A little journey to the Heavens above

To explore the Heavens above recently I've done two stargazing sessions in one week thanks to my astro friends. Here are the details Why, Where, How we do these sessions.

WHY ?

People frequently asked me 'Why am I doing these stargazing sessions ?' , 'Why are you interested in Astronomy ?' , 'What can you see above, it's just same old sky ?'. Okay first let me clear what Astronomy is coz most of the people mistaken it with Astrology. Astronomy is the study of celestial objects like stars, moon, planets and the galaxies and the physics and the chemistry of these objects while Astrology is the study of the movements and relative positions of celestial bodies interpreted as having an influence on human affairs and the natural world. So both are quite different. Fours years back when I was new on twitter I met first person via twitter and he was @ramizq1 . He was the one who introduced me to this hobby as he is the member of Karachi Amateur Astronomers Society and also the first person to receive a tweet from ISS in Pakistan. With him I've attended many public astronomy sessions and done 2 stargazing sessions when he newly bought SkyWatcher 6" Dobsonian Telescope. On our first session I've seen Sunspots, Orion nebula, Polaris and planet Mars, rest of the details of that session are here. For me these stargazing sessions give me an opportunity to explore the sky above and wondering how nature keeps everything in balance including all the stars and planets.

Where ? 

I've done my first stargazing session with Ramiz at his roof back in October 2013 while these sessions we have done at Zain Bhai's building roof which give us best view of east and west horizon.

our view from the roof

How ?

Okay so let's discuss how we are doing these sessions. We have following things to see the celestial objects in the sky.

1. SkyWatcher 6" Dobsonian Telescope

2. Few eyepieces for the Telescope including 2x Barlow lens for magnification

3. Nikon 8 x 40 Binocular 

4. Nikon Action 12x50 Binocular   

5. Pocket Sky Atlas 

6. Google Sky Map Android App 

7. ISS Detector Android App

With SkyWatcher 6" Dobsonian Telescope we can easily see Jupiter and it's 4 moons and different galaxies while these binoculars can be used to see the Moon and some Messier objects. Pocket Sky Atlas is an ideal guide to explore the night sky it provides very detailed data about stars and galaxies with charts while Google Sky Map can give you name and location of the stars, planets and the galaxies visible from your location and with ISS Detector app you will know when and where to watch for the International Space Station (ISS) and Iridium Flares.

While we were watching the Jupiter

What We Have Seen ? 

On our first session which was on 4th Nov. we have seen the Moon, Jupiter and it's four moons, NGC 2244 which is an open cluster in the Rosette Nebula,Winter Albireo aka 145 Canis Majoris which is most colorful double star in the winter sky and different Messier objects like M35, M36, M37, M38, M41, M46, M47 and M93. Messier objects are set of astronomical objects which include galaxies, nebula, planetary nebula, open cluster etc. List of Messier objects can be found here. On our next session which was on 8th Nov. we have seen the Moon, Jupiter and it's three moons, Beehive (M44), Double star in Polaris or Pole star, M42 (Orion Nebula) which is a diffuse nebula situated in the Milky Way south of Orion's Belt in the constellation of Orion and Iridium flare. We are also taking notes about the objects we have seen so we can discuss them.

Captured with SkyWatcher 6" Dobsonian Telescope and my mobile

Both sessions were planned by Ramiz and Zain Bhai was too kind to provide us the telescope and the sleeping bags. He is a member of Karachi Amateur Astronomers Society and owner at Sahal Telescopes and Binoculars and he has the best telescopes in Pakistan including 6", 8", 10" and 12" telescope and he also deliver telescopes throughout the Pakistan. 12x50 Binocular belongs to Shaheryar and 8x40 Binocular belongs to Ramiz.

All The FUN! 

On our both sessions we had so much fun discussing about the stars and the planets. We invited some of the people to our session from the roof who were there and told them what we are seeing through the telescope.

From Left: Ramiz, a boy and Khalid Bhai who lives there

 A curious boy come to us and asked 'What we are doing here for hours ?' We replied 'See it for yourself' and he was like 'Moon looks so beautiful from the telescope' and he was surprised when we told them that Jupiter has 67 Moons. Khaild Bhai has become our friend now and he always asked what are you seeing right now ? On our 2nd session there was a Barbecue going on on the other side of the roof and Khalid Bhai invites us to taste it. 

From Left: Shaheryar and Ramiz enjoying the beef boti

As I tweeted earlier with twitter I've found so many great friends including Ramiz, Alhamdulillah! With these sessions my love for the astronomy has increased as it can help you in many ways like stars can tell you the direction and the season and I think the nebula and the open star clusters are the most beautiful things you can see through a telescope.

Read More

Unexpected Astronomy session with Ramiz

       Ramiz Qureshi is my astro friend he has a keen interest in astronomy & he is also a member of Karachi Amatuer Astronomers Society. I have attended 2 public astronomy sessions so far organized by KaAS.  Few days back he got his own telescope. On the night of 12th oct. at 12.23am Ramiz called me & said 'are you free if yes get ready I am coming to pick you up'. I was so excited as he pick me up Zain Bhai who is also a member of Karachi Amatuer Astronomers Society told me that in the morning there will be a lunar eclipse on Jupiter so we will be tracking it via telescpes. So as I reached his place after some time Ramiz setup his telescope on his roof Orion Costellation along with Jupiter (second brightest planet visible with naked eye) is visible with many other stars are visible. In winter more stars are visible with naked eye. While everyone in Karachi is busy with their sacrificial animals and here we are busy in stargazing. So first we started with Jupiter, Ramiz callibrate his telescope so we can see the Jupiter clearly.

       The picture above is planet Jupiter, shot taken by Ramiz with my camera and on the left is his telescope and on the right is the sun with its spots. 

       As you can see the picture above of the sun two spots are visible but in other picture there are some clouds passing by. To see the Sun you need a special filter cos if you watch it without any filter through the telescope Sun rays will damage the lens. Also we have seen NGC 2244 cluster, Polaris (doubles) , Mars, Orion Nebula and in the afternoon we see the Sun and its spots. Ramiz also answered my questions related to astronomy too and above all our very own Hina Aapi aka @eshal_ made it more awesome as always :) I had the most memorable time with both my best friends. Thank you both! And here is my tweet after this unexpected astronomy session.

 

      If you are interested in astronomy you can visit Ramiz blog at here or info on astronomical events happening in Karachi you can visit KaAS facebook page here These days planet Venus & Jupiter are visible at night in Karachi's skies. You can see planet Venus right after sun sets in west-southwest near the horizon. It is the brightest planet visible from Earth with naked eye & planet Jupiter is visible in gemini constellation after 12am below the orion constellation as yellowish bright star. 

Read More