2018 Retrospective As the rest of Phil’s Scribblings, this is now written in Word and exported to PDF.

Annual Summary This will be completed at the end of the year.

June

June saw the release of my fifth book, my first one for nearly a decade. Unlike my previous books,

Being An Astronomer is aimed at beginners. This will also give you enough background to

understand and use my other books in Patrick Moore’s Practical Astronomy series. More details on

this book are here: http://www.philippughastronomer.com/BeingAnAstronomer.html.

Observationally, June was quite a more prolific month than previous ones, dominated by solar

observations, as most previous Junes. I had some technical issues with using my Bresser Electronic

Eyepiece with my laptop, so I did not get the lunar and planetary images I was hoping for.

The Sun

I caught some sunspot activity in June but, unfortunately, my photographic results were not as good

as they had been in the past.

Sun June 21st

Sun June 24th

Sun in hydrogen alpha light June 6th

Sun in hydrogen alpha light June 14th

Sun in hydrogen alpha light June 22nd

The Moon

I managed a few lunar images but only one was outstanding.

Moon June 26th

Planets

I caught the phase of Venus and Jupiter’s cloud belts but, without the Bresser Electronic Eyepiece,

could not get any decent quality images. I had some better shots of Jupiter’s moons, with the best

being on 12th.

Jupiter with moons June 12th

Constellations

I caught Cassiopeia on camera, the only one of the month.

Cassiopeia June 2nd

Deep Sky I did not manage to photograph any extended deep sky objects but managed a couple of double star

shots.

Albireo June 2nd

Mizar and Alcor June 24th

Report

The full report is on my blog: http://sungazer127mak.blogspot.com/2018/06/june-2018.html .

Video

This video shows the best of my June shots, accompanied by “I’d rather go blind” by Rod Stewart

and Carlos Santana: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9s8YKFUJZ_E

May

In the United Kingdom, even in the southern parts, there is very little dark sky and, for those of us

who have work and study the next day, what little darkness there is happens after our bedtimes.

There were some very wet and cloudy days but, fortunately, I still managed significant numbers of

observations and photos. Many were of the Sun but I also caught Jupiter’s moons.

The Sun

I saw some minor sunspot activity on the images from the professional observatories but was unable

to see any myself. Even though the Sun was quiet, I still got some decent shots in hydrogen alpha

light.

Sun May 7th

Sun May 27th

Sun May 27th

The Moon

As during April, I was never in the right place at the right time. I only had the Mak out on the Moon

once.

Moon May 21st

Planets

In theory, Venus could have shown a phase but was poorly placed behind a tree from home. I did

not attempt to image Jupiter’s disc but took some shots of the moons. This was the highlight, with

one moon partly visible.

Jupiter with moons May 5th

Constellations

My main problem with constellation shots was that the camera lens I bought was not compatible

with my DSLR. I hadn’t resolved it but managed one of Lyra.

Lyra May 5th

Deep Sky

I did not manage to photograph any deep sky objects.

Meteors

Remarkably, I caught two meteors on film.

Meteor May 2nd

Meteor May 5th

Report

The full report is on my blog: http://sungazer127mak.blogspot.com/2018/05/may-2018.html.

Video

This video shows the best of my May shots, accompanied by “One of these Days” by Pink Floyd:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPEtnVSzleE

April

April is a notorious month for showers in England, especially if you live in the south west, as I do.

Weather-wise it was a very strange month, with temperatures dipping near freezing at times and

reaching 28 degrees (Celsius) at others. I missed some clear sky due to work commitments. I was

also testing some Helios Stellar II 15x70 binoculars for a review.

The Sun

A single sunspot was visible for a few days around the 22nd. It was very small and hardly registered

on my photograph. As my solar hydrogen alpha photography had finally improved, I managed quite

a few full disc shots. Although I experimented with a few quadrant shots, they did not work well and,

in any case, my full disc shots taken afocally with my DSLR showed more detail than my old quadrant

shots with a compact digicam. Here are some highlights.

April 19th

April 22nd

April 26th

The Moon

I was never in the right place at the right time and have only one half-decent shot that is worth

sharing, taken on April 22nd in daylight.

Planets

Venus is now back in the evening sky. However, its disc is very small and a single photograph using

my Maksutov and DSLR did not show a clear phase. I was hoping that later months would mean I

could use my Bresser Electronic Eyepiece on the planet.

Jupiter was barely clearing the horizon in the evening during the back end of April. I was hoping for

some shots of its Galilean moons later in the year.

Constellations

My main problem with constellation shots was that the camera lens I bought was not compatible

with my DSLR.

Deep Sky

I managed three images of note: of the polar regions, Melotte 111 and the double star Nu Draconi,

one that I had been hoping for with my DSLR for ages!

