I got me self a Quasar (Q2237-0607) mag 18.3 with Redshift z=4.55

[Dennis]

I first read about the discovery of Quasars, these enigmatic, distant, energetic objects, as a schoolboy. I never imagined that one day, I would be able to record the stellar like presence of one through a small telescope in my back garden.

In SkyTools 4 Imaging, using the Database Power Search Tool for Extragalactic Objects, I found a list of Quasars, filtered by date and my location, with a Redshift z >4, visible in August.

The 1st entry (Q2237-0607 in Aquarius) in the list looked like a good candidate at mag 18.3 so I slewed to the location and grabbed a series of 40x30 sec images and was pleasantly surprised to find a good match.

I also found an interesting APOD that showed a “Redshift Lookup Table for our Universe” which itself linked to the original Technical Paper which can be viewed as a PDF. It is described as a “Paper-and-pencil cosmological calculator” for when you don’t have an Internet Connection.

SkyTools 4 Imaging Data (sub-set)
Q2237-0607
Quasar
R.A. 22h39m53.6s Dec.: -05°52'19" (2000) in Aquarius
Magnitude: 18.30 R
Size: stellar
Redshift (z): 4.55
Light Time: 12.0 Gyr
Apparent Data for 2021 Jul 30  GMT+10 at Brisbane, Australia:
Apparent RA: 22h41m01.1s, Apparent Dec: -05°45'33"

LINKS:
APOD
https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap130408.html

Paper-and-pencil cosmological calculator PDF
https://arxiv.org/abs/1303.5961

Cheers

Dennis

[theskyhound]

Awesome! Thanks for sharing, Dennis.

[Dennis]

Thanks Greg, the riches in SkyTools 4 Imaging continue to astound me and I have only just scraped the surface - thank you for such a powerful tool.  

Continuing with the program, I managed to track down another couple of Quasars:

BR 2248-1242
R.A. 22h51m18.1s Dec.: -12°27'03" (2000) in Aquarius
Magnitude: 18.50 R
Redshift (z): 4.15
Light Time: 12.0 Gyr
 
BRI J0113-2803
R.A. 01h13m44.4s Dec.: -28°03'18" (2000) in Sculptor
Magnitude: 18.70 R
Redshift (z): 4.30
Light Time: 12.0 Gyr

There is another one that “got away”; Q0111-0028 at mag 18.7 “should” have been captured at the top-middle of frame as shown in the SkyTools 4 Imaging Overlay, but it did not register. If I get another opportunity, I might try for Q0111-0028 again, but using an IR642 Filter.

Q0111-0028
R.A. 01h13m52.5s Dec.: -28°14'08" (2000) in Sculptor
Magnitude: 18.70 
Redshift (z): 4.30
Light Time: 12.0 Gyr

Tak Mewlon 210 F11.5 with Tak x0.8 RF.
ASI 294 MM Pro camera

Cheers

Dennis