Andrew Cooper
Aug 26, 2023    Waikoloa, HI (map)
20cm f/6 Newtonian, Cave Astrola @ 76x
Seeing: 6 Transparency: 7 Moon: 0%

Brilliant blue-white, an 8th magnitude companion visible 20" north-northeast creating a very lovely pair, the nice pair 62 Tau lies 1°20' south-southeast while another attractive pair φ Tau lies 1°47' north-northwest

Gaia EDR3 data show the pair to share roughly similar parallax and proper motion

Captain William Henry Smyth
Dec 6, 1831    No. 6 The Crescent, Bedford, England (map)
150mm f/17.6 refractor by Tully 1827

A neat double star, at the back of the Bull's ear; where with ν it forms what the Arabians termed Al Kelbeïn, or the two Dogs. A 6, white ; B 8, pale sky-blue.

The alignment of χ is not difficult: a ray being shot from Castor through β Tauri, the tip of the Bull's northern horn, and extended about 15° further, towards the Pleiades, strikes upon it: a line from Rigel through Aldebaran, carried half that distance beyond the Bull's eye, also hits it. This object is 10 ♅. IV., discovered in 1779, but not measured. The point of departure is therefore the epoch of H. and S., whose results are:

    Pos. 23°56'  Dist.  19".96  Ep. 1822.90
   [WDS  25°            19".40      2016   ]

But the star being rather difficult under illumination, the difference of position offers nothing to calculate upon. The leader's proper motion has been thus registered :

    P.... RA -0".05  Dec. -0".23
    B.....   +0".08       -0".04
   [Gaia DR2 +0".0110472  +0".0001599]

― A Cycle of Celestial Objects Vol II, The Bedford Catalogue, William Henry Smyth, 1844

Drawings, descriptions, and CCD photos are copyright Andrew Cooper unless otherwise noted, no usage without permission.

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