Star hopping to the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) is a snap, since all the stars needed to do so are visible to the naked
eye.
Star hopping will take some getting used to and objects that don’t have stars near them that are visible to the naked
eye are challenging. One such object is M57 (Figure 5-2), the famed Ring Nebula. Here's how to find it:
1.
Find the constellation of Lyra, a small parallelogram visible in the summer and fall months. Lyra is easy to pick
out because it contains the bright star Vega.
2.
Start at the star Vega—Alpha (
α
) Lyrae—and move a few degrees southeast to find the parallelogram. The four
stars that make up this geometric shape are all similar in brightness, making them easy to see.
3.
Locate the two southernmost stars that make up the parallelogram—Beta (
β
) and Gamma (
λ
) Lyra.
4.
Point about halfway between these two stars.
5.
Move about
½
° toward Beta (
β
) Lyra, while remaining on a line connecting the two stars.
6.
Look through the telescope and the Ring Nebula should be in your field of view. The Ring Nebula’s angular
size is quite small and difficult to see.
7.
Because the Ring Nebula is rather faint, you may need to use “averted vision” to see it. “Averted vision” is a
technique of looking slightly away from the object you’re observing. So, if you are observing the Ring Nebula,
center it in your field of view and then look off toward the side. This causes light from the object viewed to fall
on the black and white sensitive rods of your eyes, rather than your eyes color sensitive cones. (Remember that
when observing faint objects, it’s important to try to observe from a dark location, away from street and city
lights. The average eye takes about 20 minutes to fully adapt to the darkness. So always use a red-filtered
flashlight to preserve your dark-adapted night vision).
These two examples should give you an idea of how to star hop to deep-sky objects. To use this method
on other objects, consult a star atlas, then star hop to the object of your choice using “naked eye” stars.
Figure 5-2
18
