The problem comes when someone writes with a voice of authority about what "can't be done". This causes people to immediately try to prove them wrong. Bishop may regret his choice of words but it's best to remember that just because you haven't seen something, doesn't mean the other people haven't either or that next year they might be able to. I look at dozens of planetary nebula every year, and a large fraction of these have an easily seen central star. Most can be seen with a 10" which is no longer considered a particularly large telescope anymore. The standards for an "amateur" or "backyard" or "average" telescope may continue to change change with time. DT --- On Sun, 1/25/09, Chuck Hards <chuck.hards@gmail.com> wrote:
From: Chuck Hards <chuck.hards@gmail.com> Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] White dwarfs and YOU To: "Utah Astronomy" <utah-astronomy@mailman.xmission.com> Date: Sunday, January 25, 2009, 1:04 PM Rich, thanks for making sure Erik's posts came through. Funny because I was getting them as recently as a few days ago.
I think the key to what Bishop wrote (Observer's Handbook 2009 edition, pg. 309, "Expired Stars") and my recollections, is that Sirius B and Omicron 2 Eridani B are the only white-dwarves *easily seen with a small telescope. *You're not going to see the central star in M57 from your backyard with a 6-inch Newtonian, nor are you going to find the companions of cataclysmic variables with a similar set-up. These two are also very close, as such things go. Om 2 Eri B is only 16.5 light-years distant, Sirius B is what, 8.5? These objects are virtually in our own "back yard". And Om 2 Eri B has the advantage of not rubbing shoulders with the second-brightest star in Earth's sky- it's much more easily seen in the eyepiece. It's a good star-party target that is easily found. "Who wants to see a dead star, one that no longer glows from nuclear fusion?!" I sure would if I were a jr. high kid interested in science.
That only leaves the definition of a "small telescope" as grist for the nit-picker's mill. _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list Utah-Astronomy@mailman.xmission.com http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Visit the Photo Gallery: http://gallery.utahastronomy.com Visit the Wiki: http://www.utahastronomy.com