10/08/2006 0600hrs ut

Located in Davidsonville Park in MD, an almost completely clear night, just a few hours after a cold front moved in, humidity is high, temp is around 50, no wind, 1 day past full moon. Seeing is 6, trans is 7. View of sky is marred to the east by street lamps but otherwise clear of local light sources.
NGC 1976, M 42, Glare from moon washes out some of the contrast but clear Sky's and fewer street lights allow fine views of fish mouth and trapezium in proxima zoom.

NGC 1982, M 43, Appears as a "Pack man" next to M 42, one star observed.

I attempted to observe the Horse head nebula with negative results. (I didn't know at the time that this was a hopeless task with an 8 inch SCT in fairly light polluted skies with the naked eye)

NGC 0224, M 31, Even with the moon high in the sky, this famous galaxy presented me with the best views so far, an oval shaped core that blended into the back ground sky, fain cloudiness spread out in a linear fashion from the core. Continued viewing and perseverance pays off as more of M 31 is revealed to me each observing session.

NGC 0221, M 32, much cluster to the moons glare than M 31, this faint golf ball looking galaxy is still quite apparent, review of a messier guide explains that my perception of the object is typical given the conditions.

NGC 6994, M 773, Negative Observation, the glare of the moon prevented my observing this tiny cluster though I have observed it in the past.

NGC 2099, M 37, This open cluster is quite attractive tonight, many of these cluster are among my favorite to look at though I have trouble telling them apart. I would like to start sketching them in an effort to understand there nuances a little better. This cluster shows little filaments or strands of stars spreading from a center point.

NGC 2068, M 78, Negative Observation.

NGC 1904, M 79, Faint globular cluster, no stars resolved.

NGC 2437, M 46, This well formed open cluster is clear tonight with many stars resolved.

NGC 2422, M 47, Appears as a small open cluster of bright stars.

NGC 2323, M 50, Scattered but small open cluster.

NGC 2447, M 93, Faint compact open cluster.

M4 Swan, After several mornings spent attempting to capture this newly discovered comet, I met with success during the early morning hours. At first while scanning the target area I observed a very faint but clear disk. I celebrated early but the object drifted out of view while I was reaching for the camera. While attempting to re-acquire the object I came across another green object, this one was much bigger and fuzzy as described by observations on cloudy nights. I managed a few photos of swan but the quality was poor in part due to dew and a low ground fog. I have much to learn about taking astro photos but viewing my first comet since Hallie's comet in the 80's made the entire night worth while.

Saturn, Viewed this great looking planet for the first time this season, the rings have changed position since the last time this planet was viewed. After about ten minutes of observing while trying to talk a friend through locating it over the phone, I caught a quick moment of exceptional seeing and managed a quick peek at the Cassini division.