Observer: Mark G.Birkmann
Your skills: Intermediate (some years)
Date/time of observation: 4-26-2000, 7:07 UT (2:07 CDT)
Location of site: New Haven, Missouri (Lat ~38, Elev ~700 feet)
Site classification: Rural
Sky darkness: 5 <1-10 Scale (10 best)>
Seeing: 4, sometimes 5 <1-10 Seeing Scale (10 best)>
Moon presence: None - moon not in sky
Instrument: 40" f/5 dob
Magnification: 385x
Filter(s): none
Category: External galaxy.
Class: SAB(rs)bc;HII Sy2
Constellation: Virgo
Data: mag 10.18 size 6.5' x 5.8'
Position: RA 12h:21m 55s DEC +4:28' 25"
Description: North is to the lower left.
The core of this barred spiral galaxy was bright and
nonstellar. From the north west side of the bar an elongated bright
patch extended a short distance to the north. A gap with a very faint
star in it seperated this bright area from the origin of the eastern arm
which angled off to the south. From the southeast end of the bar
another arm curved away to the west and
north. Immediately to the south of the origin of
this arm another very faint star was seen. As this arm passed a bright
star to the west of the galaxy it became faint and very broad before narrowing
and becoming very faint as it trailed away to the north. An even
fainter arm was seen about 50% of the time originating at the bright patch
at the northwest end of the bar and extending a short distance to the east
before fading into the surrounding sky glow. The end of my observation
of M 61 was signaled by a dull thud as the tube hit the wall of the observatory
only 17 minutes after I began studying this beautiful galaxy. Note
added 5-4-00: The star near the right side of the bar turned out
too bright in the drawing. It was equal in brightness to the star
in the gap near the left side of the bar.