Search

The article presents miscellaneous facts about pencils used for writing. Since pencils use a graphite rather than a lead writing medium, they cannot cause lead poisoning. The word "graphite" derives from the Greek work meaning to write. "Pencil" is from the Latin meaning "little tail." American author Henry David Thoreau used pencils to write "Walden," and his father owned a pencil-making business near Boston, Massachusetts.

In this article the author discusses how she sketched Fireworks Galaxy (NGC 6946) and NGC 7008 and offers suggestions regarding the same. The suggestions include using white media in lieu of graphite as that can create a positive image directly at the eyepiece, drawing the basic sketch with colored pencils, a gel pen, and a pastel or charcoal pencil, and drawing brightest stars first with a gel pen.