Visual estimates should be made with both the naked-eye and binoculars on Moonless nights when the Pleiades are high up in the sky. You should wait at least 20 minutes to let your eyes become dark-adapted. It is important to log sky conditions, type of binoculars, and other items requested on the form. Feel free to check off the stars you see on the accompanying chart, but use different symbols for naked-eye and binocular results. Honesty counts in this program.
Negative results are just as important as positive ones.
So if you do not see any of the stars, note that down also. Photographic observations of the sky glow can also be recorded. Center the exposure on Aldebaran or Alpha Tauri, the bright orange star twelve degrees southeast of the Pleiades. No guiding is needed. Remember, this is not a test of eyesight but of sky condition.