Messier Objects
The Messier objects are a set of astronomical objects first listed by French astronomer Charles Messier in his "Catalogue des Nébuleuses et des Amas d'Étoiles" ("Catalogue of Nebulae and Star Clusters") included in the Connaissance des Temps for 1774 (published in 1771). The original motivation of the catalogue was that Messier was a comet hunter, and was frustrated by objects which resembled but were not comets. He therefore compiled a list of these objects, in collaboration with his assistant Pierre Mechain.
The first edition covered 45 objects numbered M1 to M45. The total list published by Messier finally contained 103 objects, but the list "got an independent life" by successive additions by other astronomers, motivating the additions by side notes in Messier's and Mechain's texts indicating that either of them knew of the objects. The first such addition came from Camille Flammarion in 1921, who added Messier 104 after finding Messiers 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. M102 was observed by Méchain, who communicated his notes to Messier; later, it was admitted by Méchain himself that this object does not exist, and it was simply a re-observation of M101. Some sources mention the galaxy NGC 5866 as an identification for M102, but its description does not fit with Méchain's notes.
M20
- Type: 1=Open Cluster, 2=Globular Cluster, 3=Planetary Nebula, 4=Starforming Nebula (with open cluster), 5=Spiral Galaxy, 6=Elliptical Galaxy, 7=Irregular Galaxy, 8=Lenticular (S0) Galaxy, 9=Supernova Remnant, A=System of 4 stars or Asterism, B=Milky Way Patch, C=Binary star.
- Ra = right ascension in hours minutes.decimal seconds
- Dec = declination in degrees minutes
- A = apparent visual magnitude
M# NGC# Con Type Ra Dec A
| M1 1952 Tau 9 05 34.5 +22 01 8.4 |
| M2 7089 Aqr 2 21 33.5 -00 49 6.5 |
| M3 5272 CVn 2 13 42.2 +28 23 6.2 |
| M4 6121 Sco 2 16 23.6 -26 32 5.6 |
| M5 5904 Ser 2 15 18.6 +02 05 5.6 |
| M6 6405 Sco 1 17 40.1 -32 13 4.2 |
| M7 6475 Sco 1 17 53.9 -34 49 3.3 |
| M8 6523 Sgr 4 18 03.8 -24 23 6.0 |
| M9 6333 Oph 2 17 19.2 -18 31 7.7 |
| M10 6254 Oph 2 16 57.1 -04 06 6.6 |
| M11 6705 Sct 1 18 51.1 -06 16 6.3 |
| M12 6218 Oph 2 16 47.2 -01 57 6.7 |
| M13 6205 Her 2 16 41.7 +36 28 5.8 |
| M14 6402 Oph 2 17 37.6 -03 15 7.6 |
| M15 7078 Peg 2 21 30.0 +12 10 6.2 |
| M16 6611 Ser 1 18 18.8 -13 47 6.4 |
| M17 6618 Sgr 4 18 20.8 -16 11 7.0 |
| M18 6613 Sgr 1 18 19.9 -17 08 7.5 |
| M19 6273 Oph 2 17 02.6 -26 16 6.8 |
| M20 6514 Sgr 4 18 02.6 -23 02 9.0 |
| M21 6531 Sgr 1 18 04.6 -22 30 6.5 |
| M22 6656 Sgr 2 18 36.4 -23 54 5.1 |
| M23 6494 Sgr 1 17 56.8 -19 01 6.9 |
| M24 6603 Sgr B 18 16.9 -18 29 4.6 |
| M25 4725 Sgr 1 18 31.6 -19 15 6.5 |
| M26 6694 Sct 1 18 45.2 -09 24 8.0 |
| M27 6853 Vul 3 19 59.6 +22 43 7.4 |
| M28 6626 Sgr 2 18 24.5 -24 52 6.8 |
| M29 6913 Cyg 1 20 23.9 +38 32 7.1 |
| M30 7099 Cap 2 21 40.4 -23 11 7.2 |
| M31 224 And 5 00 42.7 +41 16 3.4 |
| M32 221 And 6 00 42.7 +40 52 8.1 |
