Messier object

The Messier objects are a set of 110 astronomical objects catalogued by the French astronomer Charles Messier in his Catalogue des Nébuleuses et des Amas d'Étoiles.
Because Messier was only interested in finding comets, he created a list of non-comet objects that frustrated his hunt for them. The compilation of this list, in collaboration with his assistant Pierre Méchain, is known as the Messier catalogue. This catalogue of objects is one of the most famous lists of astronomical objects, and many Messier objects are still referenced by their Messier number.
The catalogue includes astronomical objects that can be observed from Earth's Northern Hemisphere; many Messier objects are extremely popular targets for amateur astronomers.
A preliminary version first appeared in the Memoirs of the French Academy of Sciences in 1771.
The first version of Messier's catalogue contained 45 objects and was published in 1774 in the journal of the French Academy of Sciences in Paris. Eighteen of the objects were discovered by Messier, the rest being previously observed by other astronomers.
By 1780 the catalogue had increased to 80 objects. The final version of the catalogue containing 103 objects was published in 1781 in the Connaissance des Temps for the year 1784.
However, due to what was thought for a long time to be the incorrect addition of Messier 102, the total number remained 102. Other astronomers, using side notes in Messier's texts, eventually filled out the list up to 110 objects.
The catalogue consists of a diverse range of astronomical objects, from star clusters and nebulae to galaxies. For example, Messier 1 is a supernova remnant, known as the Crab Nebula, and the great spiral Andromeda Galaxy is M31. Many further inclusions followed in the next century when the first addition came from Nicolas Camille Flammarion in 1921, who added Messier 104 after finding Messier's side note in his 1781 edition exemplar of the catalogue. M105 to M107 were added by Helen Sawyer Hogg in 1947, M108 and M109 by Owen Gingerich in 1960, and M110 by Kenneth Glyn Jones in 1967.

Lists and editions

The first edition of 1771 covered 45 objects numbered M1 to M45. The total list published by Messier in 1781 contained 103 objects, but the list was expanded through successive additions by other astronomers, motivated by notes in Messier's and Méchain's texts indicating that at least one of them knew of the additional objects. The first such addition came from Nicolas Camille Flammarion in 1921, who added Messier 104 after finding a note Messier made in a copy of the 1781 edition of the catalogue. M105 to M107 were added by Helen Sawyer Hogg in 1947, M108 and M109 by Owen Gingerich in 1960, and M110 by Kenneth Glyn Jones in 1967. M102 was observed by Méchain, who communicated his notes to Messier. Méchain later concluded that this object was simply a re-observation of M101, though some sources suggest that the object Méchain observed was the galaxy NGC 5866 and identify that as M102.
Messier's final catalogue was included in the Connaissance des Temps pour l'Année 1784, the French official yearly publication of astronomical ephemerides.
Messier lived and did his astronomical work at the Hôtel de Cluny, in Paris, France. The list he compiled contains only objects found in the sky area he could observe: from the north celestial pole to a celestial latitude of about −35.7°. He did not observe or list objects visible only from farther south, such as the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds.

Observations

The Messier catalogue comprises nearly all the most spectacular examples of the five types of deep-sky object – diffuse nebulae, planetary nebulae, open clusters, globular clusters, and galaxies – visible from European latitudes. Furthermore, almost all of the Messier objects are among the closest to Earth in their respective classes, which makes them heavily studied with professional class instruments that today can resolve very small and visually spectacular details in them. A summary of the astrophysics of each Messier object can be found in the Concise Catalog of Deep-sky Objects.
Since these objects could be observed visually with the relatively small-aperture refracting telescope used by Messier to study the sky, they are among the brightest and thus most attractive astronomical objects observable from Earth, and are popular targets for visual study and astrophotography available to modern amateur astronomers using larger aperture equipment. In early spring, astronomers sometimes gather for "Messier marathons", when all of the objects can be viewed over a single night.

