Easy Method To Find Deep Sky Objects

Finding deep sky objects (faint fuzzies) can be quite a challenge at times, especially if you haven't got a Go-To type telescope. With this easy but effective method you will be finding those elusive targets in no time.
Stellarium stellarium.org/
Come and join in some friendly chat on our Facebook group : groups/22380...

[@wuluking]

Hi Jason! I just recently got into astronomy and bought myself my very first telescope (The Sky-watcher explorer 130). I don't know if you'll see this comment on this older video but I wanted to say a HUGE thank you. You've tought me how to set up the equitorial mount, how to collimate (I tried just using the manual for the telescope and thought I broke it, so you really saved me there), how to find deep space objects and more. Thanks to your techniques I've seen M36, M57 and the Andromeda galaxy already, as well as Jupiter, Saturn and Mars and it's just been fantastic. So, I do hope you see this and that you know you've helped (another) beginner amateur astronomer get into this wonderful hobby. I also really enjoy your calm, friendly vibe in your videos. You're very informative but also playful in a very nice way. All the best, Chris

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Chris, your more than welcome my friend great to hear . Thank you for your kind words, comments like yours make it all the worthwhile. Clear skies 🙂

[@pradyumnarallapalli4833]

Very nicely put!

[@johnxu6735]

Thanks Jason, thats a great tip. From my experience, I think another tip is turn the paper with the drawing 180 degree, so the objects are turned upside down and left to right. Therefore, the drawing would match with the actual seeing through eyepiece or finding scope.

[@smalloptics753]

Hello John, Thanks pal...Yes great idea, especially for magnified cross hair finders.

[@kiscsigabee]

very good point! thx

[@johnwright291]

Hunting the objects down and finding them and the sense of accomplishment is a big part of the hobby for me. I have a telrad finder on my scope and I bought the two volume binders of finder charts for the telrad of the messier objects which shows the stars around the object with a bulls eye pattern that looks exactly like the lighted pattern you see when looking through the telrad and it is centered on the object. You really can't go wrong.

[@timschooler]

Jason, I am relatively new to Astronomy. I have owned a Celestron VX mount with a 6” Newtonian for years, but found it incredibly difficult to use and so it sits idle. I recently purchased an Apertura AD 6 Dobsonian, and have had it out the last few nights viewing the moon and Jupiter. I just wanted to say I have watched dozens of videos, and yours are easily among the best. Thank you for sharing your love for the hobby and your knowledge, most enjoyable!

[@OximusOne]

Clear as Mud! Very informative and will try this next time!

[@smalloptics753]

Thank you, your welcome my friend :)

[@Babayaga-pf5dt]

The best astronomy site around. A pleasure to watch. All the best for the new year from Melbourne Australia

[@smalloptics753]

Thank you so much for your kind words my friend.. All the best for 2022 :)

[@RavensSpirit2012]

Thank you so much Jason nice to see a clear non jargon video and excellent tips. I'm out tonight looking at the Palisades a good practice bunch.

[@smalloptics753]

Hello RavensSpirit2012, your more than welcome friend. Take care, clear skies :)

[@JasonSmith-yz6nd]

Wonderful video!! Thank you. I can’t wait to try this out.

[@adonis6766]

Great video! I've been lurking around in this channel and i gotta say that you are very informative and have a good sense of humor. I currently have a small Telescope (it's my first, Celestron astromaster 70az) and I've been struggling to find m13 and I'm gonna use this method next time the sky gets cleared here. Sorry if my English is not that good (it's my 3rd language)

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Ton 618. Thank you for your kind words, great to hear you like my channel..Btw your English is perfect :)....Hope you find M13 on your next outing, you should have no problem seeing it with your telescope..The Celestron 70AZ are great starter telescopes..Have fun, stay safe. :)

[@skoovee]

Your English is better than mine! And English is my first language!

[@briansture4353]

We use to do it with laminating film. Place the film over a photo of the constellation and mark the bright stars as small circles with a light colour pen. Then mark the target with a different colour. Hold up to the constellation and rotate to get the orientation right and move the film in or out so that the stars align with the marked stars. You will see the position of the target. In Australia, we used to find the south celestial pole. That was way back in the film days for astrophotography. We have better methods today. Buy a Telrad it gives you the degrees in the sky in the form of red circles. Best finder ever. It has a sticky base that sticks to your telescope. Batteries last about a year with regular use. Don't forget to turn it off at the end of the night.

