Access this month's Bonus Content. If you are having trouble with any of the download links, right-click on the link, select 'Copy Link Address' and paste the link in a new window in your web browser.
Virtual Planetarium
Pete Lawrence and Paul Abel guide us through February's night-sky highlights.
Interview: astrobiologist Nicol Caplin
Deep Space Exploration Scientist Dr Nicol Caplin reveals how microorganisms can assist human spaceflight.
Binocular and deep-sky tours
Download this month's binocular and deep-sky tour charts. The charts are printed in black on white so they can be viewed under red light at your telescope.
Record your observations of Jupiter, Mars, Saturn, Venus and the Sun with our handy printable forms.
If you observe the Sun, remember NEVER to look at it with your naked eye; either project it through your telescope or use a solar filter on your telescope's front lens.
The Orion Nebula
Danny Lee, Folkestone, Kent, 7 November 2021
Equipment: ZWO ASI2600MC Pro camera, William Optics Redcat 51 refractor, Sky-Watcher EQ5 Pro mount
Northern Lights
Tomáš Slovinský, Tromsø, Norway, 27 October 2021
Equipment: Canon 6D DSLR, Sigma 28mm Art lens, tripod
Mineral Moon (left) and Moon
Fernando Oliveira de Menezes, São Paulo, Brazil, 7 November 2021
Equipment: ZWO ASI6200MC camera, Sky-Watcher Esprit 150ED refractor, iOptron CEM70 mount
Polar-ring galaxy NGC 660
Martina McGovern, near Cambridge, 3 September–1 November 2021
Equipment: ZWO ASI294MC Pro camera, Celestron 8-inch EdgeHD Schmidt Cassegrain, Sky-Watcher HEQ5 Pro mount
The Elephant’s Trunk Nebula
Martin Cohen, Fareham, Hampshire, October–November 2021
Equipment: ZWO ASI2600MM Pro camera, Sky-Watcher Quattro 8CF Newtonian, Sky-Watcher HEQ5 mount
The Pleiades
Basudeb Chakrabarti and Goutam Dey, Darjeeling, India, 6 November 2021
Equipment: Nikon D5300 DSLR, William Optics RedCat 51 refractor, iOptron SkyGuider Pro mount; Nikon D5600 DSLR, William Optics RedCat 51 refractor, iOptron SmartEQ Pro mount
The Phantom Galaxy
Rob Johnson, Liverpool, 26 September, 30 October, 3 November 2021
Equipment: Atik 383L camera, TS-Optics ONTC 12-inch Newtonian, Sky-Watcher EQ8 mount
Comet C/2021 A1 Leonard
José J Chambó, Mayhill, New Mexico, USA, 11 November 2021
Equipment: FLI PL6303E camera, Planewave CDK17 astrograph
The Triangulum Galaxy
Catalin Daniel Cosar, Henlow, Bedfordshire, 30, 31 October, 1 November 2021
Equipment: QHY 268C camera, QHY 268M camera, Takahashi FSQ-85EDX refractor, Sky-Watcher EQ8 Pro mount
LBN 587
Emil Andronic, Bushey, Hertfordshire, 24 September–22 November 2021
Equipment: ZWO ASI294MM Pro camera, AstroTech 106LE refractor, Sky-Watcher EQ6-GT mount
The Sculptor Galaxy
Jeffrey O Johnson, Las Cruces, New Mexico, USA, 28 October 2021
Equipment: QSI 690WSG camera, Takahashi TOA-130F refractor, Takahashi EM200 Temma II mount
The Moon
Rob Randell, Preston, 13 November 2021
Equipment: ZWO ASI224MC camera, SkyMax 127 Maksutov-Cassegrain, Sky-Watcher EQ5 mount
Spiral galaxy NGC 1566
Dan Crowson, remotely via El Sauce Observatory, Rio Hurtado, Chile, 23–30 November 2021
Equipment: FLI PL9000 camera, PlaneWave CDK24 astrograph, Mathis MI-1000 mount
Cosmic question mark (NGC 7822)
Jeffrey Horne, Nashville, Tennessee, USA, 1–9 November 2021
Equipment: ZWO ASI2600MC Pro camera, TPO UltraWide 180 refractor, Sky-Watcher EQ6-R Pro mount
The Elephant’s Trunk Nebula
Jason Brown, Kielder Star Camp, Northumberland, 7 November 2021
Equipment: Canon 6D DSLR, William Optics Zenith Star 73II refractor, Sky-Watcher EQ6-R Pro mount
Comet C/2021 A1 Leonard passes the Whale and Hockey Stick galaxies
Tom Masterson and Terry Hancock, Grand Mesa Observatory, Colorado, USA, 25 November 2021
Equipment: QHYCCD QHY367C camera, Takahashi E-180 astrograph, Paramount GT1100S mount
The Lobster Claw Nebula
Ron Brecher, Guelph, Ontario, Canada, 25 November 2021
Equipment: QHYCCD QHY600M camera, Sky-Watcher Esprit 150ED refractor, Paramount MX mount
Eye On The Sky
Wind-formed ripples in a Martian crater
MARS RECONNAISSANCE ORBITER, 29 NOVEMBER 2021
IMAGE CREDIT: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona
Herbig-Haro object HH 45 in the Running Man Nebula
HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE, 24 NOVEMBER 2021
IMAGE CREDIT: NASA, ESA, J. Bally (University of Colorado at Boulder), and DSS; Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)
Planetary nebulae NGC 6302 (Butterfly Nebula), IC 418 (Spirograph Nebula), NGC 3242 (Jupiter’s Ghost), NGC 7662 (Blue Snowball Nebula), NGC 7027 (Jewel Bug Nebula) and NGC 2371
