| Chris Peters | ||||
| Star: Rho Hercules
Date & Time: 26 May, 5:40 UT Seeing: 8 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)> Location of Site: Rio Rico, Arizona, 12 miles north of the US/Mexico border. Site Classification: Rural Sky darkness: about 6 <limiting magnitude> Telescope: 8 inch, f/6 Newtonian reflector Magnification: 6.7 mm Plossl @179, same with x2 Barlow at x358 26 mm Plossl @ x46.
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Both components appear of the same bluish-white hue.
The primary is of about magnitude 4; that of the companion, about
magnitude 5.
Separation is about 5", and the two are easily split at all powers and
are beautiful at higher ones. This is what I like to call a "Demon
Eyes" double, a term I picked up in a book somewhere, possibly Burnham's.
In any event it is very descriptive of the appearance of such close doubles
that are of nearly the same brightness.
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| Ilario Melandri | ||||
| Star:
Rho Hercules
Date & Time: 26 May 2000 – 00.25 UTC Seeing: 9 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)> Location of site: Italy, Ravenna, San Romualdo, Lat 44 32’N Lon 12 08’E Elevation: 0 m Site classification: Rural Sky darkness: 5 <Limiting magnitude> Temperature: +17C Telescope: 150 mm f/15 achromatic refractor (lens by Romano Zen, Venice). Magnification: 140 x (eyepiece Clave Plossl 16 mm) |
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| Patrick J. Anway | ||||
| Star: Rho Hercules (ab)
Date & Time: May, 28, 2000 03:00 UT Seeing: 6 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)> Location of Site: Munising Michigan USA Site Classification: Rural Sky darkness: 6 <limiting magnitude> Sky condition: No moon; no clouds Temperature: 39*F 4*C Telescope: Unitron 75mm, f/16 refractor on equatorial mount Magnification: 67X, 100X, 200X (Vixen 18mm, 12mm, 6mm orthoscopics) |
Easily split at 67X, 100X and 200X. Lovely pair, both
bright white. Olcott describes them: "both fine green coloring"
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| Tom Teague | ||||
| Star:
Rho Hercules
Date & Time:2000 May 28 (2300UT) Seeing: 8 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)>. Location of site: Chester, England (53 11 08N; 02 51 39W) Site classification: Suburban Sky darkness: 5 <Limiting magnitude> Telescope: 63mm Zeiss Telementor refractor Magnification: x56, x112, x210, x336 |
Just split x56, but difficult. Easy x112. Subtle colour
contrast x210 - white and pale blue. Colours also seen x336, but
x210 gives a better image. This is another lovely (and under-rated)
double.
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| Richard Harshaw | ||||
| Star: Rho Hercules
Location of site: Northern Kansas City, Missouri (USA). 94d 30m west longitude, 39d 15m north latitude 980 ft above Mean Sea Level Date of observations (UT): 29 May, 2000; 0330 hours Site classification: suburban Sky conditions: Seeing-- 8 out of 10 (long periods of 10!!) Transparency-- 8 out of 10 Limiting visual magnitude-- 4.5 Telescope: Celestron C-8 Eyepiece: 10mm Ortho (211x) |
Magnitudes: 4.1 (B9III), 4.5 (ApV)
Sep/PA's: 4/318 (both increasing) Year of last measurement: 1991 Distance (light years): 402 Luminosity (in suns): 369 Both looked White to me. I used the diffraction mask to clean up the images. It was easily resolved at 105x with the mask, but looked better at 211. This is a beautiful pair in a bright field.
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| Bill Reinehr | ||||
| Star:
Rho Hercules
Date & Time: June 2, 2000, 04:30 UTC Seeing: 7+ (fairly still) <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)> Location of site: Pflugerville, Texas, USA (30 degrees N.) Site classification: Suburban Sky darkness: 4.1 <Limiting magnitude> Temperature: 75 F. Telescope: Vixen 80mm Fluorite, f/8 on Custom D altaz mount Magnification: 29x, 58x, 106x, 212x |
An easy and clean split at 58x. No color detected at any
magnification.
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| Paolo Morini | ||||
| Star:
Rho Hercules
Date & Time: 3 June 2000 – 21:30 UTC Seeing: 9 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)> Location of site:Ostellato, Ferrara, Italy. Site classification: Rural Sky darkness: 5.5 <Limiting magnitude> Temperature: Telescope: Takahashi FS102 Magnification: 235x (eyepiece OR7 + barlow 2x) |
Noted a contrast color (one component “colder” than the other).
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| Patrick Kelly | ||||
| Star: Rho Hercules
Date & Time: 6/3/2000 10:15PM Seeing: clear, 8 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)> Location of Site: Baltimore, Maryland USA Site Classification: Urban Sky darkness: 4 <limiting magnitude> Telescope: Takahashi FS102 (102mm)f/8 refractor on AP 400 equatorial mount Magnification: first hint of separation at 45x (18mm Tak LE), cleanly split and best views at 54x (15mm TV plossl), 82x and 102x (10mm, 8mm Radian).