Messier objects

Messier number	NGC/IC number	Common name	Picture	Object type	Distance	Constellation	Apparent magnitude	Right ascension	Declination
M1	NGC 1952	Crab Nebula		Supernova remnant	4.9–8.1	Taurus	8.4	05^h 34^m 31.94^s	+22° 00′ 52.2″
M2	NGC 7089	–			33	Aquarius	6.3	21^h 33^m 27.02^s	−00° 49′ 23.7″
M3	NGC 5272	–				Canes Venatici	6.2	13^h 42^m 11.62^s	+28° 22′ 38.2″
M4	NGC 6121	–				Scorpius	5.9	16^h 23^m 35.22^s	−26° 31′ 32.7″
M5	NGC 5904	–				Serpens	6.7	15^h 18^m 33.22^s	+02° 04′ 51.7″
M6	NGC 6405	Butterfly Cluster				Scorpius	4.2	17^h 40.1^m	−32° 13′
M7	NGC 6475	Ptolemy Cluster			0.65–1.31	Scorpius	3.3	17^h 53^m 51.2^s	−34° 47′ 34″
M8	NGC 6523	Lagoon Nebula		Nebula with cluster		Sagittarius	6.0	18^h 03^m 37^s	−24° 23′ 12″
M9	NGC 6333	–				Ophiuchus	8.4	17^h 19^m 11.78^s	−18° 30′ 58.5″
M10	NGC 6254	–				Ophiuchus	6.4	16^h 57^m 8.92^s	−04° 05′ 58.07″
M11	NGC 6705	Wild Duck Cluster				Scutum	6.3	18^h 51.1^m	−06° 16′
M12	NGC 6218	–				Ophiuchus	7.7	16^h 47^m 14.18^s	−01° 56′ 54.7″
M13	NGC 6205	Great Globular Cluster in Hercules				Hercules	5.8	16^h 41^m 41.24^s	+36° 27′ 35.5″
M14	NGC 6402	–				Ophiuchus	8.3	17^h 37^m 36.15^s	−03° 14′ 45.3″
M15	NGC 7078	–			33	Pegasus	6.2	21^h 29^m 58.33^s	+12° 10′ 01.2″
M16	NGC 6611	Eagle Nebula			7	Serpens	6.0	18^h 18^m 48^s	−13° 49′
M17	NGC 6618	Omega, Swan, Horseshoe, or Lobster Nebula			5–6	Sagittarius	6.0	18^h 20^m 26^s	−16° 10′ 36″
M18	NGC 6613	–				Sagittarius	7.5	18^h 19.9^m	−17° 08′
M19	NGC 6273	–				Ophiuchus	7.5	17^h 02^m 37.69^s	−26° 16′ 04.6″
M20	NGC 6514	Trifid Nebula		with cluster		Sagittarius	6.3	18^h 02^m 23^s	−23° 01′ 48″
M21	NGC 6531	–				Sagittarius	6.5	18^h 04.6^m	−22° 30′
M22	NGC 6656	Sagittarius Cluster			9.6–11.6	Sagittarius	5.1	18^h 36^m 23.94^s	−23° 54′ 17.1″
M23	NGC 6494	–				Sagittarius	6.9	17^h 56.8^m	−19° 01′
M24	IC 4715	Sagittarius Star Cloud		Milky Way star cloud	~10	Sagittarius	4.6	18^h 17^m	−18° 29′
M25	IC 4725	–				Sagittarius	4.6	18^h 31.6^m	−19° 15′
M26	NGC 6694	–				Scutum	8.0	18^h 45.2^m	−09° 24′
M27	NGC 6853	Dumbbell Nebula			1.148–1.52	Vulpecula	7.5	19^h 59^m 36.340^s	+22° 43′ 16.09″
M28	NGC 6626	–				Sagittarius	7.7	18^h 24^m 32.89^s	−24° 52′ 11.4″
M29	NGC 6913	Cooling Tower				Cygnus	7.1	20^h 23^m 56^s	+38° 31′ 24″
M30	NGC 7099	–			27.8–31	Capricornus	7.7	21^h 40^m 22.12	−23° 10′ 47.5″
M31	NGC 224	Andromeda Galaxy			2,430–2,650	Andromeda	3.4	00^h 42^m 44.3^s	+41° 16′ 9″
M32	NGC 221	–			2,410–2,570	Andromeda	8.1	00^h 42^m 41.8^s	+40° 51′ 55″
M33	NGC 598	Triangulum Galaxy			2,380–3,070	Triangulum	5.7	01^h 33^m 50.02^s	+30° 39′ 36.7″
M34	NGC 1039	–				Perseus	5.5	02^h 42.1^m	+42° 46′
M35	NGC 2168	–				Gemini	5.3	06^h 09.1^m	+24° 21′