CHANDRA X-RAY OBSERVATORY/HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE, 6 DECEMBER 2021
IMAGE CREDITS:
X-ray: NASA/CXC/RIT/J.Kastner; Optical: NASA/ESA/AURA/STScI
X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO; Optical: NASA/ESA/AURA/STScI
X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO; Optical: NASA/STScI/Univ. Washington, B.Balick
X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO; Optical: NASA/ESA/AURA/STScI
X-ray: NASA/CXC/RIT/J. Kastner; Optical: NASA/ESA/AURA/STScI
X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO; Optical: NASA/ESA/AURA/STScI
Exoplanet b Centauri b orbiting binary star b Centauri (HIP 71865)
VERY LARGE TELESCOPE, 8 DECEMBER 2021
IMAGE CREDIT: ESO/Janson et al.
A pair of supermassive black holes in galaxy NGC 7727
VERY LARGE TELESCOPE/VLT SURVEY TELESCOPE, 30 NOVEMBER 2021
IMAGE CREDIT: ESO/Voggel et al.; ESO/VST ATLAS team. Acknowledgement: Durham University/CASU/WFAU
Swirls of dust in the Flame Nebula
HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE, 22 NOVEMBER 2021
IMAGE CREDIT: NASA, ESA, and N. Da Rio (University of Virginia); Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)
Rock before sample drilling in Mars's Jezero Crater
PERSEVERANCE MARS ROVER, 15 DECEMBER 2021
IMAGE CREDIT: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Two Perspectives of Séítah Rocks, Mars: enhanced colour (left) and mineral map (right)
PERSEVERANCE MARS ROVER, 15 DECEMBER 2021
IMAGE CREDIT: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/MSSS
Double-helix structure in massive jet from galaxy M87
VERY LARGE ARRAY, 7 DECEMBER 2021
IMAGE CREDIT: Pasetto et al., Sophia Dagnello, NRAO/AUI/NSF
Galaxy NGC 7727, the result of a clash between two galaxies a billion years ago
VLT SURVEY TELESCOPE, 29 NOVEMBER 2021
IMAGE CREDIT: ESO/VST ATLAS team. Acknowledgement: Durham University/CASU/WFAU
This month's deep-sky tour plan file can be imported into the Argo Navis Digital Telescope Computer using Argonaut software, a free utility available from Wildcard Innovations.Using Argo Navis with this month's deep-sky tour plan file, you can:
• display essential information from the Argo Navis database for each object
• slew your telescope to each object in the plan - requires a compatible mount.
• push your telescope to each object in the plan using the coordinates provided on the Argo Navis display.
To import this month's deep-sky tour plan file into Argo Navis using Argonaut software:
Download and save the file to your hard drive.
Run the Argonaut utility program and transfer the plan into your Argo Navis DTC.
This month's Deep-Sky Tour plan file is produced by Deep-Sky Planner 8 (see knightware.biz/dsp).
Deep-Sky Planner 8 astronomy software for Windows provides the tools you need to make your time at the telescope more efficient and enjoyable.
• sort the objects in the plan according to the best time and order to view each object.
• slew your ASCOM-compatible Go-To mount to each object in the plan - requires ASCOM software (free).
• show a sky chart centred on each object in the plan using one of the top planetarium software titles – requires TheSky, Starry Night, Redshift, Cartes du Ciel (free) or Stellarium (free).
• record your observation in the open, non-proprietary observing log.
Details about Deep-Sky Planner and how to purchase can be found here.
Download the Deep-Sky Planner compatible file of this month's deep-sky tour observing plan file so that you can visit each object directly with Deep-Sky Planner. Save the file to your hard drive and double click it to open it in Deep-Sky Planner.
If you are one of the many astronomers who use the ASCOM driver EQMOD to control your ASCOM-compatible Go-To mount, you can use an add-on application called EQTOUR to call up various sets of sky tours like Messier, Caldwell, Globular Clusters and simply click on an object name to slew to it.
Details about the application and how to download it free of charge can be found here.
Download the EQTOUR compatible file of our monthly Deep-sky tour, so that you can visit each object directly from your EQMod control panel. We've also included a PDF document that explains the system and how to get it installed with your telescope setup.
Copy the .lst file from the folder that appears into the same directory as the EQTOUR application file, EQTOUR.exe, and follow the instructions in the link above.