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Both stars appeared pure white. A very tight and attractive
pair in relatively close magnitudes.
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| Jose Fernandez | ||||
| Star:
Rho Hercules
Date & Time: 7-June-2000, 10:15 UT Seeing: 8 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)> Location of site: L'Angliru, Asturias-SPAIN (43.2N,6W. Elevation:1500 m) wwww.astrosurf.com/josefdez Site classification: Rural Sky darkness: 4.5 at zenit. Moon (phase:0.37) 23 degrees over horizon <Limiting magnitude> Telescope: INTES MK65, 150mm f12 Magnification: 73x (Meade 24.5 mm WA), 186x (Meade 9.7 mm) |
Split at 73x (24.5 mm). At 186x (9.7 mm) I can see easily the two Airy
disks and three diffraction disks in both components. I cannot appreciate
any color in the two stars. Very nice pair.
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| Pino Bandini | ||||
| Star: Rho Hercules
Location of site: Ravenna, Italy Date of observations (UT): Site classification: Urban Sky conditions: Seeing: 5 (10 best) Temperature: 25C Limiting visual magnitude: -- Telescope: Celestron C8 Magnification: 81 x (eyepiece Plossl 25 mm) |
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| John M. Ryan | ||||
| Star:
Rho Hercules
Date of Observation: 7/06/00 22:30UT Location of Observation: Ciudad Rodrigo, Salamanca, Spain 40º 36' N, 6º 32'W, Elev. 800 Meters Seeing: 5 to 6 (1 - 10, 10 best) Transparency: 7 to 8 Limiting Mag. (naked eye): 4 Site classification: Instrument: Meade 8"SCT Magnification: Elongation at 100X (20 plossl), close split at 167X (12 plossl), nice clean split at 400X (5mm ortho) |
Separation (Clear or Touching):Clear
Magnitude Comment: Secondary somewhat dimmer in accordance with the data. Color Comment: Both pearly white General Comment: This is a nice close double. The poor seeing caused a lot of movement between the components at high power.
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| Mary Flanagan | ||||
| Star:
Rho Hercules
Date & Time: 08 Jun 2000 04:26 UT/ 7 Jun 11:26 CDT Seeing: 8; improved later. <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)> Transparency: (1-10) 7 Location of site: Apple Valley MN, USA 93d 14m 25s W; 44d 45m 17s N Site classification: Suburban Sky darkness: ~mag 4.5 at best <Limiting magnitude> Telescope: 8" f/6 Dobsonian Magnification: 80x |
Very, very close, but a hairsbreadth of black between them. No color
noted, but I caught the magnitude difference.
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| Tim Leese | ||||
| Star:
Rho Hercules
Date & Time: 16/17 June 2000 22:00 UT – 01:00UT Seeing: 5-4 deteriorating <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)> Location of site: Cheshire. UK 53° 15' N –2º 33' W Site classification: Suburban Sky darkness: Not measured Full moon, twilight Telescope: 200mm f/6 Newtonian scope on Vixen GP mount (manual slow motion). Any Quoted PA or SEP are estimates. Magnification: 124x, 324x
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At X120 a pale off white primary with a pale blue secondary
was observed. At X324 the PA of the secondary was measured at 320deg with
a separation of 4.5sec.
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| Eddy O'Connor | ||||
| Star: Rho Hercules
Date & Time: Wednesday, June 29th 2000 10 -11p.m local; UT +10 Seeing: 5-6/10 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)> Transparency: 7/10 Temperature: 7ºC, Light breeze. Location of Site: Terara, New South Wales, Australia, Long.150.38 degrees; South 34.52. Site Classification: Suburban Sky darkness: Northern sky to mag. 4.5; Southern to 5.5 <Limiting magnitude> Instrument: 8" F9 Dobsonian Magnification: 72x (25mm K), 144x (12.5 mm Ortho). |
From my position this is indeed an elusive pair. When
viewed initially, I failed to split this double. As the night improved
slightly, the breeze dropped and Rho rose to maximum height - 15º
above the Northern horizon- I noticed a saturn-ring-like extension at 72X.
However, 144X clearly showed separation and that the close companion was
a slightly darker colour. This star reminds me of Acrux, which although
many magnitudes brighter, has a similar separation and brightness difference
and is often useful as a test
for seeing.
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| William L. Schart | ||||
| Star:
Rho Hercules
Date & Time: July 2, 2000 11:14 pm CDT Seeing: 8 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)> Location of site: Killeen, TX (Lat 31 N, Elev 600 ft) Site classification: Suburban Sky darkness: 3 <Limiting magnitude> Telescope: Orion 6" Dob. Magnification: 32x, 48x, 72x, 120x, 24x |
After some high, thin clouds moved through, I was able
to locate this. Easily IDed by a nearby asterism of 3 stars with the brighter
one flanked by the lesser 2. At 32x, no evidence of duplicity, at 48x,
elongation, and at 72x, just barely split. The best split was at 240x.
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