Please click on each image for a full-size version, complete with observer's notes.

The Pleiades. This conspicuous open cluster is also known as the Seven Sisters, and sometimes it is mistaken for the Little Dipper. The Pleiades are best viewed with binoculars. This 17 minute, unguided exposure was taken with the Meade 8-inch at f/6.3 using Kodak Royal Gold 1000. Location: OCO, October 1998.

The Perseus Double Cluster (NGC 869 and 884). Another easy target for binoculars, the Double Cluster is located in the Winter Milky Way, between Perseus and Cassiopeia. From a dark sky site it's visible to the naked eye as well. This 10 minute, unguided exposure was taken with the same setup as the Pleiades, above.

M13, The Great Hercules Globular. This 30 minute, guided exposure was taken with an 8-inch Takahashi Newtonian Reflector. (courtesy of Chuck Allen), using a 3-inch f/15 Unitron Refractor as a guidescope. It was exposed on Fuji 800 Hypered film. Location: Wyandotte Woods, in Harrison Crawford National Forest in Southern Indiana. See if you can spot the faint galaxy NGC 6207 in this image.

M2, Globular in Aquarius. This lesser known cousin to M13 is still a favorite target for amateur astronomers. M2 is a dense globular cluster, packed with roughly 150,000 stars. Our image was taken with the Meade 8-inch at f/10, exposed for 20 minutes using Kodak Royal Gold 1000. Location: OCO, November 1998.

A Globular and a Galaxy. This pair of deep sky objects presents a beautiful contrast for observers and photographers alike. Our image was exposed 25 minutes on Kodak Royal Gold 1000 film, using a piggybacked 300mm lens. Location: OCO, November 1998.

The Coathanger, aka Brocchi's Cluster, aka Collinder 399. Whatever you want to call it, the Coathanger is a popular target, especially for binocular observers. To the naked eye, it's visible as an unresolved patch just off the edge of Sagitta the Arrow in the Summer Milky Way. Here we present two views: the first image taken with a 300mm lens; the second with a 135mm lens, expsoed for 15 minutes. Location: OCO.

M41 is a beautiful open cluster located in Canis Major (the Big Dog), near Sirius. This image was taken with a 300mm lens, exposed 4 minutes on Kodak Royal Gold 1000 film. The camera was piggybacked on the C-11. Location: OCO, 3/10/97.

M44, The Beehive. M44 gets its name from its appearance in telescopes and binoculars. The Beehive is another open cluster visible to the naked eye, in the constellation Cancer. The ancient Greeks could tell that a stormfront was approaching if M44 was obscured by thin clouds. This 4 minute image was taken with a 300mm lens, using Kodak Royal Gold 1000 film. Location: OCO, 3/10/97.

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