How to Find the Great Barred Spiral Galaxy (NGC 1365)
Find Orion., Find Cursa., From Cursa, follow Eridanus along., Beware, the next two jumps are quite big!, From Upsilon 2 Eridani, go down., To find the galaxy, draw two lines.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Find Orion.
It's one of the most obvious constellations, so it makes a good starting point. , If you look next to Rigel in Orion, you should find two stars.
The bottom one (very dim, may not be seen) is Lambda Eridani, and the top one is Cursa.
This is the start of Eridanus, the river., The stars are a bit dim.
Use small binoculars or a finder scope if you're having trouble., From Epsilon Eridani, You need to hop to Eta Eridani, then down to Tau 1 Eridani.
Once you've done that, the river keeps going in the opposite direction (left instead of right).
From Tau 9 Eridani, you have another big jump to Upsilon 2 Eridani., You should see a pair of stars.
They are 43 and 41 Eridani.
Next to them, you should see a little triangle of stars, with a fourth star in the middle., The first should be from 41 Eridani through the top star in the triangle.
The second should be through the bottom two stars in the triangle.
The galaxy is where the lines meet.
You may need to go slightly to the left (increase right ascension). -
Step 2: Find Cursa.
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Step 3: From Cursa
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Step 4: follow Eridanus along.
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Step 5: Beware
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Step 6: the next two jumps are quite big!
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Step 7: From Upsilon 2 Eridani
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Step 8: go down.
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Step 9: To find the galaxy
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Step 10: draw two lines.
Detailed Guide
It's one of the most obvious constellations, so it makes a good starting point. , If you look next to Rigel in Orion, you should find two stars.
The bottom one (very dim, may not be seen) is Lambda Eridani, and the top one is Cursa.
This is the start of Eridanus, the river., The stars are a bit dim.
Use small binoculars or a finder scope if you're having trouble., From Epsilon Eridani, You need to hop to Eta Eridani, then down to Tau 1 Eridani.
Once you've done that, the river keeps going in the opposite direction (left instead of right).
From Tau 9 Eridani, you have another big jump to Upsilon 2 Eridani., You should see a pair of stars.
They are 43 and 41 Eridani.
Next to them, you should see a little triangle of stars, with a fourth star in the middle., The first should be from 41 Eridani through the top star in the triangle.
The second should be through the bottom two stars in the triangle.
The galaxy is where the lines meet.
You may need to go slightly to the left (increase right ascension).
About the Author
Judith Gibson
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