One of the surprises which met me after moving to
Kingston, was the "discovery" that there actually
exists such a phenomenon as clear nights during the spring.
Unbelievable and unheard of in Victoria, but true in Ontario. In
the last four years the only time I was able to get a peak of
galaxies in Virgo Cluster from Sooke was in pre-dawn hours of
December - the part of 24 hour cycle which not too many sane
people want to experience outside on their free will. So I hope
it is not to difficult to understand my excitement about all
those "new fuzzies" to observe. Of course I moved East
just with a suitcase however that "survival kit"
included 10x50 binoculars. Knowing my astronomical anxiety
syndrom (well developed during West Coast rainy season) my loving
wife shipped me my 6 inch Dobby a few days later by UPS.

One of my first thoughts focused on Messier Marathon.
The time of year was right, I got myself a bit further South and
Ontario is not knows for its mountains. So in the middle of March
I went to Kingston Centre meeting and checked around for
observationally inclined souls. Eventually Laura Gagne gave me
precise direction to a secluded spot at Gould Lake Conservation
Area about 25 km North of the city. A few nights later, when full
Moon was not polluting the skies anymore, I decided to check it
out. It turned out to be a large grassy and shrubby area with a
very low horizon in all directions. There were a few closer
clumps of trees but they were reasonably far away so I did not
worry about them too much (well, we will come back to that
later...). Sky was also very dark with just a bit of light dome
of Kingston visible to the South. On that first observing
session, to warm up before the real Marathon, I managed to find
60 Messier objects using binoculars and 6 inch scope. By 11 p.m.
Moon was rising so I headed back.

During the warm up session I discovered that my 6 inch
f4 Dobsonian is really inconvenient to use if set up on the
ground. Tube is too short! Unfortunately, the tripod I used to
mount it on was still in Sooke. Fortunately on the next trip to
Home Depot I have noticed the perfect substitute. For $79 you can
get there Black&Decker's Workmate 225 - a portable project
center. That "beast" folds flat for storage or
transport and can be set up in less than 5 seconds. It is very
sturdy and has some height adjustment. It will also be handy when
cutting lumber for the observatory or, let's say, building new
kitchen cabinets (well, I had to justify that additional
expenditure somehow). Anyway, the base of my Dob mounts in a
vise-like top of the Workmate - see the picture of the actual
field setup below.

The last week of March was not too
promising, with cloudy skies and some rain. However, it cleared
over Kingston on Friday (March 31) afternoon. After getting home
from work I tossed all needed stuff into trunk and drove to Gould
Lake. When almost there I had realized that my observing chair
got left behind ...

Below is a quite detailed record of my
observing/musing that followed. I used 10x50 binoculars and a
home built 6 inch f4 Dobsonian (with 25mm and 12mm Plossl
eyepieces yielding 24x and 48x, respectively). Time of each
observation is given in EST. A tabulated summary of my Messier
Marathon results is included at the very bottom of this page.
Each of the Messier objects mentioned is linked to the
corresponding image page - use the browser's "back"
button to return to this page.

Hope you find this report interesting
...

I have got to Gould Lake Conservation Area at 6:45pm
and parked outside the gate - just in case somebody showed up to
close it. It was just after sunset and sky was clear with the
exception of a few small clouds hugging horizon to N and NW. I
carried scope, Workmate and accessories on top of small hill just
inside the gate and set everything up by 7pm. It was getting
darker and soon I had first evidence how clear the sky was -
Jupiter, Saturn, Mars and Sirius were visible by 7:03 and then
stars started to pop up all over above me.

I started my Messier hunt with M74 in Pisces. aAri was not too
hard to notice with unaided eye so I could star hop past b and gAri to hPsc using 6 inch
Dob at 24x. Star hopping is a real pleasure with a rich field
scope! I had an expected location of M74 centered - unfortunately
it was just above the treetops and sky was still too bright to
notice anything there! I watched it sink behind the branches at
7:35pm without detecting the faint glow of the galaxy. Well,
there was not too much time to contemplate this first defeat. I
Had to swing my trusty Dobby to Cetus. Star hopping from aCet I located the
field of M77.
Again, just above the branches on the still bright sky. Did not
look good. By 7:51 treetops "swallowed" that spot, too.
I needed some success.

