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(IAAC) OBJECT: NGC4125, NGC4121 (galaxies) INST: 18" F/4.2 NEWT, LM=5.2, Rating=B
Observer: Todd Gross
Your skill: Intermediate - Many years
Date and UT of observation: 2/23/99 08:55 GMT
Location & latitude: 22 mi. West of Boston, Ma. 42.3N
Site classification: Suburban
Limiting magnitude (visual): 5.2 zenith
Seeing (1 to 10 - worst-best): about 3
Moon up (phase?): No
Weather: Clear
Instrument: 18" Stabilite Newt f/4.2 1925mm fl
Magnifications: 82.3x,120x,160x,226x
Filters used: none
Object: NGC4125, NGC4121
Constellation: Draco
Object data: Galaxies
Size(s): 5.8x3.2
Position: 12:08 65:10
Magnitude: 9.7
Personal "rating" (at this aperture, and sky condition): B
I love bumping into things that I wasn't expecting, kind of like
a personal discovery. After viewing NGC4125 at various magnifications
I found NGC4121 (magnitude 14) very nearby... lurking on it's SE side.
NGC4125 is an edge-on, but with a somewhat irregular core. The core is
bright, bold and not 100% completely symettrical, I think it was it's south
side that was a little bit fatter. The core is also a little bit longer by
a tad
than one would expect given it's weak, narrow edge-on arms
which were a tad shorter than a "normal" edge-on, perhaps because they
were so dim.(meaning I couldn't see their full extent)
They were dimmer in fact, than otherwise very similar galaxy
NGC4036 which I viewed minutes later in the same session.
NGC4125 was oriented pretty much N-S, with 4121 off it's southern end on the
East side. 4121 is a small round galaxy, which at first I mistaked for a
star, but when I boosted up to 226x, it became very obvious that it was
not. (seeing was poor so it was easy to make that mistake at first) 4125
was fairly bright, small, and easy, except the arms which required a bit
of peripheral vision.
I would have rated NGC4125 a B-, being just a tad too dim to be striking,
but gave it a "B" due to the "bonus" galaxy I found nearby :)
thanks!
-Todd
Boston Meteorologist Todd Gross
toddg@weatherman.com
http://www.weatherman.com
(617)725-0777
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