[@stevew585]

Hi from East London Jason, I have a Heritage 130P and about to get an 8; Skywatcher Dod, 200P. I still have a lot to learn and your channel is amazing! Just at a great pace. Many Thanks my friend, really enjoying and looking forward to all your video's.

[@springbloom5940]

How is that 130? Im seriously considering a OneSky and Im about 99% certain the OneSky, 130p and Astromaster 130 all have the same optical train. My friends' kid has the Astromaster, but I have yet to get any time on it.

[@epickcrom5606]

Great video Jason, interesting and informative 👍

[@robmains6195]

Great video Jason, a great tip and simple method, can't wait to try it out. 👍

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Rob, Thanks pal, Yes I've used this method for years it's pretty accurate once you get the hang of it :) Take care buddy, clear skies.

[@vojkotravner6413]

Very useful and simple demostration - thanks!

[@smalloptics753]

Your more than welcome friend :)

[@toadamine]

A computer mount seems cool if you're trying to say do a group viewing of many objects... but yeah, generally, I feel like half the fun is locating the object, and the reward is much greater than just looking at something someone else found Stellarium is awesome and it's just pay $20 once and it's yours forever. The grid lines help immensely when locating stuff with an equatorial mount.

[@babs075]

Your videos are a huge help!

[@galacticcinder8854]

Great Video...very informative and good sense of humor *_* thanks!!!

[@basilreardon5783]

Thanks soooo much for these tiny tricks for locating constellations . Simple genius 👍

[@peterturner8766]

Rather than doing a drawing, if you have a PC, you can take a screenprint of stellarium, paste it into Photoshop or a free equivalent. You can then crop out anything you don't need, draw the lines in the software and print it out. No risk of damaging your screen and mega easy.

[@smalloptics753]

Great idea Peter :)

[@richqualls5157]

Excellent video!!!

[@erichowry7197]

Great video. I am an amateur star gazer and learning a lot watching these videos!!

[@smalloptics753]

Great to hear Eric :)

[@AstroLaVista]

Fab video Jason, I enjoyed the info about Messier and I totally agree about the value of learning the sky without goto. Even in the obsy I tend to just get sidereal tracking going then star hop, sometimes it's quicker than doing a goto lol

[@smalloptics753]

Hey Chris, thanks pal. yeah star hopping is a great way for beginners to learn there way around the night sky......Goto's should only be allowed to be sold to seasoned astronomers :)

[@Astronurd]

I agree, but for those folks that have bad light pollution star hopping can be nigh impossible.

[@janellehoney-badger6525]

Perfect! It works, thanks for the handy tips I think I found these 3x M objects by accident one night, it was finding out which ones they actually were, is what I had trouble with.

[@gene1647]

Great Channel with many great tips.

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Gene. Thank you. Very much appreciated :)

[@ianmckenney9080]

Very timely video Jason, just had to send my goto gizmo back to the supplier as it's gone wonky! So I'm on manual for a while. Still people managed for centuries without , so here goes!!

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Ian, of course a goto is a lot easier, but this method sould help you while you wait..Good luck, have fun :)

[@tolgaimam6218]

Great tip to try out. Cheers.

[@smalloptics753]

Your welcome friend 😀

[@martinlisitsata]

1:55 this has always been my favorite part of stargazing , nut the search part but just moving the telescope while looking in the eyepiece . Seeing all the objects i could not with the naked eye .

[@VitoGodfather1945]

Thank you Jason 🤞

[@smalloptics753]

Your more than welcome

[@GalaxyArtMedia]

Very nice video Jason. i have used astrophotography apps more to find when needed, but a paper map with the lines that you talked could help .

[@smalloptics753]

Thank you my friend. It really does yes, I've used this method for years, as simple as it sounds it's quite effective :)

[@jbmurphy4]

Thanks for the tip. I was just using my phone app to guess where the objects were before this, but the phone would turn off while I was searching. I wonder is there a list of messier objects vs telescope size and bortle conditions? I found a small fuzzy galaxy near Andromeda (I think it was m32) but couldnt see andromeda maybe because my 25mm 56degree lense wasnt wide enough!