| M33 598 Tri 5 01 33.9 +30 39 5.7 |
| M34 1039 Per 1 02 42.0 +42 47 5.5 |
| M35 2168 Gem 1 06 08.9 +24 20 5.3 |
| M36 1960 Aur 1 05 36.1 +34 08 6.3 |
| M37 2099 Aur 1 05 52.4 +32 33 6.2 |
| M38 1912 Aur 1 05 28.4 +35 50 7.4 |
| M39 7092 Cyg 1 21 32.2 +48 26 4.6 |
| M40 Win4 UMa C 12 22.4 +58 05 8.4 |
| M41 2287 CMa 1 06 46.0 -20 44 4.6 |
| M42 1976 Ori 4 05 35.4 -05 27 4.0 |
| M43 1982 Ori 4 05 35.6 -05 16 9.0 |
| M44 2632 Cnc 1 08 40.1 +19 59 3.7 |
| M45 0000 Tau 1 03 47.0 +24 07 1.6 |
| M46 2437 Pup 1 07 41.8 -14 49 6.0 |
| M47 2422 Pup 1 07 36.6 -14 30 5.2 |
| M48 2548 Hya 1 08 13.8 -05 48 5.5 |
| M49 4472 Vir 6 12 29.8 +08 00 8.4 |
| M50 2323 Mon 1 07 03.2 -08 20 6.3 |
| M51 5194 CVn 5 13 29.9 +47 12 8.4 |
| M52 7654 Cas 1 23 24.2 +61 35 7.3 |
| M53 5024 Com 2 13 12.9 +18 10 7.6 |
| M54 6715 Sgr 2 18 55.1 -30 29 7.6 |
| M55 6809 Sgr 2 19 40.0 -30 58 6.3 |
| M56 6779 Lyr 2 19 16.6 +30 11 8.3 |
| M57 6720 Lyr 3 18 53.6 +33 02 8.8 |
| M58 4579 Vir 5 12 37.7 +11 49 9.7 |
| M59 4621 Vir 6 12 42.0 +11 39 9.6 |
| M60 4649 Vir 6 12 43.7 +11 33 8.8 |
| M61 4303 Vir 5 12 21.9 +04 28 9.7 |
| M62 6266 Oph 2 17 01.2 -30 07 6.5 |
| M63 5055 CVn 5 13 15.8 +42 02 8.6 |
| M64 4826 Com 5 12 56.7 +21 41 8.5 |
| M65 3623 Leo 5 11 18.9 +13 05 9.3 |
| M66 3627 Leo 5 11 20.2 +12 59 8.9 |
| M67 2682 Cnc 1 08 50.4 +11 49 6.1 |
| M68 4590 Hya 2 12 39.5 -26 45 7.8 |
| M69 6637 Sgr 2 18 31.4 -32 21 7.6 |
| M70 6681 Sgr 2 18 43.2 -32 18 7.9 |
| M71 6838 Sge 2 19 53.8 +18 47 8.2 |
| M72 6981 Aqr 2 20 53.5 -12 32 9.3 |
| M73 6994 Aqr A 20 58.9 -12 38 9.0 |
| M74 628 Psc 5 01 36.7 +15 47 9.4 |
| M75 6864 Sgr 2 20 06.1 -21 55 8.5 |
| M76 650 Per 3 01 42.4 +51 34 10.1 |
| M77 1068 Cet 5 02 42.7 -00 01 8.9 |
| M78 2068 Ori 4 05 46.7 +00 03 8.3 |
| M79 1904 Lep 2 05 24.5 -24 33 7.7 |
| M80 6093 Sco 2 16 17.0 -22 59 7.3 |
| M81 3031 UMa 5 09 55.6 +69 04 6.9 |
| M82 3034 UMa 7 09 55.8 +69 41 8.4 |
| M83 5236 Hya 5 13 37.0 -29 52 7.6 |
| M84 4374 Vir 8 12 25.1 +12 53 9.1 |
| M85 4382 Com 8 12 25.4 +18 11 9.1 |
| M86 4406 Vir 8 12 26.2 +12 57 8.9 |
| M87 4486 Vir 6 12 30.8 +12 24 8.6 |
| M88 4501 Com 5 12 32.0 +14 25 9.6 |
| M89 4552 Vir 6 12 35.7 +12 33 9.8 |
| M90 4569 Vir 5 12 36.8 +13 10 9.5 |
| M91 4548 Com 5 12 35.4 +14 30 10.2 |
| M92 6341 Her 2 17 17.1 +43 08 6.4 |
| M93 2447 Pup 1 07 44.6 -23 52 6.0 |
| M94 4736 CVn 5 12 50.9 +41 07 8.2 |
| M95 3351 Leo 5 10 44.0 +11 42 9.7 |
| M96 3368 Leo 5 10 46.8 +11 49 9.2 |
| M97 3587 UMa 3 11 14.8 +55 01 9.9 |
| M98 4192 Com 5 12 13.8 +14 54 10.1 |
| M99 4254 Com 5 12 18.8 +14 25 9.9 |
| M100 4321 Com 5 12 22.9 +15 49 9.3 |
| M101 5457 UMa 5 14 03.2 +54 21 7.9 |
| M102 5866 Dra 8 15 06.5 +55 46 9.9 |
| M103 581 Cas 1 01 33.2 +60 42 7.4 |
| M104 4594 Vir 5 12 40.0 -11 37 8.0 |
| M105 3379 Leo 6 10 47.8 +12 35 9.3 |
| M106 4258 CVn 5 12 19.0 +47 18 8.4 |
| M107 6171 Oph 2 16 32.5 -13 03 7.9 |
| M108 3556 UMa 5 11 11.5 +55 40 10.0 |
| M109 3992 UMa 5 11 57.6 +53 23 9.8 |
| M110 205 And 6 00 40.4 +41 41 8.5 |
