Rigel, the brightest star in the constellation Orion, crosses the Meridian near 8 pm. To the east of Orion lies Jupiter, currently the brightest object in the evening sky. Farther to the east are two star clusters, M44 and M67, that are better positioned for viewing a couple hours later.
In the image below, M44 (the "Beehive Cluster") is circled. M67 lies about 8 deg to the south of M44. Equipment: Olympus E-M1iii + Leica 9mm f/1.7 + Hoya Sparkle-6 filter.
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| View toward the SSE. 8 pm. |
The sky brightness at 10 pm was sqml=19.73–77, an improvement from recent nights.
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| M44, the Beehive Cluster. 40 sec, ISO 1600. 2.4-deg-wide FOV. |
This image of M44 (and M67 below) was obtained with the AT72EDII refractor and a Metabones 0.71x Speedbooster, for a final focal length of 307mm at f/4.3. The camera was an Olympus E-M5iii. |
| M67. 1-deg FOV. |
M67, also known as the "Golden Eye Cluster", is one of the oldest open clusters in our galaxy. It is between 4 and 5 billion years old, about the same age as the Sun. At one time there was speculation that our sun may have originated in this cluster, but that is now thought to be unlikely. |
| M67, 2-deg FOV. Rokinon 135mm f/2 + Olympus E-M5. |
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| Leica 9mm + Sparkle-6 filter. 9:16 pm 08 Feb. |
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| M44 and M67 |
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