Observation Session – 12 March 2011

Location: Plateau de Valensole, France

Session duration: 2 nights

Sky conditions: Very dark sky (Bortle 2–3), light wind

Instruments:

  • 7×50 binoculars
  • 80mm refractor
  • 250mm Dobsonian telescope

Targets:

  • Betelgeuse
  • Double Cluster (NGC 869/884)
  • NGC 7000 (North America Nebula)
  • Polaris

Observation notes:

Transparency improved after midnight and allowed longer visual work on faint deep-sky targets.

The larger telescope resolved dense clusters cleanly, while the refractor was used for wider fields and comparison views.

Members present: Lucille Godefert, Ayoub Berrabeh, Julien Bertaud