Report from Friday 12th July (mostly doubles)

Friday night was another clear, calm, warm night, and I spent several happy hours under the stars. The following is a brief list of my favourite targets from the session, which was spent mostly in Hercules.

STF 2140, Rasalgethi Dbl Her
Brilliant orange primary, close to a fainter, distinctly greenish, secondary at 140x. Beautiful colour contrast, and a rich backdrop of stars - outstanding.

M13, NGC 6205 Glob Her
Breathtaking swarm of thousands of stars.

95 Her, STF 2264 Dbl Her
Lovely double consisting of stars of equal brightness, but one is pure white and the other vivid yellow, nicely split at 215x.

ρ Her, 75 Her, STF 2161 Dbl Her
Fine double of bright white stars, modestly unequal, split by a hair at 90x, but nicely close at 200x. Rich field.

δ Her, 65 Her,STF 3127 Dbl Her
Brilliant, pure white star, well separated from a much fainter companion at 140x. the secondary has a yellowish-greenish tint. Many other stars in the field , including a deep red one to the North.

STF 2021 Dbl Her
Almost identical deep yellow stars, deliciously close at 90x. Set in a rich field.

κ Her, 7 Her, STF 2010 Dbl Her
Pair of bright, yellow stars, well split at 50x, in a rich field.

NGC 6210, X78, Turtle Nebula P Neb Her
Small fuzzy disk, with a beautiful green colour. Forms a triangle with a bright yellow star and a fainter copper orange one.

M92, NGC 6341 Glob Her
Fine, bright globular, a splendid sight at 140x. Scores of stars popping in and out of view.

STT 358 Dbl Her
Virtually identical yellow stars, clearly resolved at 560x in moments of good seeing.

STF 2245 Dbl Her
Matched in brightness, this pair is close at 215x. One is distinctly yellow, the other significantly paler a nice effect.

STF 2063 Dbl Her
Bright white star, with a much fainter bluish companion, attractively close at 50x, in a field dotted with stars.

STF 2052 Dbl Her
Identical golden yellow suns, close, but well resolved, at 215x.

100 Her, STF 2280 Dbl Her
Identical white stars, well split at 140x.

STF 3062 Dbl Cas
Slightly unequal double of deep yellow stars, split by a hair at 90x.

δ Cep, 27 Cep, STFA 58 Dbl Cep
Beautiful, yellow, blue pair, both bright though mildly unequal. They are wide apart at 50x, in a rich field.

α CVn, STF 1692, Cor Caroli Dbl CVn
Unequal pair of brilliant white stars, well separated at 50x. Nearby STF 1702 also well separated and in the fov of the Plossl.



Thanks for reading,
Mike

Great report Mike.

Just looking at my own observation log I was surprised to find that I have only observed a single double in Hercules, 95, and that was way back in August 2007, and I have it just as you describe.

With the great doubles you've described, I'm going to have to remedy that situation.

Paul

Thanks Paul. Prior to Friday I had neglected Hercules too, maybe it is overshadowed by the great Summer constellations coming to prominence after the solstice? I was delighted with some of the doubles; they are bright, colourful, and varied. I have added a load of fainter doubles to the observation plan now, and hope to check them out very soon.

Speaking of observation plans, I always add the targets you list in your reports, and your comments (with attribution), to my plans, so keep them coming.

Mike