So I got the Hare. I mean a celestial one. Hopping
through that constellation below Orion I was able to notice 7.8
mag globular cluster M79
without any difficulty at 7:54pm. After all sky was completely
dark there already! Soft glow of this globular was particularly
nice at higher power (48x) but my scope was not resolving any
stars there. Ok, the first Messier object in. But in the evening
things tend to set up quickly so I had to rush to Andromeda and
found M31
by 7:57pm. At 24x Dobby showed me also M32
and a faint streak of M110
in the same field. Only M31 was visible in binoculars. Then I
pointed Dobby between bAnd
and aTri
and noticed M33
in Triangulum at 8:00pm. Both 6 inch scope at 24x and binoculars
revealed no more than a large diffuse glow of this nearby galaxy.

After catching those five objects fleeing toward
western horizon, I had some time to look casually around the sky.
Well, was I surprised? Bright, though diffuse, pyramid of light
was rising from Western horizon and reaching up to Pleiades. This
cone-shaped glow was tilted and its noticeably brighter axis run
right through Mars (getting into treetops by that time) and
Jupiter, then ending up just South of Pleiades. Saturn was
clearly off to the side of it. Its wide base spread from aAri to aCet. Yes, there it
was - Zodiacal Light in its full splendor. Last time I saw it so
clearly from Texas Star Party in May of 1996.

Then it was time to hunt "fuzzies" again. By
offsetting my Dobby at 24x from bCas
I tracked down M52
at 8:13pm and then M103
just off dCas
at 8:20pm. Both open star clusters were visible in 10x50
binoculars and 6 inch resolved them into individual "diamond
grains" at 48x. NGC654, 659 and 663clusters were standing
out of Milky Way backdrop near M103 in the 6 inch scope as well.

M76 was a
little bit more challenging. I always had some difficulty
navigating that are around the junction of Perseus, Cassiopeia
and Andromeda so it took me until 8:27pm to find the 10 mag.
planetary nebula with Dobby at 24x. At 48x it showed elongated,
two-lobed structure. After this catching M34 off Algol (bPer) was a snap at
8:32pm. Even 10x50 binoculars resolved this loose open cluster.
So far nine Messiers found and two missed.

Next destination - Puppis. M93
was found by offsetting from hCMa
at 8:36pm. Unfortunately a few streaks of thin clouds were
hanging over this area by now. That made star hopping pointless,
however, by scanning with 6 inch scope at 24x upwards from M93,
at 8:40pm I found both M46
and M47
well above that obstructing curtain. While both were visible in
binoculars, only M47 was fully resolved in 10x50 glasses. 6 inch
telescope at 48x was needed to completely resolve M46 - at that
power planetary nebula NGC2438 was detectable with averted vision
off the cluster's center.

I am up to 13th object now. Just to be on
the safe side I pointed Dobby below Sirius and grabbed M41 at 8:48pm. Even
binoculars resolved this bright, loose star cluster. Then a short
star hop North of Sirius led me to M50
at 8:50pm. At 24x it nicely stood out of Milky Way background as
a "flock" of individual stars. It was also easy to find
with binoculars, which still managed to partially resolve it. The
next object, M48,
required a bit longer star hop from M50, through M46 and M47,
then past aMon.
I located it with Dobby (24x) at 8:54pm. This large loose cluster
was also resolved by 10x50 binoculars.

Getting a bit tired, I decided to visit old friends in
Orion at 8:59pm. M42 and M43
pair (otherwise known as Great Orion Nebula), while visible in
10x50 glasses, showed its stunning beauty in 6 inch scope. At 48x
the field was filled with the "Bat's" wings. Trapezium
was also resolved at that power. Then, with 6 inch at 24x, I
wandered NE of zOri
and located M78
reflection nebula at 9:05pm. Two bright stars immersed in its
diffuse glow were clearly visible at 48x. M78 was also noticeable
in 10x50 binoculars.

