[AZ-Observing] Sharpless 2-112 and other Summer Stunners

Two nights ago on a whim, I decided to take advantage of northern Arizona's 
seasonal run of photometric nights and catch some photons with my 10-inch 
Newtonian. Going through some old observing lists, I found several that had 
been printed off Jim Shields' excellent "Adventures in Deep Space" 
(http://www.angelfire.com/id/jsredshift/index.html ) website. I grabbed the 
"Seasonal Favorites"
(http://www.angelfire.com/id/jsredshift/favorites.htm ), loaded my gear in the 
Rodeo and hit the road for Anderson Mesa.

Three of the four objects I observed were firsts for me. All were interesting 
and challenging in their own right.

Sharpless 2-112: http://members.aol.com/billferris/sh2112.html
What a gorgeous bit of nebulosity! Sharpless 2-112 is an emission nebula tucked 
away in northern Cygnus. Deneb lies just 1.3 degrees to the east-southeast. My 
sketch (see above link) presents an 82X view in my 10-inch Starfinder 
Newtonian. An OIII filter was used to enhance contrast. 9.2 magnitude SAO 49801 
is at the center of the field. Sh 2-112 ranges broadly toward the east over a 
10'x12' area. The nebula shyly displays delicate filamentary structure to the 
eye. It's almost boxy in shape with brighter west and north sides. There's just 
a hint of nebulosity detatched west of Sh 2-112. I would love to
observe this through a 15-inch or larger instrument. Twenty-three stars frame 
this portrait.

IC 4593: http://members.aol.com/billferris/ic4593.html
Planetary nebulae offer some of the most interesting observing targets in the 
night sky. They can appear linear, square, circular or any of several different 
shapes. This guy, IC 4593, resides in southern Hercules along the border with 
Serpens. My drawing (see link) captures the nebula's appearance in the 10-inch 
Starfinder at 247X, a magnification achieved by pairing a Meade 13.8-mm SWA 
eyepiece with TeleVue's 3X Barlow. IC 4593 is tiny, just 30" in diameter, and 
has a bright 11.2 magnitude central star. The central star burns through the 
surrounding nebulosity intermittently as I flit between direct and averted 
vision. A 9.4 magnitude star blazes 5' to the northwest and just inside the 
field boundary. Another four stars complete the view.

NGC 6765: http://members.aol.com/billferris/n6765.html
I came upon this odd little treat in southern Lyra. NGC 6765 is a planetary 
nebula with a photographic magnitude of 13.1 and an odd elongated form. It was 
a challenge to find with the 10-inch. And once located, this little guy would 
not easily give up his secrets. My sketch (see link) presents a 129X view in 
the Starfinder, both with
and without the OIII filter. A twelfth magnitude GSC star lies at the very 
center of the rendering. Just 2' to the northeast is where NGC 6765 is seen. 
The planetary was first detected as a tiny round dot just slightly brighter 
than the surrounding sky. Switching between filtered and unfiltered views 
reveals more nebulosity to the
southwest. Overall, NGC 6765 covers a 45"x10" area. The 16th magnitude central 
star was, of course, not seen. Another 33 stars frame the view.

Regards,

Bill in Flagstaff
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