M36	NGC 1960	–				Auriga	6.3	05^h 36^m 12^s	+34° 08′ 4″
M37	NGC 2099	–				Auriga	6.2	05^h 52^m 18^s	+32° 33′ 02″
M38	NGC 1912	–				Auriga	7.4	05^h 28^m 42^s	+35° 51′ 18″
M39	NGC 7092	–				Cygnus	5.5	21^h 31^m 42^s	+48° 26′ 00″
M40	–	Winnecke 4		Double star		Ursa Major	9.7	12^h 22^m 12.5^s	+58° 4′ 59″
M41	NGC 2287	–				Canis Major	4.5	06^h 46.0^m	−20° 46′
M42	NGC 1976	Orion Nebula			1.324–1.364	Orion	4.0	05^h 35^m 17.3	−05° 23′ 28″
M43	NGC 1982	De Mairan's Nebula				Orion	9.0	05^h 35.6^m	−05° 16′
M44	NGC 2632	Beehive Cluster				Cancer	3.7	08^h 40.4^m	+19° 59′
M45	–	Pleiades			0.39–0.46	Taurus	1.6	03^h 47^m 24^s	+24° 07′ 00″
M46	NGC 2437	–				Puppis	6.1	07^h 41.8^m	−14° 49′
M47	NGC 2422	–				Puppis	4.2	07^h 36.6^m	−14° 30′
M48	NGC 2548	–				Hydra	5.5	08^h 13.7^m	−05° 45′
M49	NGC 4472	–			53,600–58,200	Virgo	9.4	12^h 29^m 46.7^s	+08° 00′ 02″
M50	NGC 2323	–				Monoceros	5.9	07^h 03.2^m	−08° 20′
M51	NGC 5194, NGC 5195	Whirlpool Galaxy			19,000–27,000	Canes Venatici	8.4	13^h 29^m 52.7^s	+47° 11′ 43″
M52	NGC 7654	–				Cassiopeia	5.0	23^h 24.2^m	+61° 35′
M53	NGC 5024	–			58	Coma Berenices	8.3	13^h 12^m 55.25^s	+18° 10′ 05.4″
M54	NGC 6715	–				Sagittarius	8.4	18^h 55^m 03.33^s	−30° 28′ 47.5″
M55	NGC 6809	–				Sagittarius	7.4	19^h 39^m 59.71^s	−30° 57′ 53.1″
M56	NGC 6779	–				Lyra	8.3	19^h 16^m 35.57^s	+30° 11′ 00.5″
M57	NGC 6720	Ring Nebula			1.6–3.8	Lyra	8.8	18^h 53^m 35.079^s	+33° 01′ 45.03″
M58	NGC 4579	–			~63,000	Virgo	10.5	12^h 37^m 43.5^s	+11° 49′ 05″
M59	NGC 4621	–			55,000–65,000	Virgo	10.6	12^h 42^m 02.3^s	+11° 38′ 49″
M60	NGC 4649	–			51,000–59,000	Virgo	9.8	12^h 43^m 39.6^s	+11° 33′ 09″
M61	NGC 4303	–			50,200–54,800	Virgo	10.2	12^h 21^m 54.9^s	+04° 28′ 25″
M62	NGC 6266	–				Ophiuchus	7.4	17^h 01^m 12.60^s	−30° 06′ 44.5″
M63	NGC 5055	Sunflower Galaxy				Canes Venatici	9.3	13^h 15^m 49.3^s	+42° 01′ 45″
M64	NGC 4826	Black Eye Galaxy			22,000–26,000	Coma Berenices	9.4	12^h 56^m 43.7^s	+21° 40′ 58″
M65	NGC 3623	Leo Triplet			41,000–42,000	Leo	10.3	11^h 18^m 55.9^s	+13° 05′ 32″
M66	NGC 3627	Leo Triplet			31,000–41,000	Leo	8.9	11^h 20^m 15.0^s	+12° 59′ 30″
M67	NGC 2682	–			2.61–2.93	Cancer	6.1	08^h 51.3^m	+11° 49′
M68	NGC 4590	–				Hydra	9.7	12^h 39^m 27.98^s	−26° 44′ 38.6″
M69	NGC 6637	–				Sagittarius	8.3	18^h 31^m 23.10^s	−32° 20′ 53.1″
M70	NGC 6681	–				Sagittarius	9.1	18^h 43^m 12.76^s	−32° 17′ 31.6″
M71	NGC 6838	–				Sagitta	6.1	19^h 53^m 46.49^s	+18° 46′ 45.1″
M72	NGC 6981	–			53.40–55.74	Aquarius	9.4	20^h 53^m 27.70^s	−12° 32′ 14.3″
M73	NGC 6994	–		Asterism	~2.5	Aquarius	9.0	20^h 58^m 54^s	−12° 38′
M74	NGC 628	Phantom Galaxy			24,000–36,000	Pisces	10.0	01^h 36^m 41.8^s	+15° 47′ 01″
