Blame it on Betelgeuse. I used to love winter specifically for star gazing. Winter might be cold, but there's no mosquitoes, and the sky looks so crystal clear. After quickly locating Orion, I looked for the dog stars, but they weren't above the trees yet. Castor and Pollux were, and Auriga was easy to spot. So was Taurus. To the north the Big Dipper wasn't above the trees, and scattered clouds have prevented me from seeing the Little Dipper. Cassiopeia was clearly visible, along with Perseus. I've always had difficulty locating Andromeda, and now it was practically overhead, making the task harder. Pegasus was another easy find. But I think what rekindled interest the most was Cygnus. I remember the first time I saw it, the asterism leaping into focus like one of those stereograms. Fortunately, the sky was clear in that area, and the constellation was as striking as I remembered. Haven't looked for Cygnus in years.
Was surprised I still recognized that many constellations. Was disappointed that I couldn't see all seven of the Pleiades with the naked eye. Nor could I pick up a faint glimmer of the Orion nebula, or glow of the Andromeda galaxy, not even with averted vision. I could blame it on the waxing moon, but the culprit is likely aging eyes. Binoculars let me see the Orion nebula; not so the Andromeda galaxy. Holding binoculars nearly straight up gave too much motion in the vision field, and I wasn't about to lay down on the cold ground. Oddly, didn't think about the truck bed until later.
I want to get back into this. I've never known the constellations as well as I wished. Still have the old planisphere, which has seen better days and thinking of a new one. In general, I've always had difficulty with star charts. OTOH, I now have proper red filters for flashlights, and don't have to improvise with red plastic cups and red cellophane.
Was surprised I still recognized that many constellations. Was disappointed that I couldn't see all seven of the Pleiades with the naked eye. Nor could I pick up a faint glimmer of the Orion nebula, or glow of the Andromeda galaxy, not even with averted vision. I could blame it on the waxing moon, but the culprit is likely aging eyes. Binoculars let me see the Orion nebula; not so the Andromeda galaxy. Holding binoculars nearly straight up gave too much motion in the vision field, and I wasn't about to lay down on the cold ground. Oddly, didn't think about the truck bed until later.
I want to get back into this. I've never known the constellations as well as I wished. Still have the old planisphere, which has seen better days and thinking of a new one. In general, I've always had difficulty with star charts. OTOH, I now have proper red filters for flashlights, and don't have to improvise with red plastic cups and red cellophane.
