NGC/IC Project Restoration Effort

===== NGC 104 30" (10/13/15 - OzSky): at 303x; the core was distinctly orange-yellow. In addition, I immediately noted a couple of obvious orange supergiants at the south edge of the core and in the outer halo on the east side. 30" (11/4/10 - Coonabarabran, 163x and 264x): absolutely stunning view in the 30" at 163x and 264x. ÊEven in the 37' field of the 21mm Ethos, the stars appeared to fill the entire field, only thinning out near the edge. ÊThe pinpoint stars were amazingly packed, but increased in intensity to a relatively small, blazing core, which was plastered with resolved stars. ÊThe very center of the nucleus contained a small, intense knot overlaid with packed stars giving a strong impression of layers. ÊI immediately noticed the core had a pale yellowish tint. Ê 18" (7/10/05 - Magellan Observatory, Australia): at low power (76x using a 27mm Panoptic) the blazing core had an unusual, pale yellow hue. 20" (7/8/02 - Magellan Observatory, Australia): this was the best view I had of 47 Tucanae during the week. At 212x, the entire 23' field was packed edge-to-edge with pinpoint stars and the blazing, intense core, which had a yellowish tint, was resolved into a mesmerizing dense mat of stars. ÊThe halo extended to at least 30'. Ê 18" (7/6/02 - Magellan Observatory, Australia): at 171x, this breathtaking globular was viewed at over 50¡ elevation and was stunningly resolved into several thousand stars out to a diameter of over 25'. ÊThe star density steadily increases towards the center. ÊThe relatively small 4' core was blazing and highly resolved right to the edge of a very small compressed nucleus. ÊA 3-dimensional affect was very strong with layers of stars forming a dense mat over the core. ÊMany of the stars in the halo are connected in chains and lanes. ÊThe 9 mm Nagler did a better job of busting apart the stars in the core, although the cluster overfilled the field at this power. Although the total visual magnitude is just slightly fainter than Omega Centauri and the size slightly smaller, 47 Tucanae is certainly equal if not surpassing Omega Centauri in visual impact due to its dazzling central blaze. 12" (6/29/02 - Bargo, Australia): While at Bargo, I observed 47 Tucanae for the first time. ÊThough still very low in the sky the view was thrilling. ÊAt 186x, the globular filled the 26' field with an uncountable number of stars. ÊStrongly concentrated to an intense, blazing core which was only partially resolved at a low elevation. The highly resolved outer halo extended ~25' in an irregular outline while the central halo was very symmetric. ÊThis is the most prominent naked-eye GC as so much of its light is concentrated into the central core and it lies in a sparse field with no other rivals other than the SMC. Naked-eye: easy 4th magnitude naked-eye blur just west of the SMC, seen many times from the southern hemisphere. ÊVisible in a dark sky while very low in the sky and from suburban locations when higher in the sky.