Then, at 9:10pm I have revisited Pleiades (M45)
noticed earlier with the unaided eye at the apex of Zodiacal
Light. As usual that open cluster was delightful in binoculars
however 6 inch scope revealed also the faint fan of Merope
Nebula. That view contrasted with my next target - M1. I located Crab
Nebula at 9:13 just of zTauri
with the scope at 24x and later sighted it in 10x50 glasses as
well. It is hard to imaging that this soft glow was born in a
violent supernova explosion just under a thousand years ago (at
least as noticed from our place in space).

M1 (Crab Nebula) (Cookbook CCD
camera / 8 inch SCT image)

Next I entered the trail of great open star clusters.
It started above hGem
where at 9:17pm I came across M35
using 6 inch scope at 24x. It was also fully resolved in 10x50
binoculars. When inspected in the telescope at 48x power, the
cluster's stars were spilling beyond single field of view joined
by more distant cluster NGC2158. Then at 9:22pm I pointed my
scope half way between qAur
and bTau
and focused it at M37.
While an impressive object at low power or even in 10x50
binoculars, it turned into an intricately textured cloud of
stardust sparkled with brighter stars when inspected with the 6
inch scope at 48x. Next, using binoculars, I moved to the heart
of Auriga and spotted M36
and M38
at 9:26pm. Both were resolved into individual stars in the 6 inch
scope and, while populated by brighter stars, none was as rich as
M37. When viewed at 24x, M38 seemed to be embraced by two streams
of brighter stars outlining the shape of heart. They converged on
a smaller, distant open star cluster NGC1907. Then at 9:36pm I
turned back to the East and spotted M44
with unaided eyes at the center of Cancer. This loose open star
cluster was completely resolved in 10x50 glasses and overflowed
field of view afforded by my 6 inch scope at 24x. The last
treasure in this group consisted of M67
tracked down with binoculars off aCnc
at 9:38pm. Dobby resolved it at 24x and when viewed at higher
power it resembled previously mentioned M52 as well as
reminded me of still awaiting me M11.
All those three open star cluster containing single bright giant
star presiding over the tight and sparkling congregation of less
luminous members. They truly resemble intricate jewels.

After conquering 26 Messier targets, it was time to
take a break. I needed it before attempting to navigate the maze
of Virgo Cluster as well as it was getting co-o-old ! I would
really give a fortune (well, a small one) for a mug of hot
chocolate.

To get the "fuzzies" I first tracked Leo and
at 10:02pm, after offsetting my Dobby at 24x from oLeo I spotted M95, M96 and M105. All of them
were visible in 10x50 binoculars, too. M105 was accompanied by
two additional galaxies, NGC3384 and NGC3389. Higher
magnification (48x) was necessary to se the later of them in the
6 inch scope. Then I moved into neighborhood of qLeo and, with
binoculars, noticed M65
and M66
galaxies at 10:10pm. 6 inch scope revealed hints of spiral
structure in them and clearly showed NGC3628 to the
North of them. How could Messier miss that one?

M66 (Cookbook CCD camera / 8 inch
SCT image)

Now it was time to hunt in Virgo Cluster
of galaxies. To avoid confusion I decided to use Dobby alone in
that area - it is really easy to get lost in the maze of softly
glowing fuzzies there, as Messier objects are outnumbered by NGC
galaxies well within the reach of the 6 inch scope. Galaxies were
located at 24x and further inspected at 48x.

At 10:21pm, by star hopping from eVir and rVir I found M59 and M60. The later looked
a lot brighter and at higher magnification its satellite,
NGC4647, became apparent. The faint glow of M58 was also visible
in the same low power field. M89
and M90
were just a short hop away and I found them at 10:30pm. Higher
magnification revealed the large extend of elongated M90 and
showed some hints of structure, while M89 was a lot fainter with
the bright nucleus standing out of its diffuse glow.

