Sky & Telescope - February 2021 - 26

WINTER DEEP SKY by Ken Hewitt-White

Orion's Club Di
Going off the beaten track in Orion brings pleasant surprises.

O

rion, the giant hunter of Greek mythology, rules our
winter nights. Astride the celestial equator for all to
see, the showcase constellation with the brilliant star
pattern is a delight to the eye and a feast for the telescope.
Of course, Orion isn't all gleam and glitter. The stars
depicting the Hunter's shield and club are much less conspicuous. Likewise, the telescopic objects above his hourglass
figure aren't exactly award winners. In 50 years of dedicated
deep-sky sleuthing, I hadn't observed any of them. Time to fi x
that! Last winter, I decided to explore Orion's eastern arm,
all the way to the top of his big, brandished club.
As I'd be observing under a light-polluted suburban sky,
I didn't expect much joy. At minimum, I'd try for the open
clusters plotted on charts 76 and 96 of the Uranometria
2000.0 Deep Sky Atlas (2nd edition, 2001). I employed my

GEM

6h 00m

μ

5h 30m

5h 00m

10-inch f/6 Dobsonian reflector for the bulk of the work but
occasionally used smaller scopes - even binoculars.
In the end, my backyard instruments delivered more than
I anticipated. Grab your scope, whatever it may be, and join
me for a stroll through Orion's little-known Club District.

Pale Powders
Starting at zero-magnitude Betelgeuse, Alpha (α) Orionis,
I planned to sweep 3° northeastward to 4.1-magnitude Mu
(μ) Orionis, then veer north-northeastward to 9.4-magnitude NGC 2141. Simple, right? Well, no, it wasn't. The
cluster is just 10′ in diameter and symbolized on Uranometria chart 96 as a starless circle. I reminded myself that the
Uranometria plots stars down to magnitude 9.7. The Millennium Star Atlas goes to magnitude 11, yet no dots appear

6h 20m

4h 30m

Basel 11b

1
χ2 χ

2175

64

TAURUS

2194

57

HD 44033
BL Ori

]

λ

AG 321

HD 41676

+14°

2169

OSS 73

μ

+10°
HD 43873/
HD 43840

γ

Betelgeuse

Star magnitudes

Q

6877

2169
2141

73
74

2194
OSS 71

ORION

1

+12°

ORION
2141

ε
ζ

δ

0°

MON

μ
β

κ

Rigel

FEBRUARY 2 021 * SK Y & TELESCOPE

+10°

75

P

η

γ

26

+16°

+20°

ν

2
3
4
5
6

6h 00m

69

72

ζ

Aldebaran

ξ

6h 10m

ERI
-10°

WS ORION'S CLUB DISTRICT Northeastern Orion is the great celestial
Hunter's highest-reaching area, but it's rarely top-of-mind for backyard
astronomers. Most of the deep-sky objects here are relatively distant
open clusters that look small and dim in backyard telescopes. But exploring the Club District can be rewarding for those who enjoy observational challenges.



Sky & Telescope - February 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Sky & Telescope - February 2021

Contents
Sky & Telescope - February 2021 - Cover1
Sky & Telescope - February 2021 - Cover2
Sky & Telescope - February 2021 - 1
Sky & Telescope - February 2021 - Contents
Sky & Telescope - February 2021 - 3
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