3 Dec
2011
3 Dec
'11
12:22 p.m.
Being a mostly city-bound observer these past two decades, I derive immense satisfaction from hunting down the countless,smaller, "tiny blue dot" planetary nebulae that poplulate many constellations, from my back yard. Light pollution does not diminish their visibility, especially when using proper narrowband filtration. Small refractors can nab them as easily as light buckets. Yet, I would never add any of them to a list of "favorite" or "showcase" objects. Kind of ironic. They are so much fun to find, yet at the same time, are hardly worth a gasp once found. But my grin is ear-to-ear when I scoop them up. Likewise for the many tiny, nondescript globulars that orbit our galaxy. Food for thought.