Then at 10:37 I turned toward nearby M87. This bright
giant elliptical galaxy did not offer any detail at 48x other
than broad central core. M91
and M88
joined the list of my "trophies" at 10:43pm. M91 was
fainter of the pair and had really diffuse appearance. M88 on the
other hand was bright, elongated and very well defined,
displaying hints of spiral structure at 48x. At that
magnification it nucleus was well visible and Western edge of
galaxy seemed a lot sharper the opposite side.

After tracking my "steps" back to M87, I
moved West of it at 10:50pm toward M84
and M86.
Those bright elliptical galaxies reside on the Western end of the
so-called Markarian Chain - the arrangement of bright galaxies
crossing the "heart" of Virgo Cluster. The remaining
"links" were revealed at higher magnification,
including NGC4435, NGC4438, NGC4461, NGC4473 and NGC4477. Then I
pointed the scope toward 6Com and located M98 and M99 in its vicinity
at 10:57pm. When inspected at higher magnification, round and
diffuse M99 nicely contrasted with very elongated M98. My next
target, M100,
was located to the NE of 6Com at 11:01pm. Its large diffuse glow
was pierced with the bright point-like nucleus noticeable at 48x.
A giant elliptical galaxy M85
was a bit further North. I found it at 11:06pm. A star was
visible close to its edge and higher magnification revealed
NGC4394 nearby.

The I had to move to the Southern outskirts of Virgo
Cluster. At 11:17pm I located M61
galaxy in the field of 16Vir. Inspection of this heavyweight
spiral at 48x showed point-like nucleus (with averted vision
only) as well as hints of arms. Then a short "starry
trail" to the North led me to the large glow of M49 at 11:21pm.
Bright star was visible at 48x East of its bright and broad
nucleus. Finally, at 11:26pm, I reached the last Messier member
of Virgo "family" by following "pointers"
above Corvus. The bright spindle of M104
as well as its dark dust lane were clearly visible at 48x.

M104(Cookbook CCD camera / 8 inch
SCT image)

For a change of view, I moved the scope
below bCrv
and spied out M68
at 11:31pm. That globular cluster looked like a large hazy and
unresolved spot even at 48x. Then, following the tail of Hydra, I
pointed Dobby to gHyd
and star hopped to M83
at 11:40pm. The fuzzy outline of this barred spiral galaxy was
clearly visible at 48x despite some haze present over this area
of the sky. Later, once that haze dispersed around 1:00am, I was
able to see M83 in 10x50 binoculars as well!

Next, I moved overhead to Ursa Major. I pointed my
scope above its head and at 11:49 I spotted M81 and M82 galactic pair.
While both are clearly visible in binoculars, the 6 inch scope
reveals the striking contrast between the large fuzzy oval of M81
and cigar-shaped silhouette of M82. Then, a short jump past bUMa I caught
another pair of "fuzzies" at 11:55pm. The round outline
of M97
planetary nebula was quite easy to notice while narrow spindle of
M108 was
harder to spot. However, at higher magnification, that galaxy
showed some mottling.

At 11:58pm I have got to the toughest of targets in
Ursa Major. While M109
is conveniently located close to gUMa,
that "blinding" neighbor makes spotting the faint
galaxy impossible at low powers. While noticeable in my 6 inch
scope at 24x, only at 48x, once gUMa
was out of the field of view, its soft oval glow stood nicely
against the black sky background. From there I moved to the most
unlikely member of Messier's "family" - double star Winnecke 4.
I spotted M40
at 0:02am (Fool's Day, April 1 - what a coincidence?) just off 70
UMa and was able to see both components even at 24x. Then I
offset the scope to Mizar (zUMa)
and, by following the chain of pointer stars 81, 83, 84 and 86
UMa, came across M101
at 0:07am. Diffuse glow of this spiral galaxy did not yield any
detail through the scope, however, it was detectable in 10x50
binoculars as well.

