The fourteenth-closest star system is the double star 61 Cygni. At a distance of 11.4 ly, this pair was nicknamed the "Flying Star" by Giuseppe Piazzi in 1792 because of its high proper motion of about 5 arcsec per year. This was also the first star system to have its distance measured by trigonometric parallax, by Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel in 1838. The two stars, which are separated by 32 arcsec, have magnitudes of 5.2 and 6.0 and a combined magnitude of 4.8. This makes the star technically visible to the naked eye, under dark skies with good eyesight.
I photographed the star Monday night, in the light of the first-quarter moon, using three lenses: Panasonic Leica 25mm f/1.4 (with softon filter), Rokinon 135mm f/2, and Asto-Tech AT80EDT refractor.
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| The constellation Cygnus and 61 Cygni (circled). Leica 25mm |
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| 61 Cygni resolved with the Rokinon 135mm lens |
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| 61 Cygni A + B. AT80EDT refractor |
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| The Milky Way core rising over Snowshoe Mtn. Leica 25mm |
The source of the blue sky, the first-quarter moon:
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| AT80EDT refractor |
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