[@skoovee]

Thanks Jason I’m 13 and I have been doing astronomy for around 6 months and this helped a lot :)

[@smalloptics753]

Hello skoove. Your more than welcome, great to hear my videos are helping you. Clear skies :)

[@avt_astro206]

Great Tips Jason..I Find DSOs By Star Hopping Method. Jumping from Bright Stars To Near By Dim Ones..Nicely Explained🔭👍🌟🌟

[@smalloptics753]

Thank you Deep Sky, clear skies friend :)

[@t.w.4462]

I don't fill so stupid! Thank you sir your personality and the way you teach . You make me see and understand how to use my Orion 130st eq

[@smalloptics753]

Glad to be of help my friend :)

[@ryanfahrne5318]

What telescope do you recommend for seeing planets and nebulae?

[@willgrover5270]

Thanks

[@calvn8or543]

Thats brilliant

[@coletc]

Been using the fist measurement method to find M81/82, my first true targeting efforts as a new scope owner. Have a 10 inch dob. I don’t find it using the pointing method. I find myself just scanning the sky across what seems like an enormous area. I have a low end 25mm eyepiece made by Celestron. Are there “finder” eyepieces? Perhaps the one that I cite is a finder eyepiece. 🎉 I’ve not minded the challenge but am curious if there’s a better way.

[@QingkaiKong]

This is great video, thanks for putting this together. Also, I am curious what's that big finderscope on your telescope, looks really nice! I am thinking to get a nice finderscope for my 12" dob, and I really like your finderscope, which seems modified from a regular short tube refractor?

[@smalloptics753]

Hello. Your more than welcome friend. The small telescope on my main telescope is a 70mm 400fl refractor. It could be used as a finder scope but I use it as a telescope for wide field views and for photography. :)

[@QingkaiKong]

@@smalloptics753 Cool, thanks!

[@theghastlygamer5326]

Ok i have just recently purchased a dobsonian telescope and i have trouble finding objects. I can see them in the sky but i cant get it in my viewfinder. I have trouble sometimes even getting the moon lined up with my telescope

[@bushcraftandastronomer.3775]

Great little tip to try out and learn! When I first started I started with the easy to find deep sky objects for example M42 and M45 and did star hopping to locate. Stellarium mobile it directs you to deep sky object and skyview app but paid version isn't that good. I'm going to try what you shown here and I recently bought a good red dot finder for my skywatcher evostar 72ed ds pro refractor. I could mount phone on telescope and use stellarium mobile to direct me to say M27 and let app take you to object. Your other video using stellarium is so useful too! Durening spring I'm going to try what you showed here and locate M51 to photograph with my 72ed. Does this depend on sky conditions? With slight haze it can block the fainter objects. Very useful video to watch and learn! Stay safe friend!

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Bushcraft, thanks buddy. Indeed, yes starting with the easier brighter objects is a good starting point for DSO's. In my opinion red dot finders are the best type of finder, if a telescope doesn't have one I either change the cross hair finder or just put a red dot on if it dosen't have one on at all. Stellarium is a great app if you buy the paid version you will never need another app again. Have fun trying this method of finding DSO's...I know I do :) Take care friend, clear skies.

[@springbloom5940]

SkyEye has a 'push to' function thats accurate enough to save a lot of viewing time and frustration and inaccurate enough to make you work.

[@ronm6585]

Thanks.

[@smalloptics753]

Your welcome 🙂

[@paulpendyck9438]

Jason. Thank u for your videos. What telescope and mount do u have?

