Here, are some notes from last Friday night. I was observing with the 10-inch, f/4.5 Starfinder from Anderson Mesa, the Lowell dark sky site southeast of Flagstaff. NGC 5474: http://members.aol.com/billferris/n5474.html This galaxy is among several in the neighborhood of M101. My sketch presents a 129X view in my 10-inch equatorial Newtonian. NGC 5474 covers a 10'x5' area at the center of the drawing. the core and main disk appear roughly 5' in diameter. With averted vision a fairly large spiral arm is seen arcing westward from the disk. A second, shorter arm reaches to the east-southeast. Neither appears on DSS images, but this is a loose spiral galaxy and arms should range far from the core. A 14th magnitude star dimly glows in the foreground just north of the central disk region. A tight triangular grouping of 11th and 12th magnitude stars is seen about 9' to the northwest. The 10.8 magnitude spiral galaxy is about 26' northwest of 7.1 magnitude HD 123518. M101 lies beyond the field boundary to the northwest. Regarding the spiral arms, has anybody else observed these in NGC 5474? NGC 3718, NGC 3729: http://members.aol.com/billferris/n37183729.html This galaxy pair hangs from the bowl of the dipper like water drops from a laddle. My drawing presents a 129X view in the 10-inch. NGC 3718 is west of center. This 10.7 magnitude barred spiral has an interesting dark lane structure. The galaxy is split in two triangular sections with a barely discernable dark lane bisecting them along a northwest-to-southeast track. It covers a 7'x3' area. A pair of 11th magnitude GSC stars are close-set at the southern extent of this galaxy's soft glow. Another 11th magnitude star marks the northern limit. NGC 3729 is visible just 11' to the east, very near yet another 11th magnitude GSC star. This 11.4 magnitude peculiar galaxy covers a 3'x2' area. You'll find NGCs 3718 and 3729 about 3 degrees west-southwest of 2.4 magnitude Phad. Any other observations of the dark lane in NGC 3718? NGC 6309 "Box Nebula": http://members.aol.com/billferris/n6309.html Tiny, can't begin to describe this one. At just 45"x20" in size, NGC 6309 is very difficult to detect at less than high power. I used 388X to make the observation recorded in my sketch. A 12th magnitude foreground star is centered. The planetary extends south-southeast over a distance of some 45". This dainty ribbon of light is just 20" wide. The south end of the nebula appears slightly tapered, making NGC 6309 look something like a parallelogram. But the end closest to the star looks squared. NGC 6309 is sometimes called the Box nebula. I can see the resemblance in some images but, considering the challenging nature and irregular form of this miniscule planetary, it doesn't really to fit the mold of objects meriting a popular name. You'll find this 10th magnitude object in eastern Ophiuchus, almost 2 degrees west of 4.3 magnitude 53 (Nu) Serpentis. At what aperture, have folks seen this planetary as a "box?" Regards, Bill in Flagstaff -- See message header for info on list archives or unsubscribing, and please send personal replies to the author, not the list.