Deep sky challenge: Autumn's fading galaxies

Winter is coming, but some of autumn’s deep-sky treasures can still be enjoyed through your telescope

Sliding into November, it’s only natural to swing your telescope away from the subtle attractions of the autumn sky and use it to enjoy views of winter’s bigger, brighter and bolder objects. But before you start diving headfirst into the swirling grey and green gas clouds of the Orion Nebula (Messier 42) or squint at the Crab Nebula’s (Messier 1) ghostly outline, why not postpone winter a little longer and give some of autumn’s delights one last look?

If you can make it to somewhere with a dark sky unspoiled by light pollution, a small telescope will show you the two small, faint satellite galaxies of the Andromeda Galaxy (Messier 31). Owners of larger instruments which can provide higher magnifications and gulp down more subtle starlight can see a nebula that is said to resemble a blue snowball, and a fine edge-on galaxy too.