Clik here to view.
Mad Meanderings under Temperature Inverted Skies
It’s been a looooonnng winter already. Of course, if you go by the calendar, we’re only a month into winter. But I tend to identify winter with the onset of the November rains, which typically don’t...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Algol: A Demon Double
Algol, or “al Ghul” (as in ghoul), has been called the Demon Star, the head of Medusa, and the “unlucky” star, as well as Gorgona, or Gorgonea Prima, meaning ogre, or monster, or even the main monster,...
View ArticleClik here to view.
On The Algol Road: Σ 369, AG 67, Epsilon (ε) Persei
After spending a nerve-wracking and ghoulish evening carousing with Algol and its companions a few weeks ago, I turned my attention to perusing its specterous neighborhood for other interesting stellar...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A John Herschel Odyssey in Canis Major: h 3934, h3938, and h 3945
So there we were, me and my 80mm Mizar, sitting quietly in the moonlight. The sky was magnificently crisp, the stars were twinkling with adolescent enthusiasm, a rapturous host of beautiful fluffy...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A Tale of Two Secondaries: Part Two — Tau (τ) Canis Majoris (h 3948)
If you wandered to this point without reading the first part of this two part post, you can get to part one by going HERE. Meanwhile, we’re leaving our former location east of Orion’s Betelgeuse and...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A Tale of Two Secondaries: Part One — Bu 193
It’s not easy being a secondary on a short leash. You live out your allotted hydrogen and helium burning years under the glare of your primarial parent, suffocating in its infernal glow, while...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A Stellar Show on the North Shore of Leo: 54 Leonis and Σ 1521
It always amazes me what gems lurk in the dark of the night, waiting patiently for an unsuspecting Star Splitter’s unannounced visit. I’ve been at this long enough now that it would seem there can’t...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A New Double Star that’s Delectably Close: WISE J104915.57-531906
First, to be perfectly clear, we’re dealing with a pair of brown dwarfs here — which are still stars after all, although admittedly they inhabit the somewhat vague terrain between conventional stars...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A Five Star Collection in Perseus: MLB 1036, Σ 533, OΣ 81, DOO 7, and . . . ???
If you find yourself roaming the southeastern sector of Perseus some dark and starry night, you’ll encounter some strangely named stars — such as Menkib and Atik — and some oddly named objects — such...
View ArticleClik here to view.
In the Lair of the Bear: Tau Ursae Majoris, Σ 1315, and 23 Ursae Majoris
I’m not quite sure what I’m doing way up here, upside down in the bear’s lair . . . . . . . (Stellarium screen image, click on the bear to enlarge the view). . . . . . . . because this really is not...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Four More in Ursa Major: 36 UMa, Σ 1495, Σ 1462, and Σ 1402
When last we left the Great Bear, we were still stuck within the constraining angles of its Bear-muda Triangle. But it’s time now to wriggle free from the clutching corners of its three-sided grasp...
View ArticleClik here to view.
My Optical De-PHI-ing Adventures, or How to Stretch a Star Apart: Phi [φ]...
How do you separate a pair of like magnitude stars with only 0.41 seconds of arc between them with a six inch f/10 refractor? Well, you don’t. But like a piece of salt water taffy, you can stretch...
View ArticleClik here to view.
An Eta-fyingly Close Encounter: Eta (η) Coronae Borealis
I know I’ve said it somewhere before in these pages (let’s see if I can find it . . . . . . . ah, here it is!), but this little curved constellation sure seems to have more than its fair share of tight...
View ArticleClik here to view.
On the North Side of Tania Borealis with Eng 43, Σ 1427, Bu 1074, and SMA 75
There I was, flushed with the all-knowing adolescent over-confidence that comes with being a month away from entering the grand halls of high school (eighth grade!), stuck in Texas...
View ArticleClik here to view.
On the South Side of Tania Australis with Cou 1900 and HJ 2534
We’re back again in the domain of the Great Bear’s second foot, and we’re about to have more fun than a cluster of ocular addicts turned loose in an eyepiece warehouse. The last time out we toured the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A Pair of Nu Ones: Nu-1 and Nu-2 in Boötes and Corona Borealis
There I was, looking for something new . to do, . when I ran into . Nu-1 and Nu-2. And...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Multiple Mysteries of Multiple Stars: OΣ 298 and KZA 105
There are double stars, and there are triple stars, and there are multiple stars . . . . . . . and then there are multiple stars. Odd multiple stars . . . . . . . with attributes you would never think...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Star-Hopping in the Northern Marches of Corona Borealis, Part One: H V 38,...
I’ve mentioned a few times in the past that Corona Borealis has always struck me as a small constellation dominated by double stars with little distance between them. As it turns out, this curving...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Star-Hopping in the Northern Marches of Corona Borealis, Part Two: Kappa (κ)...
If you’ve been hanging on for dear life at OΣ 302 since the last post (that would be part one, this is part two!), you can relax your grip now. I’m back again, and we’re going to forge forward once...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Clusters of Double Stars in Open Clusters: Σ 2212 and Σ2216 in IC 4665; Σ2342...
I spent some time two years ago in a very intriguing area of Ophiuchus (see In the Realm of the Ophiuchan Triangle) and was so taken with the variety of objects in the area that it’s become one of my...
View Article