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Paul, your welcome, the telescope is a skywatchr 130M and the mount is a EQ2 with a motor on it, the motor you have to buy separate, and is ok but only for visual, not for astrophotography. They are great scopes for the money around £200-250 new with mount. Take care buddy, clear skies :)

[@paulpendyck9438]

Jason. Thx. I am originally from the UK but now live in the US. Would it be sold under another name here? I currently have the AWB One Sky

[@hrittizadasgupta1032]

That's a pretty great video👍. Thanks for the information btw I have been struggling with my telescope for a few days and while watching the stars and moon I find distortions and multiple images of the object , your channel is informative , hope you can help 🙂

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Hrittiza. Thank you and your more than welcome. Sorry to hear you have been having problems with your telescope. Unfortunately it's hard to diagnose the problem without actually looking through your telescope myself, but here's a few things it could be.. 1: If it is refractor it could the baffles that have come out of place inside the tube, or the lenses could be out of alignment. 2: If it's a reflector a common problem for distortion is bad collimation. Or, in some cases the secondary mirror is two small for the telescope. Sorry I can't give you a straight answer or instant fix, but like I say without seeing the telescope for myself its hard to tell you exactly what's wrong. Hope you can get it fixed I'm sure it won't be anything to drastic. Good luck :)

[@hrittizadasgupta1032]

@@smalloptics753 Is there any way to cure the baffles problem or lens disorientation problem ? And also thank you for such a fast response ☺️

[@smalloptics753]

@@hrittizadasgupta1032 Yes you can repair the baffles but it does include either removing the focus housing or the objective lenses, and in some cases both.. another thing to try before doing anything to drastic is to loosen the locking ring which holds the objective lens in place. Once you have loosened the retaining screw hold the telescope vertical so the main objective lens is pointing straight up and give the telescope a few taps with your fingers and sometimes this realigns the lenses then, this part is important, when you tighten the retaining ring only tighten it so it is just touching the lens and holding it in place over tightening this could lead to what is called 'pinched optics' which could well be the problem your having with your telescope . Hope this sorts it out for you. Good luck :)

[@hrittizadasgupta1032]

@@smalloptics753 thank you so much for this help.👍👍

[@smalloptics753]

@@hrittizadasgupta1032 You are more than welcome friend :)

[@Robert08010]

You could rank the messier objects by perceived brightness so you can recommend the brightest of the lot.

[@retireddoc6145]

Thanks Jason, very helpful. I tried the technique but not sure I got Capella in the right place. I am a real newbie so I may need to mark the stars as not to get confused. Thanks again.

[@springbloom5940]

If you're using a reflector, the image is probably upside down. If you use a refractor with a diagonal, or binoculars, itll be right side up. Don't know if thats your problem.

[@aaryaprayagi1929]

I found one more method while playing around with the telescope, Basically when there's really dim targets like Andromeda(in my location)I can't see it on the finder scope,but my dslr can,so you can just mount the dslr on the telescope and align it like a second findercope except now you can take 10-15 second exposures to see which Direction the galaxy is in and align it accordingly,works amazingly for me

[@smalloptics753]

Great tip my friend, Thank you for sharing :)

[@aaryaprayagi1929]

@@smalloptics753 no problem:)

[@medaphysicsrepository2639]

Any advice for the right location? Ive been trying to find a good spot to view things but live in a crowded area and cant really find a good spot to view that isnt the middle of a road

[@springbloom5940]

No. Sorry, thats the best answer anyone can give 🤷 You could google up some local astronomy clubs. They'll probably have viewing location info on their website. You'll probably just have to find multiple limited view locations and move around. I live in the country on 10 acres and still have to plan my viewing and have multiple spots, to clear trees and neighbors' yard lights. In town, you'll be limited mainly to planets, so just find the ecliptic and find a couple spots that cover different sections of it.

[@icingdeath]

I so agree! It’s much more rewarding doing manual, plus it’s my rationalization for not being able to afford a “go-to” system 🤣. Seriously tho, helpful content, thanks!

[@smalloptics753]

Your welcome friend :)

[@Fstop5.6]

Triangulation was the first method I used to find objects even when using a goto mount the home in on an object, holding up a piece paper would throw me off. Just imagine the triangulation lines the way you imagine the lines of the constellations.

