Berenice’s Hair
When under a clear sky, away from city lights, without optical aid, the Open Cluster, Melotte 111, hangs like a translucent cobweb tangle, ten-times the size of the full moon, between the bright stars Denebola (Beta Leonis) and Cor Caroli (Alpha Canum Venaticorum). Living as I do under light-polluted suburban skies, I forget how impressive this wonderful cloud-of-star-light is when seen under a clear night sky. And this is the way to view it, no binoculars, no telescopes, just your eyes. It is one of the true marvels of the night sky. The entire constellation of Coma Berenices carries the name of this star cluster. But it is the cluster proper that has sparked poets, story tellers and amateur astronomers who gaze at Berenice’s hair.
Queen Berenice II, was the wife and sister, to King Ptolemy III, of Egypt. She was famous not only for her beauty but also for her very long amber-colored hair. When King Ptolemy III was off to war, Berenice was afraid that he would not return. After consulting the oracle for the goddess Aphrodite, she promised that she would sacrifice her hair for the promise that the King would return home safely. He did, and she gave her long locks to the goddess. The King was not pleased – there was nothing more beautiful in his eyes than Berenice’s hair. When he went to the oracle, the priest showed the King that his wife’s hair was now suspended in the heavens for all to see and enjoy.
The 5th and 6th magnitude stars that make-up Berenice’s hair can only be seen with binoculars/telescope from my backyard. For this drawing I used a my rich-field 85mm refractor that gave me a 4.7-degree field of view at a magnification of 17x. Even so, I needed more that one drawing to capture the full extent of the open cluster. I used a higher-power eyepiece to observe several of the double stars and the three brighter galaxies that fell within or near the cluster. This drawing is a composite of all the drawings I did at the telescope, using both eyepieces.
To see NGC 4559: www.flickr.com/photos/dragonflyhunter/46669683744/in/phot...
To see NGC 4565: www.flickr.com/photos/dragonflyhunter/47384451281/in/phot...
To see NGC 4494: www.flickr.com/photos/dragonflyhunter/46471257265/in/phot...
To see additional astronomy drawings visit: www.orrastrodrawing.com
Berenice’s Hair
When under a clear sky, away from city lights, without optical aid, the Open Cluster, Melotte 111, hangs like a translucent cobweb tangle, ten-times the size of the full moon, between the bright stars Denebola (Beta Leonis) and Cor Caroli (Alpha Canum Venaticorum). Living as I do under light-polluted suburban skies, I forget how impressive this wonderful cloud-of-star-light is when seen under a clear night sky. And this is the way to view it, no binoculars, no telescopes, just your eyes. It is one of the true marvels of the night sky. The entire constellation of Coma Berenices carries the name of this star cluster. But it is the cluster proper that has sparked poets, story tellers and amateur astronomers who gaze at Berenice’s hair.
Queen Berenice II, was the wife and sister, to King Ptolemy III, of Egypt. She was famous not only for her beauty but also for her very long amber-colored hair. When King Ptolemy III was off to war, Berenice was afraid that he would not return. After consulting the oracle for the goddess Aphrodite, she promised that she would sacrifice her hair for the promise that the King would return home safely. He did, and she gave her long locks to the goddess. The King was not pleased – there was nothing more beautiful in his eyes than Berenice’s hair. When he went to the oracle, the priest showed the King that his wife’s hair was now suspended in the heavens for all to see and enjoy.
The 5th and 6th magnitude stars that make-up Berenice’s hair can only be seen with binoculars/telescope from my backyard. For this drawing I used a my rich-field 85mm refractor that gave me a 4.7-degree field of view at a magnification of 17x. Even so, I needed more that one drawing to capture the full extent of the open cluster. I used a higher-power eyepiece to observe several of the double stars and the three brighter galaxies that fell within or near the cluster. This drawing is a composite of all the drawings I did at the telescope, using both eyepieces.
To see NGC 4559: www.flickr.com/photos/dragonflyhunter/46669683744/in/phot...
To see NGC 4565: www.flickr.com/photos/dragonflyhunter/47384451281/in/phot...
To see NGC 4494: www.flickr.com/photos/dragonflyhunter/46471257265/in/phot...
To see additional astronomy drawings visit: www.orrastrodrawing.com