Sky & Telescope - USA (2020-01)

BIG, BOLD, BRIGHT, BEAUTIFUL by Jerry Oltion

62 JANUARY 2020 • SKY & TELESCOPE

W

inter highlights? There are winter highlights? If you

live in the Pacifi c Northwet [sic], as I do, the very

concept may seem oxymoronic. But we do get a few

clear nights throughout the winter, and when the clouds roll

away and I actually get some sky, I don’t waste a minute of

it. No tracking down faint fuzzies for me; in the wintertime

I go for the gusto, fi lling my night with the biggest, boldest,

brightest, and most beautiful targets I can fi nd.

Here are some of those glorious targets guaranteed not to

waste your time.

First off, of course, is M42, the famous Orion Nebula.

If you can only look at one item in the winter sky, this is

it. The middle of the sword hanging from Orion’s belt, this

emission nebula is arguably the best one in the sky. It’s vis-

ible by naked eye, although it just looks like a fuzzy star, but

in binoculars or any telescope it’s absolutely stunning. Big

sweeping arcs of glowing gas and dust

stretch outward and curve around

like two hands cupping a precious

jewel. That jewel is the Trapezium,

a tight group of four stars, named A

through D as shown at left. C, the

brightest, is the powerhouse that

makes the entire nebula glow.

You can (and should!) spend

hours studying the Orion Nebula. At

low power you can see its overall structure as the birthplace

of hundreds of brand-new stars (indeed stars are still form-

ing there), and as you crank up the power you can zoom in

on more and more structure within the nebula. A nebula fi l-

ter (O III, Ultra-High Contrast, or even just a skyglow fi lter)

will reveal even more.

At high power (and unfi ltered) the Trapezium gives up two

more stars, the fi rst relatively easy between the two that make

up the narrow end of the skewed trapezoid, and the other

much more diffi cult just outboard of the dazzling C star. You

need good seeing and high magnifi cation for this, but picking

out the E and F stars of the Trapezium is always a kick.

THE TRAPEZIUM

10” B

A

C

D

E

F

Jerry Oltion’s ongoing series of

nighttime favorites continues with

a selection of winter’s splendors.

Win

A Tourist’s G

to the