[@flatjoker600]

I manily find the nearst bright star (Canopus for me) and just follow the star to my targets. The SMC and the LMC

[@keithburgess4]

Hi Jason great channel I'm new to this topic I've just bought a used celestron 127 reflector telescope am I doing something wrong I can see the moon brilliantly but try and Move onto any visible star in the sky and I can't get a thing I can see it through the viewfinder but nothing in the focused eyepiece Thanks Keith

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Keithburgess4, It sounds like your finder scope is not aligned correctly to your telescope. Have a look at this video I made all about finders which I'm sure will help you out with your little problem. Don't worry I'm sure that's all it is. Good luck :) kzbin.info/www/bejne/a6Xbf4ejmJVgnrs

[@springbloom5940]

If you haven't solved your problem yet; and if you have, someone else may find this helpful... As noted, your finder maybe misaligned, but also, your scope has a much narrower field of view; a bit like looking trough a straw. If you're using the supplied eyepieces, you might get a lower powered or widefield eyepiece for hunting. A 32mm plossl is cheap and while not technically a widefield and will probably have a some edge distortion, its a great option for star hopping.

[@leogamias2799]

Really useful advie..but what happens when we live in the city and most constallations are not observable..i really want to observe deep sky objects while living in the city but all i can see in the sky is some of the brightest planets and big starts like vega, arcturus, antares etc..what do we do in a situation like this

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Leo. You should still be able to get a rough guide even in light polluted skies by using the brighter constellations. I too live where bright skies are a problem here's what I do to combat it 1, Make sure your eyes a dark adapted in other words not exposed to any artificial light for at least 20min 2. Set your telescope up in the darkest area you can find with as little or no artificial light as possible. 3. Use your lowest power eyepiece. I know it seems unfair for people who have to live with this light problem, but like I say it is possible tp see DSO's it just takes a bit more practice and patience. The most important thing is make sure your eye's are dark adapted I can't stress how important that is. Good luck hunting, take your time, be patient. Clear skies friend :)

[@leogamias2799]

@@smalloptics753 thank you so much for the reply!

[@Astrokeelai]

Sir, you have been great teacher for us.. i admire all your videos. It's been very informative.thank you very much. I am new to sky watching. I own a small basic level telescope. 120mm Reflector. I am using it to watch moon and planets. It is really good at it. But when I watch the sky i could only see the stars. Not any faint objects. I have Svbony 25mm plossl eyepiece as well. My question is Can i see with my eyes any deep sky objects directly through my eyepiece in my telescope without help of any eyepiece cameras.?

[@smalloptics753]

Hello there friend, thank you for your kind words and your more than welcome.. Yes there are many things to see with low magnification if you have a look at my main page on my channel and have a look on my play list section under 'targets to find' you'll find lots of things to find on there to keep you busy 🙂

[@Astrokeelai]

@@smalloptics753 thank you sir. Your reply is much appreciated.i will watch them

[@MrJames19676]

Hi Jason, Could you help me out by letting me know what length of slow motion cable controls I should get for my Sky-Watcher Explorer-200P. I'd like to get a pair online today, but have no idea of what length to get? (I'm 5.10 if that helps.) Thanks mate. James. 😊👍

[@smalloptics753]

Hello JPF17. For the declination usually they are roughly half the length of the main tube so for your telescope (which I believe is a 1000 mm ) I would go for 300-400 mm you don't want it to over shoot the end of the tube just long enough for easy access. For the R/A you can go a little shorter as much as 100 mm or less. I don't even have the R/A slow-mo cable attached as they seem to get in the way, what I do is just turn the big cog that the motor attaches to, not all telescopes have this option so you may still need attache a cable but like I say short ones are better (in my opinion) for the R/A as they don't get in the way. Hope this helps.. Great telescope you have btw :)

[@MrJames19676]

@@smalloptics753 What can I say? Top man Jason! Have now ordered the 30cm one. Trouble is they only come in pairs, so I'll have to blow out the shorter one for the minute or see if I can do something with one of the 30cm ones, cut it down or something? Thanks so much for taking the time to get back to me, its very much appreciated. James. 😁👍

[@smalloptics753]

@@MrJames19676 Your more than welcome my friend :)

[@epic_playz4283]

Btw how much magnification to see pinwheel and whirlpool galaxy?

[@epic_playz4283]

How much?

