BBC Sky at Night Magazine November 2023 Bonus Content
Virtual Planetarium
Interview: Intelligent life beyond Earth?
Astronomer Adam Frank on the search for alien life, what it would mean and what he really thinks about UFOs.
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.
M8, the Lagoon Nebula and M20, the Trifid Nebula
Antoine and Dalia Grelin, captured remotely via Utah Desert Remote Observatories, Utah, USA, 1-2 August 2023
Equipment: ZWO ASI2600MC Pro colour CMOS camera, Celestron RASA 8-inch Rowe-Ackermann Schmidt astrograph, 10Micron GM1000 HPS mount
Jupiter and its moons
David Hoskin, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 24 August 2023
Equipment: ZWO ASI224MC colour CMOS camera, Celestron C8 XLT Schmidt-Cassegrain, Sky-Watcher EQ6-R mount
Iris Nebula
Harshwardhan Pathak, captured remotely via Telescope Live, IC Astronomy Observatory, Spain, 11-13 August 2023
Equipment: QHY600Pro CMOS camera, Takashi FSQ-106EDX4 quadruplet apo refractor, Paramount MX mount
Wizard Nebula
Leticia Theobald, Stevenage, Herts, 29 July-8 August 2023
Equipment: ZWO ASI2600MM Pro mono CMOS camera, William Optics Zenithstar 73 III apo refractor, Sky-Watcher HEQ5 Pro mount
Comet C/2023 P1
Osama Fathi, Black Desert, Egypt, 26 August 203
Equipment: ZWO ASI294MM Pro mono CCD camera (comet), Nikon Z6 mirrorless camera (foreground), William Optics RedCat51 apo refractor, Sky-Watcher Star Adventurer 2i mount
Saturn
Robbie Smith, Stevenage, Hertfordshire, 15 August 2023
Equipment: ZWO ASI178MC colour CMOS camera, Celestron C9.25 XLT Schmidt-Cassegrain, Sky-Watcher EQ6-R Pro mount
Phases of Venus
Roberto Ortu, Cabras, Sardinia, Italy, 23 May-8 August 2023
Equipment: QHY5L-II colour CMOS camera, Celestron PowerSeeker 114 Newtonian, Celestron CGEM II EQ mount
LDN43, the Cosmic Bat Nebula
Daniel Stern, captured remotely via Deep Sky Chile, Rio Hurtado, Chile, 12-13 August 2023
Equipment: Moravian C4-16000C mono CMOS camera, PlaneWave CDK17 astrograph, PlaneWave L-500 mount
Blue Supermoon
Shreya Roy, Kolkata, India, 30 August 2023
Equipment: Nikon D5600 DSLR camera, Nikon 70-300mm lens, Digitek tripod
NGC 908
Warren Keller, captured remotely via SC Observatory, El Sauce Observatory, Chile, 14-15 December 2022
Equipment: QHY461PH mono CMOS camera, PlaneWave CDK1000 astrograph with integrated mount (luminance); ProLine PL16803 mono CCD camera, PlaneWave CDK700 astrograph with integrated mount (RGB)
Waning crescent and the Perseids
Ahmed Waddah, Al Fayoum Desert, Egypt, 11 August 2023
Equipment: Nikon Z6 II mirrorless camera, Nikkor Z 14-24mm f/2.8 S lens, iOptron SkyGuider Pro mount
The Perseids
Sérgio Conceição, Barrancos, Alentejo, Portugal, 12-13 August
Equipment: Canon EOS R6 mirrorless camera, Canon RF 15-35mm f/2.8L IS USM lens
Orion in narrowband SHO
Drew Evans, Flagstaff, Arizona, USA, 22 December 2022-9 February 2023
Equipment: ZWO ASI2600MM Pro mono CCD camera, Sigma 50mm F1.4 EX DG HSM lens, iOptron SkyGuider Pro mount
The Milky Way
Giampiero Baggi, Viticuso, Italy, 26 August 2023
Equipment: Nikon D5300 and D3300 DSLR cameras, Sky-Watcher Star Adventurer mount
M8, the Lagoon Nebula
Haim Huli, 22 June 2022, Tivoli Astro Farm, Namibia
Equipment: Moravian C3-61000 Pro mono CMOS camera, ASA RC600 Richey-Cretien, ASA DDM200 mount
Blue Supermoon
Jefferson Mazzoni, São José do Rio Preto, Brazil, 30 August 2023
Equipment: Canon EOS Rebel T3i DSLR camera, Sky-Watcher Explorer 150P reflector, iOptron CEM25P mount
Sh2-101, the Tulip Nebula
Mike Read, Corsley, Wiltshire, 19 and 21-24 August 2023
Equipment: QHY268M mono CMOS camera, Sky-Watcher Esprit 100ED triplet apo refractor, Sky-Watcher EQ6-R mount
Sh2-132, the Lion Nebula
Patrick A Cosgrove, Honeoye Falls, New York, USA, 1- 6 September 2021 (reprocessed 2023)
Equipment: ZWO ASI1600MM Pro mono CMOS camera, Askar FRA400 quintuplet apo astrograph, iOptron CEM26 mount
NGC 6960, the Witch’s Broom Nebula
Alistair Bartlett, Ponteland, Northumberland, 10 August 2023
Equipment: ZWO ASI1600MM Pro mono CMOS camera, Altair Wave Series 102mm F7 Super ED triplet apo refractor, Sky-Watcher EQ6-R Pro mount
M33, the Triangulum Galaxy
Bert Moyaers, Kampenhout, Belgium, 10-11 August 2023
Equipment: ZWO ASI533MC Pro colour CMOS camera, TS-Optics Photon f/5 Newtonian reflector, Explore Scientific EXOS-2 PMC-Eight mount
Eye On The Sky
Io and Jupiter
NASA Juno probe, 30 July 2023
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS
Martian riverbed
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, 18 August 2023
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona
Martian riverbed
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, 18 August 2023
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona
Herbig-Haro 211
James Webb Space Telescope, 14 September 2023
Credit: ESA/Webb, NASA, CSA, Tom Ray (Dublin)
Neptune
ESO Very Large Telescope, 24 August 2023
Credit: ESO/P. Irwin et al
Ius Chasma, Mars
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, 18 August 2023
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona
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).
License type Full software Platform Windows Versions 8.1, 10
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.
