Date: Mon, 22 Mar 2004 11:07:23 -0500
From: Robert Bruce Thompson
To: spider
Subject: 2004 Messier Marathon results

The Winston-Salem Astronomical League held its Second Annual Messier 
Marathon on the night of 19/20 March 2003 at the Wake Forest University 
Lodge, a private facility on the Blue Ridge Parkway near Fancy Gap, 
Virginia at 3,000 feet elevation. WSAL members Paul Jones, Mary 
Chervenak, Bonnie Richardson, Barbara Thompson, and Robert Thompson were 
present for the weekend observing field trip, but father-and-son team 
Steve Childers and Sean Childers were the only members who participated 
in the Messier Marathon.

Conditions for the Messier Marathon were nearly perfect. Temperatures 
fell from about 45F at dusk to perhaps 35F near dawn. Humidity was low 
all night, and the slight breeze was sufficient to prevent dewing 
problems. Clouds were 0/10 most of the night, and transparency was good.

Steve and Sean used Steve's home-built 17.5" truss Dob as their primary 
instrument for most of the Marathon, with 27mm Panoptic and 14mm and 
10.5mm Pentax XL eyepieces. They encountered problems in Coma-Virgo, 
because their large Dob made so many galaxies visible that it was 
difficult to determine which were the Messier galaxies. They borrowed a 
10" Dob to complete the Coma-Virgo Cluster, and then returned to using 
their 17.5" scope for the remainder of the objects.

The final results were as follows:

Steve Childers - 109 objects (missed only M30)

Sean David Childers - 109 objects (missed only M30)

Although M30 was technically possible, at this early date M30 did not 
rise until 0523 local time, only 8 minutes before the beginning of 
nautical twilight, and was at only about 6 degrees elevation by the 
beginning of civil twilight. They attempted to use high power to darken 
the sky background relative to M30, but the sky was simply too bright to 
allow them to see M30. Accordingly, by acclamation the other club 
members awarded Steve and Sean a sweep.

This was Steve's second Messier Marathon. During the 2003 WSAL Messier 
Marathon, as a relatively new observer he bagged 100 objects with his 
10" Dob. This was Sean's first Messier Marathon. At age 15, Sean becomes 
the youngest WSAL member to have completed the Messier Marathon, and the 
youngest WSAL member to have observed all 110 Messier Objects (he had 
logged M30 during a previous session).

Congratulations to Steve and Sean on a well-run and successful effort.

-- 
Robert Bruce Thompson
President
Winston-Salem Astronomical League
thompson (at) wsal (dot) org
http://www.wsal.org