M75	NGC 6864	–				Sagittarius	9.2	20^h 06^m 04.75^s	−21° 55′ 16.2″
M76	NGC 650, NGC 651	Little Dumbbell Nebula				Perseus	10.1	01^h 42.4^m	+51° 34′ 31″
M77	NGC 1068	Cetus A				Cetus	9.6	02^h 42^m 40.7^s	−00° 00′ 48″
M78	NGC 2068	–				Orion	8.3	05^h 46^m 46.7^s	+00° 00′ 50″
M79	NGC 1904	–			41	Lepus	8.6	05^h 24^m 10.59^s	−24° 31′ 27.3″
M80	NGC 6093	–				Scorpius	7.9	16^h 17^m 02.41^s	−22° 58′ 33.9″
M81	NGC 3031	Bode's Galaxy			11,400–12,200	Ursa Major	6.9	09^h 55^m 33.2^s	+69° 3′ 55″
M82	NGC 3034	Cigar Galaxy			10,700–12,300	Ursa Major	8.4	09^h 55^m 52.2^s	+69° 40′ 47″
M83	NGC 5236	Southern Pinwheel Galaxy				Hydra	7.5	13^h 37^m 00.9^s	−29° 51′ 57″
M84	NGC 4374	–			57,000–63,000	Virgo	10.1	12^h 25^m 03.7^s	+12° 53′ 13″
M85	NGC 4382	–			56,000–64,000	Coma Berenices	10.0	12^h 25^m 24.0^s	+18° 11′ 28″
M86	NGC 4406	–			49,000–55,000	Virgo	9.8	12^h 26^m 11.7^s	+12° 56′ 46″
M87	NGC 4486	Virgo A			51,870–55,130	Virgo	9.6	12^h 30^m 49.42338^s	+12° 23′ 28.0439″
M88	NGC 4501	–			39,000–56,000	Coma Berenices	10.4	12^h 31^m 59.2^s	+14° 25′ 14″
M89	NGC 4552	–			47,000–53,000	Virgo	10.7	12^h 35^m 39.8^s	+12° 33′ 23″
M90	NGC 4569	–			55,900–61,500	Virgo	10.3	12^h 36^m 49.8^s	+13° 09′ 46″
M91	NGC 4548	–			47,000–79,000	Coma Berenices	11.0	12^h 35^m 26.4^s	+14° 29′ 47″
M92	NGC 6341	–				Hercules	6.3	17^h 17^m 07.39^s	+43° 08′ 09.4″
M93	NGC 2447	–				Puppis	6.0	07^h 44.6^m	−23° 52′
M94	NGC 4736	Croc's Eye or Cat's Eye			14,700–17,300	Canes Venatici	9.0	12^h 50^m 53.1^s	+41° 07′ 14″
M95	NGC 3351	–			31,200–34,000	Leo	11.4	10^h 43^m 57.7^s	+11° 42′ 14″
M96	NGC 3368	–			28,000–34,000	Leo	10.1	10^h 46^m 45.7^s	+11° 49′ 12″
M97	NGC 3587	Owl Nebula				Ursa Major	9.9	11^h 14^m 47.734^s	+55° 01′ 08.50″
M98	NGC 4192	–				Coma Berenices	11.0	12^h 13^m 48.292^s	+14° 54′ 01.69″
M99	NGC 4254	–			44,700–55,700	Coma Berenices	10.4	12^h 18^m 49.6^s	+14° 24′ 59″
M100	NGC 4321	–				Coma Berenices	10.1	12^h 22^m 54.9^s	+15° 49′ 21″
M101	NGC 5457	Pinwheel Galaxy			19,100–22,400	Ursa Major	7.9	14^h 03^m 12.6^s	+54° 20′ 57″
M102	NGC 5866	Spindle Galaxy			50,000	Draco	10.7	15^h 06^m 29.5^s	+55° 45′ 48″
M103	NGC 581	–			10	Cassiopeia	7.4	01^h 33.2^m	+60° 42′
M104	NGC 4594	Sombrero Galaxy			28,700–30,900	Virgo	9.0	12^h 39^m 59.4^s	−11° 37′ 23″
M105	NGC 3379	–			30,400–33,600	Leo	10.2	10^h 47^m 49.6^s	+12° 34′ 54″
M106	NGC 4258	–			22,200–25,200	Canes Venatici	9.1	12^h 18^m 57.5^s	+47° 18′ 14″
M107	NGC 6171	–				Ophiuchus	8.9	16^h 32^m 31.86^s	−13° 03′ 13.6″
M108	NGC 3556	–				Ursa Major	10.7	11^h 11^m 31.0^s	+55° 40′ 27″
M109	NGC 3992	–			59,500–107,500	Ursa Major	10.6	11^h 57^m 36.0^s	+53° 22′ 28″
M110	NGC 205	–			2,600–2,780	Andromeda	9.0	00^h 40^m 22.1^s	+41° 41′ 07″