Polar Regions April 4th

Melotte 111 April 3rd

Nu Draconi April 20th

Meteors

I neither saw nor photographed any meteors during April, despite trying for the Lyrid shower.

Report

The full report is on my blog: http://sungazer127mak.blogspot.co.uk/2018/04/april-2018.html.

Video

This video shows the best of my April shots, accompanied by “The Crying Game” by Boy George:

https://youtu.be/aLbmOF61fjU

March

Weather and work restricted my viewing and photography but I managed to do a little more than

the month before.

The Sun

The Sun was very quiet. Not a single sunspot was visible, not even on the professional observatory

images. I took a nice shot in hydrogen alpha light with my Coronado Personal Solar Telescope and

DSLR camera.

Sun in hydrogen alpha light March 28th

The Moon

I had a bit more luck with the Moon. Not only did I take more photographs of the full disc, with my

Mak and DSLR camera but also had a memorable session with my Mak and Bresser Electronic

Eyepiece. I caught a very thin crescent phase on March 19th.

The Moon March 19th

The close-up session was on March 25th and these are the best shots. I am really pleased with these

results and just wish I could have more similar sessions.

Lunar close-ups March 25th

Planets

I saw both Venus and Mercury through my binoculars but did not have a camera handy. I did not

detect any phase shape, other than 100% full for both planets but it was the first time I had seen

Mercury at all for ages.

Constellations

I did not manage any constellation photos in March and was still waiting for my first of the year.

Deep Sky

I took some shots of the Pleaides, the best being a widefield view on March 16th.

Pleaides (Seven Sisters) March 16th

My shot of the Hyades included a meteor, so it is shown below.

Meteors

I caught a meteor purely by accident while shooting the Hyades star cluster.

Meteor near the Hyades star cluster

Report

The full report is on my blog: http://sungazer127mak.blogspot.co.uk/2018/03/march-2018.html.

Video

This video shows the best of my March shots, accompanied by the old classic “Freight Train” by Chas

McDevitt and Nancy Whiskey: https://youtu.be/Y4QRadvj8RI.

February Weather and work restricted my viewing and photography but I managed to do a little more than

the month before.

The Sun The Sun was quiet. I struggled with hydrogen alpha light but made some progress with afocal

photography with my DSLR. Some sunspots made a fleeting appearance.

Sunspot Drawings February 6th, 9th, 11th and 12th

Sun in hydrogen alpha light February 28th

The Moon

Owing to shortness of time and cold weather, I only took photos with my DSLR. The best was on

February 23rd.

The Moon February 23rd

Planets

Venus is now visible in the evening sky. Its disc is rather small and it will be a few weeks before any

of us can take photos that show anything other than a full phase. I caught it in the evening sky on

February 25th, shortly after sunset.

Venus in the evening sky February 25th

Constellations

I did not manage any constellation photos in February, either.

Deep Sky

I took no deep sky photos in February.

Meteors

I neither saw neither meteors nor photographed any during February.

Report

The full report is on my blog: http://sungazer127mak.blogspot.co.uk/2018/02/february-2018.html.

Video

This video includes the January and February shots, accompanied by “Because the Night” by 10 000

Maniacs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHNHnR2QTFs&list=PL--6h1svyG-

FeycYHvs0ZwCSHl3LAi1xg&index=9.

January Some of my off-field issues were resolved or I had started the process of resolving them. On-field,

the general pattern of 2017 spilled over into 2018. The weather was mostly awful and, when it

wasn’t, I was working or ill!

The Sun The Sun was very quiet, even in hydrogen alpha light. Unfortunately, my compact digital camera

packed up, so I was unable to do any shots, not that any shots would have shown any detail. I saw

two sunspots through my binoculars one day. Even the professional observatories did not show

much.

Sunspot Drawing January 17th

The Moon

I made some interesting visual observations but, for the first time for ages, did not take any

worthwhile photos. It was a pity that the UK was one of the few places on Earth where the total

lunar eclipse was not visible.

Planets

No bright planets were visible in the evening sky.

Constellations

I did not manage any constellation photos.

Deep Sky

I took some deep sky photos but only one was interesting and of acceptable quality.

Polar Regions January 18th

Meteors

The Quadrantid meteor shower was clouded out and my camera lens packed up, so no sporadic

meteors seen or photographed either!

Report

The full report is on my blog: http://sungazer127mak.blogspot.co.uk/2018/01/january-2018.html.

Video

This video includes the January and February shots, accompanied by “Because the Night” by 10 000

Maniacs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHNHnR2QTFs&list=PL--6h1svyG-

FeycYHvs0ZwCSHl3LAi1xg&index=9.