After spending so much time with the Bear it was time
to get acquainted with the Dogs pursuing her. By hopping of the
tip of her tail (hUMa)
I spotted both galactic components of M51
at 0:10am at 24x in a 6 inch scope. Spiral structure of the
larger galaxy was clearly noticable at 48x. M51 was also plainly
visible in 10x50 glasses.

I got up to 58 observed M objects already so it was
time for a short break. I was glad to discover that a drink left
in a car did not freeze quite yet... When I resumed observing
there was no trace of the haze left anywhere on the sky!

At 0:28am I found M63
in Canes Venatici. While visible at 24x, at higher power this
bright galaxy was clearly elongated. Even binoculars revealed
that "fuzzy" without difficulty. Then, at 0:43am, I
located the bright patch of M94
between a
and bCVn
with 6 inch scope at 24x and in binoculars as well. When
inspected at 48x, M94 displayed point-like nucleus surrounded by
bright and sharp-edged core as well as faint and diffuse outside
halo. M106
fell into the field of view of my scope at 0:48am. I found it by
star-hopping from bCVn
at 24x. At 48x it showed some structure reminiscent of a tilted
spiral. This large and bright galaxy was also easy to locate in
10x50 binoculars.

I spotted my next trophy at 0:54am next to aCom. M53 globular cluster,
while visible as a hazy spot in binoculars and at 24x in a 6 inch
scope, started to resolve into a fuzzy ball with a few sparkling
diamonds at 48x. Nearby poor and dim globular NGC5053 was only
detectable at 48x. Then, at 0:58am, I star-hopped to M64. It was visible
as a bright oval at 24x and 48x - no trace of black eye, though.
Binoculars also revealed that galaxy.

M64 (Cookbook CCD camera / 8 inch
SCT image)

My next target, M3
in Canes Venatici, was found at 1:00am by offset from bCom with a 6 inch
scope at 24x. This great globular cluster was partially resolved
into a densely packed ball of stars at 48x. M3 was easy to spot
in binoculars as well. My trail led me then to the mystery M
object - M102.
NGC5866 was hard to find because of a long range star-hop from hUMa. 48x
magnification was required to see its bright but small spindle.

Next I pointed Dobby below hHer and located M13, the Great
Globular Cluster in Hercules, at 1:15am. While a view at 24x
resembled one afforded by binoculars, 48x resolved many of
cluster's bright stars and transformed it into a real showpiece.
I could not admire it for to long, as there were still 42 objects
waiting for me. I moved on to another globular in Hercules - M92. It was found at
24x between i
and pHer
at 1:16am. Higher magnification resolved that globular into swarm
of stars, not so impressive as M13, though. Both Hercules
clusters were easy to spot in 10x50 binoculars, too. To follow up
on impressive globulars, I tracked down M5
in Serpens Caput at 1:20am. While just a fuzzy patch in
binoculars or 6 inch scope at 24x, it presented an impressive
view when partially resolved at 48x.

Now it was time to step into dense "fog" of
Milky Way, already high in the eastern sky. For Messier hunters
that is a "land of plenty". I started on its edge with M57 in Lyra. This
bright planetary nebula was easy to spot at 1:22am between b and gLyr using Dobby at
24x and displayed annular structure at 48x. Once I memorize its
location in the crowded star field, it was easy to find in
binoculars as well - however in 10x50 glasses if looked just like
a star. The second M object in Lyra, M56
globular, was a bit more challenging. Hidden amongst Milky Way's
star, it required a careful star-hop from Albireo (bCyg) - a beautiful
blue/yellow double star. Found at 1:26am, it looked like an
unresolved hazy spot even at 48x. In binoculars, however, it had
a star-like appearance.

