From: Paul Clark To: spider Subject: 2004 Messier Marathon result Date: Wed, 24 Mar 2004 14:37:50 -0000 Dear Webmaster I am very happy to report a fully successful 110 object Messier Marathon on 19-20th March. I observed at 2000m from the slopes of Mt. Tiede in the Canary Islands. At 28N this extinct volcano is the site for several 'professional' observatories. Conditions were completely clear all night. I used an airline carry-on, home-built 10" truss tube dobsonian. The objects were located using a Rigel Quikfinder and charts from SkyMap Pro 10. I also followed the evening sequence proposed by Bill Ferris. M74 was quite high and did not pose a problem with the nearby 'Mexican Hat' asterism helping point the way. M30 was picked up at less than 2 degrees elevation at the very start of dawn twilight. The cluster and nearby mag 8+ star resolved quite nicely after a long starhop down the morning sky. I am now back home in a cloudy, wet and cold Manchester, England! Regards Paul Clark