Star chart of Messier objects

NOTE: Messier 102 is missing from this chart.

Popular movies

The Hunger Games (film) - 2012 American dystopian action thriller science fiction-adventure film directed by Gary Ross and based on Suzanne Collins’s 2008 novel of the same name. It is the first insta...
untitled Captain Marvel sequel - part of Marvel Cinematic Universe....
Killers of the Flower Moon (film project) - Killers of the Flower Moon - film project in United States of America. It was presented as drama, detective fiction, thriller. The film project starred Leonardo Dicaprio, Robert De Niro. Director of...
Five Nights at Freddy's (film) - Five Nights at Freddy's - film published in 2017 in United States of America. Scenarist of the film - Scott Cawthon....

Popular books

Book of Revelation - The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament, and consequently is also the final book of the Christian Bible. Its title is derived from the first word of the Koine Greek text: apok...
Book of Genesis - account of the creation of the world, the early history of humanity, Israel's ancestors and the origins...
Gospel of Matthew - The Gospel According to Matthew is the first book of the New Testament and one of the three synoptic gospels. It tells how Israel's Messiah, rejected and executed in Israel, pronounces judgement on ...
Michelin Guide - Michelin Guides are a series of guide books published by the French tyre company Michelin for more than a century. The term normally refers to the annually published Michelin Red Guide , the oldest...
Psalms - The Book of Psalms , commonly referred to simply as Psalms , the Psalter or "the Psalms", is the first book of the Ketuvim , the third section of the Hebrew Bible, and thus a book of th...
Ecclesiastes - Ecclesiastes is one of 24 books of the Tanakh , where it is classified as one of the Ketuvim . Originally written c. 450–200 BCE, it is also among the canonical Wisdom literature of the Old Tes...
The 48 Laws of Power - non-fiction book by American author Robert Greene. The book...

Popular television series

The Crown (TV series) - historical drama web television series about the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, created and principally written by Peter Morgan, and produced by Left Bank Pictures and Sony Pictures Tel...
Friends - American sitcom television series, created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, lasting ten seasons. With an ensemble cast sta...
Young Sheldon - spin-off prequel to The Big Bang Theory and begins with the character Sheldon...
Modern Family - American television mockumentary family sitcom created by Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan for the American Broadcasting Company. It ran for eleven seasons, from September 23...
Loki (TV series) - upcoming American web television miniseries created for Disney+ by Michael Waldron, based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. It is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, shar...
Game of Thrones - American fantasy drama television series created by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss for HBO. It...
Shameless (American TV series) - American comedy-drama television series developed by John Wells which debuted on Showtime on January 9, 2011. It...