Presumably double stars are randomly distributed through space. In spite of this I have a feeling that some parts of the sky have their lion's share of attractive double stars, while other parts have few doubles.
One of the reasons for my feeling may be that as a star hopper I favour either naked eye doubles or doubles that are relatively easy to locate. Maybe GOTO users have a different feeling. I also admit that I have a preference for doubles closer than 10", and particularly I enjoy pairs in the 1 - 3" range. Anyhow, here are my favourite constellations:
Orion: Many of the naked eye stars of this constellation are attractive doubles. And there is a multitude of fainter, very attractive pairs. Orion contains several multiple stars. The only minus could be that not many of the brighter doubles in Orion show any appreciable colour contrast.
Bootes: This is another constellation where a high number of the naked eye stars are doubles. Bootes also contains several relatively fast binaries.
Draco: Perhaps my favourite double star constellation. It is a treasure box for the hunter of moderately faint (6 - 7th magnitude) doubles. I have a long list of Draco doubles in my observation log, and still many interesting pairs on my "to do" list.
Lynx:This may be the constellation with the highest ratio between good doubles and naked eye stars. It may be difficult to find the way through Lynx, but in part of the constellation it is possible to hop between the double stars.
These are my four top favourites, but there are several runners-up. Cassiopeia, Cygnus and Cehpeus are rich in good doubles. So is Aries, and Taurus contains many, quite challenging pairs. Another good constellation is Hercules, and small Corona Borealis should not be forgotten.
On the other hand I find Ursa Major to contain relatively few good doubles taking its size into account. Of course Zeta and Xi are fine doubles, but I don't have many faint doubles from Ursa Major in my observation log. Maybe all the galaxies draw all the attention.
Inge S
One of the reasons for my feeling may be that as a star hopper I favour either naked eye doubles or doubles that are relatively easy to locate. Maybe GOTO users have a different feeling. I also admit that I have a preference for doubles closer than 10", and particularly I enjoy pairs in the 1 - 3" range. Anyhow, here are my favourite constellations:
Orion: Many of the naked eye stars of this constellation are attractive doubles. And there is a multitude of fainter, very attractive pairs. Orion contains several multiple stars. The only minus could be that not many of the brighter doubles in Orion show any appreciable colour contrast.
Bootes: This is another constellation where a high number of the naked eye stars are doubles. Bootes also contains several relatively fast binaries.
Draco: Perhaps my favourite double star constellation. It is a treasure box for the hunter of moderately faint (6 - 7th magnitude) doubles. I have a long list of Draco doubles in my observation log, and still many interesting pairs on my "to do" list.
Lynx:This may be the constellation with the highest ratio between good doubles and naked eye stars. It may be difficult to find the way through Lynx, but in part of the constellation it is possible to hop between the double stars.
These are my four top favourites, but there are several runners-up. Cassiopeia, Cygnus and Cehpeus are rich in good doubles. So is Aries, and Taurus contains many, quite challenging pairs. Another good constellation is Hercules, and small Corona Borealis should not be forgotten.
On the other hand I find Ursa Major to contain relatively few good doubles taking its size into account. Of course Zeta and Xi are fine doubles, but I don't have many faint doubles from Ursa Major in my observation log. Maybe all the galaxies draw all the attention.
Inge S