[@themoon7903]

Start with your lowest magnification then add more if you think you need it

[@Voyager-mc8lg]

Is it possible to see Orion Nebula from central london with a. Celesteon 114az Newtonian telescope

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Voyager. Yes no problem. The Orion nebula is quite bright so even in light polluted areas you will have no problem observing it.. Have fun :)

[@Voyager-mc8lg]

@@smalloptics753 thank you so much subbed

[@ronaldg7522]

👍

[@smalloptics753]

Thanks Rob :)

[@MegaVoltTM]

I prefer another method. For roughly pointing my tube I use powerful 200mW green laser (model 303, can found on eBay, AliExpress or another local store) installed on my telescope 🔭🔦 Then looking into powerful 60mm/240mm guide scope with modded 20mm eyepiece (I made needle-type crosshair inside, just cut the needle and clue it inside the eyepiece) that gives me 12x magnification and very bright picture with big field of view and then I can easily point my telescope to an interesting object with fine tuning knobs on the mount 🙂⚙️👌 Sorry for my bad English, cause I'm from Russia, and my native language is russian, ofc 🙃😅

[@smalloptics753]

Hello MegaVolt's . That's a great idea, as long as it works for you it doesn't matter what method you use.. I like your idea of making a crosshair eyepiece, I've done something similar in the past before... BTW. Your English is great. A lot better than my Russian :)

[@MegaVoltTM]

@@smalloptics753 yep, right 👍 Another tip if you have optical finderscope and can't install laser pen on your tube, you can put that laser pen to the eyepiece of finderscope and turn on laser. You should see the laser beam in the sky pointing just the same place as your finderscope looking at 😉🔦 Very great method I've used until buying 3-ways bracket 😀👍 The tip to make cross-hair with plossl eyepiece (I think another types of eyepieces the same thing) - you need to put your needle or anything else just behind pole diaphragm of your eyepiece (if you looking from the barrel side of eyepiece) to make it in focus when you looking into this eyepiece 😉👌 Thanks for high grade of my English 😃🤝😊 Hope it's still easily understanding and right spelling (not sure) 😅😅

[@epic_playz4283]

I use starwalk, but wish it was all free

[@peacequest69]

okey

[@Tvrtko_I]

Thanks, im looking for a real *deep sky* object, TON-618.

[@AmarettoTheFurry]

I’ll do you one better; HD1

[@simonbayley7383]

Ok.

[@Mr6sess]

How about you just download any number of free apps on your phone or tablet and just hold it up to the sky. I would suggest having 2 or 3 apps because sometimes one app may not be quite as accurate. I'm not drawing it out and all this mess. To me that is a waste of time. OR you can just buy a goto mount and slew to your target without having to think about any of it. Just tell the scope where to go and the mount goes there.

[@AmarettoTheFurry]

One, phones make it harder to adjust to lower light levels. Two, having the bright light (even at lowest brightness) can be blinding due to being adjusted to lower light levels. Three, not everyone can afford a goto mount. It’s also fun to test your skills navigating around the sky.

[@TheKallados]

Its Auriga not a Hexagon 🤔 not important 🙂 I seen 6 Points

[@hmuphilly9129]

I think light pollution, and humanitys stupidity is leaving us views of stars in general espescially in the city

[@artyombeilis9075]

You can also try this: kzbin.info/www/bejne/d6Wko6R4gbyKgJo It makes it really easy. 1/2 of dob users in my local community use one.

[@smalloptics753]

I will definitely check that out thank you my friend.

[@artyombeilis9075]

@@smalloptics753 You can find quite a lot of discussions at Cloudy Nights forum but I can't put link to them in the comment... And I really like your content

[@joedizzelfoerizle]

Ok, aside from Messir, can we all agree that the French suck still? 😅

[@dragosmarinescu5520]

Your lecture is very interesting, but, since you say " OK " every 10 or less words, it is VERy Annoyng. OK ?!

[@smalloptics753]

Hello Dragos, pleased to hear you found the video interesting. I do apologise for the "OK" I was only aware of doing it when I watched it back.. I agree it is very annoying. I think it's because I'm still a novice at making KZbin videos and I don't script them so what I think it is, is I'm substituting OK with thinking of what to say next.. I do it a lot and like you rightly say it's Annoying! and I do need to stop. All the best :)

[@MegaVoltTM]

@@smalloptics753 finally someone said about "OK" 😅 You doing very good video for beginners, but this thing is really a little bit annoying 😋😅

[@smalloptics753]

@@MegaVoltTM Noted and addressed :)