3rd light - 5th star in the Trapezium

Howdy,

I had my 3rd night with my new to me C9.25. I am a rank newbie, and saw M42 for the first time ever last night. I used a Pentax 14mm XL and saw the 5th E star in the Trapezium. Seeing was pretty good but I could see some clouds up there so the moments were fleeting. The clear spots were very clear though. nice view of Saturn but it was killing me because I knew it could handle way more magnification and I don't have the EP's yet or a barlow.

Anyway, i sketched what i saw and ran into work today to check it on the web to see if I really saw it. Why am I so excited about it? heheh

Another thrill was showing my 4 year old boy the moon. He gasped and asked me if he could see men walking on it.

Clear SKIES!
Jeff

Congrats, Jeff! Many folks (myself included) have gone several years seeing only four stars in the Trapezium.

Next time you're out, look for the "F" star. It's about the same brightness as the E star, but a little harder to see. Should be well within the grasp of your C9.25 with decent seeing, tho. Here's a link you may find useful:

http://www.laughton.com/paul/rfo/trap/trap.html

Regards,
Doug

Congrats on the "E" star. Saturn has been Awesome lately, when I can see it.
:^)
Tell your boy "NO, but one day you could walk on it if you tried real hard!"

On the 14th I got to resolve the "E" and the "F" stars. At times I could see a 7th star popping in and out of view. But I could not claim it, as it was not fully resolved. This was with a 15" DOB. I have never seen 6 with the NS8GPS as yet. Maybe some day.
5 Stars is very good for in town backyard. I have to go to the mountains to get any more with my scopes.
By the way, I have been told there are 9 stars in there, but have never seen all of them. A friend saw them in a 24" DOB on Mt. Pinos, but I missed it. :^(
Floyd