For the contrast effect, I zoomed my binoculars North
of Deneb to find M39
in Cygnus at 1:28am. This loose open cluster sits at the center
of octopus-like pattern of dark dust bands superimposed on the
bright glow of the Milky Way. Resolved stars of this cluster
nicely fit into the field of view of my Dobby at 24x. Then, at
24x, I located M29
close to gCyg
at 1:31am. This small open cluster is hidden among bright field
stars, however its Pleiades-like
pattern is hard to miss at higher magnification. I had to
memorize its location before being able to find it with
binoculars again.

At 1:35am I spotted M71
in Sagitta using the 6 inch scope at 24x. Even at 48x it still
showed as just a hazy spot. This faint globular cluster was
visible in binoculars as well. Nearby M27
in Vulpecula was easy to locate with binoculars at 1:39am. In the
6 inch scope at 48x the central, hourglass-shaped region was
clearly visible against more diffuse lobes of this great
planetary nebula.

M27 (Cookbook CCD camera / 8 inch
SCT image)

Next, I moved to Ophiuchus to track its family of
globular clusters. I located M14
at 1:47am with my 6 inch scope at 24x. While visible in
binoculars as well, its large haze was still unresolved even at
48x. Then, using binoculars, I found M12
and M10
at 1:56am. My 6 inch scope started to resolve M12 at 24x and at
48x it resembled a sparkling ball of stardust. M10 proved to be a
little bit more difficult, with higher magnification only
starting to resolve its hazy appearence. Nearby M107, while visible
in binoculars, was first found at 2:03am with my Dobby at 24x by
offsetting from zOph.
It appeared small and faint even at 48x, though some of its
brighter stars were noticable at that power. Then, moving south,
I star-hopped from hOph
to M9 at
2:08am using the 6 inch scope again. That hazy patch showed some
resolution into brighter stars only at 48x. While located quite
low over the horizon, it was still visible in 10x50 glasses.

The great globular M4
in Scorpius was my next target at 2:11am. It was clearly visible
near Antares in binoculars. Dobby resolved it quite well at 48x,
nicely showing its equatorial band of bright stars. Then I moved
to nearby M80
at 2:15am. This compact and quite bright globular was visible as
a small fuzzy spot in binoculars. The 6 inch scope did not
resolve it even at 48x. Next I moved my scope to nOph and
star-hopped to the large diffuse glow of M19 by 2:18am. Again,
even higher magnification did not show any individual stars in
this cluster. M19 was detectable in binoculars, too. Then, at
2:25am, I came across M62.
While this globular was already visible in 10x50 binoculars,
Dobby did not bring any resolution out of this compact fuzzy
ball.

After this rich crop of globulars, I shifted my
attention to the Scutum Star Cloud. By pointing my scope to lAql I noticed Wild
Duck Cluster (M11)
at 2:31am. While it is a nice object even in binoculars, at 48x
my Dobby transformed it into an impressive cloud of sparkling
diamonds dominated by the single bright giant star.

M11 (Cookbook CCD camera / 8 inch
SCT image)

Then at 2:35am I tracked down M26. This
inconspicuous open cluster, while visible in binoculars, required
48x power to be completely resolved. Next, on my way South toward
Sagittarius, I noticed M16
at 2:38 am. My 6 inch scope nicely showed not only the hazy Eagle
Nebula but also completely resolved the associated open cluster.
The nebulosity with entangled stars was well visible in 10x50
glasses, as well.

The nearby Swan Nebula (M17) - an easy trophy
for binoculars - was found at 2:41 am. Dobby revealed intricate
wisps of nebulosity in this celestial showpiece. I located my
next target, M18,
with binoculars just South on M17 at 2:43am. This loose open
cluster was fully resolved in 6 inch scope at 24x. Then I used
binoculars to spot and admire M24
Star Cloud at 2:45am. This "oversized" object cannot
fit in the field of view of my scope even at the lowest power but
many knots of stardust and patches of dust were visible when it
was scanned at 24x.

