NGC/IC Project Restoration Effort

===== NGC 6342 18" (7/26/06): at 325x this small 2' globular was well concentrated to a fairly bright 40" core. A mag 12.5 star is off the SW side of the halo, ~1.5' from the center. Perhaps a half dozen stars are resolved in the halo including three close stars on the NE side. Additional stars are sometimes visible in the WSW side and the north side of the halo. The core is very mottled and there is a strong impression of a couple of star lanes below the threshold of visibility. Located 70' SE of M9. B259, a large dark nebula, is located ~20' NE. 17.5" (7/27/92): moderately bright, fairly small, 2' diameter with an irregular outline, increases to fairly well-defined bright core, mottled. A mag 12 is just off the south tip and a very faint extension or lane extends towards this star. One or two very faint stars mag 14.5-15 are at the NE edge. A less well-defined extension to the SW includes one or two threshold stars. The cluster has a lively appearance but there was no additional resolution.