Lambda Oph

 
John M. Ryan
Star: Lambda Oph
Date & Time: Tuesday July 2, 2002
10:00UTC
Seeing: 6-7 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)>
Transparency:  <1-10, 10 best>
Location of site: Barreras, Salamanca, Spain.
Site classification: Rural, Suburban
Sky darkness: 4+  <Limiting magnitude>
Conditions: No moon , clear, medium wind with temp. about 12º C. Haze making transparency marginal
Telescope: Meade 7" Mak-Cas mounted on 
a Losmandy GM8
Eyepieces: 20mm plossel, 13mm plossel,10mm
and 6.4 plossels
Magnification: 134X, 203X, 264X and 413X
Harshaw Scale: 1 <1-5; 1 best> 
   		 I split this with the 10mm at 264X. The diffraction rings were touching but there was black sky between the two components. Primary tint of blue, secondary white. Althought the transparency was marginal the two components are bright enough to cut through the haze. Very pretty double and I gave it a rating of 1.
 
 

 

 
William L. Schart
Star: Lambda Oph
Date & Time: July 3-4, 2002,
11:30 pm CDT to 1230 PM CDT
Seeing: 7 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)>
Transparency:  <1-10, 10 best>
Location of site: Killeen, TX, USA
Site classification: Suburban
Sky darkness: 3.5 <Limiting magnitude>
Telescope: Celestar 8" SCT
Eyepieces: 25mm, 17mm, 10mm eyepieces
Magnification: 		 This pair also proved to be difficult tonight. There was nothing doing at lower powers, at high powers I barely got an elongation. The color was white.
 
 

 

 
Bob Hogeveen
Star: Lambda Oph
Date & Time: July 4, 2002 (23.30) 
Seeing: 7<1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)>
Transparency: 5 <1-10, 10 best>
Location of site: Annen, The Netherlands
53N, 6E
Site classification: Village backyard 
Sky darkness: 3 <Limiting magnitude>
Telescope: MK67 - 6" f/12 MCT
Eyepieces: 10mm plossl, 7mm LV, 5mm LV 
Magnification: 180x, 260x, 360x
Harshaw Scale: 4 <1-5; 1 best> 		 With 180x it was difficult to determine what I was seeing, was I seeing the secondary or was it a bright part of a diffraction ring?

I suspected the secondary, but the image was not good enough to be sure. With 360x it was obvious, the suspected dot definitely showed up as the secondary and could well be distinguised from irregular parts of diffraction rings around the two airy disks. Checking the orientation after observing completed the confirmation. 

With the foreknowledge of the 360x view it was easy to see that 180x also gave a split, although it was real close.

With 260x the situation was "in between", as can be expected. Better view of the secondary, but still not the comfortable split as with 360x.
Both stars seemed to be white.
 
 

 

 
Steve Bodin
Star: Lambda Oph
Date & Time: 8 July 2002,
11pm to 1 am local
Seeing: 5-6 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)>
Transparency:  good
Location of site: Silverdale, WA USA
47N,123W
Site classification: Suburban
Sky darkness: 5.7 - 6 <Limiting magnitude>
Telescope: Celestron C8
Eyepieces: 24mm Koenig, 18mm UO Ortho, 3x Barlow
Magnification: 250x, 333x
Additional: PC164C videcamera plus 3x Barlow app. 1000x magnification
   		 One of my favorite targets in Ophiuchus. Always on my summer observation list. Both stars seem white and are split at 250x. Measured: 1.44 sec at 027.7 deg PA.

 

 
Dave Moore
Star: Lambda Oph
Date & Time: 9th July 2002, 23.14 BST
Seeing:  <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)>
Transparency:  <1-10, 10 best>
Location of site: Charminster, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK (51 N 1 W)
Site classification: Urban Site
Sky darkness: 4.2 <Limiting magnitude>
Telescope:  Meade LX-90 8" f/10 ("Lucy")
Eyepieces: : 30mm Celeston Ultima, 12.5mm Celeston Ultima, 8mm Televue Radiam,
Generic 2x Barlow
Magnification: 67x, 160x, 160xm 250x		 No sign of duplicity at 67x or indeed 160x, and only fiendishly tight 
and elongated into a figure-of-eight at 250x. The companion, hunched 
in beside the main star, is somewhat fainter. Both stars are white. 
At 320x and 500x, both stars are split, with a glimmer of darkness 
between them. At 500x, the seeing is terrible, leading both stars to 
jump about in the eyepiece.
 