Then I shifted my scope to M25 at 2:46am. This
large open cluster was resolved into individual star not only at
24x but in binoculars as well. Next, a little bit further South,
I came across M22
at 2:48 am. This globular cluster was well visible both in
binoculars and in a 6 inch scope as a large and bright hazy
patch. Then, by offseting my scope at 24x, I located a much
smaller and fainter glow of M28
at 2:50am. This globular was nonetheless visible in binoculars as
well. From there I used my Dobby at 24x to scan the Sagittarius
Star Cloud until I happened across M8
at 2:53am. The bright cloud of Lagoon Nebula glowed brightly
against the Milky Way background and was well defined even in
10x50 field glasses. Then at 2:54am, just North of M8, I spotted
both M20
(Trifid Nebula) and M21
open cluster in a single field of view with a 6 inch scope at
24x. Sky background was getting significantly brighter over the
horizon already, so those fainter objects were not obvious in
binoculars. However, M23
was still an easy binocular target when found a little bit higher
at the same time. Dobby fully resolved this loose open cluster at
24x.

M20 (Trifid Nebula) (Cookbook CCD
camera / 8 inch SCT image)

There was still quite a number of objects left in
Southern Sagittarius - unfortunately they were raising behind a
patch of trees mentioned in the beginning ... Other then
converting them into firewood (which would keep me warm but was
not an option, as I did not have my trusty axe with me) I had to
wait until the celestial spheres turn just a bit more.

So in a meantime I decided to fish out a few more
Messier objects still scattered here and there. Scanning the
horizon below Cygnus I noticed that ePeg
was quite high already. Then finding M15
globular cluster was a snap at 2:57am. Both binoculars and Dobby
at 24x showed its round glow. Next I zoomed my 10x50 field
glasses back to Scorpio and caught M6
and M7
open clusters high above Southern horizon at 3:00am. Even at that
power they were fully resolved.

After scanning the SE horizon again, I knew that there
was time for a break. There was no more objects to see at the
moment (other than behind those trees...). Coyotes were restless,
too - I could hear their howling all over nearby woods.

After about 30 minutes it was time to resume the hunt.
I started with star-hopping from ePeg
and at 3:35am succeeded in finding M2
globular in Aquarius with my 6 inch scope at 24x. Next I scanned
Sagittarius for anything lurking from behind those trees and
noticed tiny haze of M69
at 3:52am followed by nearby M70
at 3:56am. As the sky was getting awfully bright, their
identities were confirmed at 48x power as well. Then I waited for
M54 to
roll from amongst the branches at 4:01am. While barely noticable
at 24x, increasing the magnification to 48x darkened the sky
around it and allowed its positive visual confirmation.

Then I "jump" over to the other side of the
tree patch and, starting from aCap,
successfully located tiny "disk" of M75 globular at
4:07am. Next I star-hopped from aCap
into Aquarius again and faint glow of M72
globular cluster at 4:14am. Its neighbour, M73, took another
five minutes. Even as it was located in the same low power field
of view, the sky got so bright already, that only a very careful
inspection at 48x revealed tiny but completely resolved Y-shaped
asterism at 4:20am.

Then I went back to M54 and carefully tracked down the
apparent location of my second last target, the great globular
cluster M55.
The field stars around it proved that it just cleared the tops of
infamous trees, however, after a lot of hesitation I had to
surrender. There was no chance of seeing even this brights
Messier object against the glowing pre-dawn sky. A quick scan of
the horizon revealed that dCap
was well above it, however the last Messier object, M30, did not even
rise yet.

With this double defeat I had to conclude my Messier
Marathon 2000. It was time to go home, thaw half-frozen
extremities and get some sleep ...

Summary of my March 31, 2000 Messier
Marathon results:

category:

number
of objects:

remarks:

objects seen with the 6 inch
Dobsonian:

106

objects lost to twilights:

3

M74, M77,
M30

objects hidden by trees:

1

M55

objects seen
in 10x50 binoculars

71

binoculars
were not used in the Virgo Cluster and in the early
morning sky