Paul Markov's
Deep Sky Observing Articles


All articles are Copyright (C) 1999 - 2001 by Paul Markov

The Reference Deep Sky Object

How to use easy to find galaxies to determine your current sky transparency. Includes a list of 40 reference galaxies. First published in June 1999 in 'Scope, the bi-monthly newsletter of the Toronto Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

Star-Hopping Primer

Tools, hints, and tips for the beginner star-hopper. Topics covered are: star atlases, finder scopes, low power eyepieces, fields of view, inverted and reversed images, sky directions. First published in August 1999 in 'Scope, the bi-monthly newsletter of the Toronto Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

The First Thirty NGC Objects

A brief discussion on how the NGC catalogue is organized, with data and comments on the first 30 NGC objects. First published in October 1999 in 'Scope, the bi-monthly newsletter of the Toronto Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

Puppis' Best Open Clusters

Observing brighter open clusters from the city. Includes data and comments on several bright open clusters in Puppis. First published in December 1999 in 'Scope, the bi-monthly newsletter of the Toronto Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

Effective Deep Sky Observing

How to prepare for an effective and efficient night of deep sky observing. Discusses equipment, creating observing lists, and tips to use at the eyepiece. First published in February 2000 in 'Scope, the bi-monthly newsletter of the Toronto Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

Surface Brightness

An overview of the meaning of surface brightness, why it is important for deep sky observers, and how it compares to "magnitude". First published in April 2000 in 'Scope, the bi-monthly newsletter of the Toronto Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

The Observing Logbook

Explains the benefits of keeping an observing logbook and gives lots of hits and tips on how to maintain a useful and relevant logbook. First published in June 2000 in 'Scope, the bi-monthly newsletter of the Toronto Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

Pushing Your Telescope, and Yourself, to the Limit

Discusses the factors that will affect pushing your telescope to the limit, in respect to seeing the faintest possible deep sky objects. Also lists the nine faintest objects I have seen with my 8-inch and 10-inch telescope. First published in August 2000 in 'Scope, the bi-monthly newsletter of the Toronto Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

Where are the Darkest Skies in the Greater Toronto Area?

This article outlines the steps for participating in an experiment to determine the limiting visual stellar magnitude and darkest skies in the Greater Toronto Area. If you live in the GTA your participation is welcome. First published in October 2000 in 'Scope, the bi-monthly newsletter of the Toronto Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

Deep Sky Filters

In this installment I will describe what kind of deep sky filters are available on the market and what you can expect from each, as well as tell you about some personal observations with the OIII filter from a fairly dark sky and from within the city. First published in December 2000 in 'Scope, the bi-monthly newsletter of the Toronto Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

Where are the Darkest Skies in the Greater Toronto Area? The Results

In one of the articles above I asked for your participation in an experiment to determine the faintest star visible with the unaided eye from your observing location within the GTA. This article summarizes the results of the experiment and attempt to draw some conclusions based on the observations received. First published in February 2001 in 'Scope, the bi-monthly newsletter of the Toronto Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

Safe Dark Sky Observing

This article discusses many aspects of observing in safety at remote dark sky sites. Things to consider are finding a safe observing site, unwelcome visitors, car breakdowns, and personal injuries. First published in April 2001 in 'Scope, the bi-monthly newsletter of the Toronto Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

Observing Odds & Ends

A collection of short articles on these topics: Observing faint galaxies from the city, the observing eye, magnification, GOTO telescopes, alt-azimuth star hopping. First published in June 2001 in 'Scope, the bi-monthly newsletter of the Toronto Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

The Markov 1 Asterism in Hercules

Short article with photo of an asterism I spotted in Hercules. This article was published in the Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, August 2001 issue.

Actual Field of View

This article reviews how to calculate the actual field of view of eyepieces based on apparent field of view and based on the drift method. It also explains why using the apparent field of view calculation will not yield very accurate results. First published in August 2001 in 'Scope, the bi-monthly newsletter of the Toronto Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

The Dolidze-Dzimselejsvili Open Clusters

This article discusses the DoDz catalogue of open clusters. Includes actual observations and some drawings. First published in October 2001 in 'Scope, the bi-monthly newsletter of the Toronto Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

800 Bright Deep Sky Objects

This article discussed the abundance of deep sky objects that are brighter than 10th magnitude and are visible with small to medium sized telescopes, even from urban areas. The article suggestes looking beyond the Messier and NGC lists to discover a variety of bright objects belonging to lesser known deep sky catalogues. First published in January 2002 in 'Scope, the bi-monthly newsletter of the Toronto Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

 

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