 
 
 

 

 
Luis Argüelles
Star: Lambda Oph
Date & Time: 11 July, 2002, 22:55 UT
Seeing: 6 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)>. 
Transparency: 5-
Location of site: Quintueles, near Gijon, Spain
Elevation: 20 m.
Site classification: Suburban garden
Temperature: 16.8ºC
Humidity: ~ 75% (less than 1 km from sea)
Sky darkness: 3-3.5 <Limiting magnitude> 
Conditions: Lots of light pollution from Gijon at west. Clouds rolling from there.
Telescope: Takahashi FS-102
Mount: Vixen GP w/Skysensor 2000
Eyepieces: 10mm Eudiascopic
Magnification: 82x
HS: -- <1-5 Scale (1 best)>
     

Star: Lambda Oph
Date & Time: 11, August, 2002, 
1:00am local time
Seeing: 5->3 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)>. 
Transparency: 6
Location of site: Sena de Luna, Spain
Elevation: 1,200 m.
Site classification: Rural
Temperature: 18ºC
Humidity: ~ 35%
Sky darkness: ~5 <Limiting magnitude> 
Telescope: Takahashi FS-102
Mount: Vixen GP w/Skysensor 2000
Eyepieces: 5mm Eudiascopic + 
2x Ultima Barlow
Magnification: 328x
HS: -- <1-5 Scale (1 best)>
     

 Bright double very well placed in the sky for observing. I start observing this double with the 10mm Eudiscopic eyepiece at 82x without noting any sign of duplicity. Clouds are not far, but I think I have time to increase magnification and get the split. I go to my box of exepieces and select the 3.8mm Eudiascopic, put the eyeball in the eyepiece and… absolutely no image. I see to the sky and observe he clouds like smiling at me. Ok, another ugly observing night. This is the last time I spend holidays in Asturias. What a weather, arghhhh! 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
It's located at low altitude over the horizon at this time. Observed with the 5mm Eudiacopic + 2x barlow at 328x I think to observe a fuzzy elongation. It's a blob that comes and goes. In order to split it well you need more altitude over horizon and better seeing. 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 
Patrick Thompson
Star: Lambda Oph
Date & Time: 13th /14th July, 00:00
Seeing: 5 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)>
Transparency: 7 <1-10, 10 best>
Location of site: West Wickham, Kent, UK. 51°23' N, 0°0'E
Site classification: Suburban garden
Moon: 8% waxing crescent
Sky darkness: 4.5-5 <Limiting magnitude>
Telescope: 8" Meade LX-90 SCT f/10
Eyepieces:: 26mm Meade Super Plossl
18mm Televue Radian
13.8mm Meade SWA
12mm Meade Astrometric
8.8mm Meade UWA
Magnification: 80x, 115x, 145x, 170x, 230x		 No sign of duplicity at either 80x or 115x. Some elongation at 145x. Very jumpy at higher magnifications but very definitely elongated with the possible occasional glimpse of a hairline separation although it was difficult to be certain in the conditions.

Primary white. Yellowish tinge in direction of elongation.

Spotted the D component (10m, 314", 246°) off to the South West but did not
measure. No sign of C (11m, 119", 170°) - also cannot find in Skymap.

Rating (1(best) - 5(worst))      : 4

Ambience: A noisy Saturday night/Sunday morning with Freddie Mercury blasting out from the sports club just down the road. Neighbours to the west away on holiday;
those to the east out for the evening so less extraneous light than normal.

Still quite light at first but after midnight the skies darkened (and the noise ended) to give a session with very good transparency but relatively poor seeing. Quite humid.
 

 
Eddy O'Connor
Star: Lambda Oph
Date & Time: Tuesday, July 16th 2002
9p.m -9. 30 p.m. local; UT +9
Seeing: 6 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)>
Transparency: 6 <1-10, 10 best>
Location of site: Terara, New South 
Wales, Australia, 
E150º.38, S34º.52
Site classification: Suburban
Moon: 6 days old.
Temperature: 8º C
Sky darkness:  <Limiting magnitude>
Telescope: 16" Newt. F5.1
Eyepieces: 10mm Plossl,18mm Ultima 
Celestron, 32 mm Teleview Plossl. 
Magnification: 
Harshaw Scale: 3 <1-5; 1 best> 
 		 This object had just cleared my tree and was easily found. I had no success with low and medium power eyepieces but finally got a hairline split with the 10mm Plossl. Both stars 
appeared Whitish and `blobular' at this power and the dark line came and went. This star would be an excellent test for seeing and optical comparisons.
 

 

 
Thad Robosson 
Star: Lambda Oph
Date & Time: Aug 02, 2002; 21:00:15
Seeing: 6 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)>
Transparency: 5->3 <1-10, 10 best>
Location of site: Twin Points Observatory,
Phoenix, Arizona, USA
33 26.725N, 112 18.902W
Site classification: 
Sky darkness:  <Limiting magnitude>
Temperature: 93ºF, 23% RH
Conditions: Some clouds in distance, none in
vicinity. Yet. Sky not quite dark.  Very still,
only a very slight breeze felt
Telescope: 8"f/6 Newtonian on EQ mount
Eyepieces: 10mm, 13mm, & 15mm Vixen
Lanthanum, 22mm & 35mm Televue Panoptic,
2x shorty Barlow, 5x Televue PowerMate,
Celestron Microguide, Custom built filar
micrometer.
Magnification: 
Harshaw Scale: 2 <1-5; 1 best> 		 EP/Magnification used...22mm/55x, 10mm/120x, 5mm/240x.

Notes....Took a while to find as I get my bearings back.  Of
course clouds are moving in now.  120x shows some elong.
at about 225*.  A brilliant white pair.  Bumping up to 240x
shows a split pair with the companion at about 40*.  Very tight,
comp. is not too much fainter.  Nice challenge while I get
reacquainted with this scope.
 

 

(c) 1998-2002 The Spirit of 33