Celestron StarHopper 10 Instruction Manual page 19

Star hopping to the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) is a snap, since all the stars needed to do so are visible to
the naked eye.
Star hopping may take some getting used to since you can see more stars through a finderscope than you
can see with the naked eye. Also, some objects are not visible in a finderscope. One such object is M57,
the famed Ring Nebula. Here's how to find it:
1. Find the constellation of Lyra, a small parallelogram visible in the summer and fall months. Lyra is
easy to pick out because it contains the bright star Vega.
2. Start at the star Vega—Alpha ( ) Lyrae—and move a few degrees southeast to find the parallelogram.
The four stars that make up this geometric shape are all similar in brightness, making them easy to
see.
3. Locate the two southernmost stars that make up the parallelogram—Beta ( ) and Gamma ( ) Lyra.
4. Point the finderscope halfway between these two stars.
5. Move about ½° toward Beta ( ) Lyra, while remaining on a line connecting the two stars.
6. Look through the telescope and the Ring Nebula should be in your field of view. The Ring Nebula's
angular size is quite small and, therefore, not visible in the finderscope.
7. Because the Ring Nebula is rather faint, you may need to use "averted vision" to see it. "Averted
vision" is a technique of looking slightly away from the object you're observing. So, if you are
observing the Ring Nebula, center it in your field of view and then look off toward the side. This
causes light from the object viewed to fall on the black and white sensitive rods of your eyes, rather
than your eyes color sensitive cones. (Remember that when observing faint objects, it's important to
try to observe from a dark location, away from street and city lights. The average eye takes about 20
minutes to fully adapt to the darkness. So always use a red-filtered flashlight to preserve your dark-
adapted night vision).
These two examples should give you an idea of how to star hop to deep-sky objects. To use this method
on other objects, consult a star atlas, then star hop to the object of your choice using "naked eye" stars.
Figure 15
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