the observation site:


Have a nice day.

PS: We setup our scope behind the brushes to reduce the effect of the wind.