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Object Year Discoverer/Notes
M1 1731 Bevis; Messier 1758 Aug 21 M2 1746 Sep 11 Maraldi; Messier 1760 Sep 11, Bode (#70) 1775 Sep 22 M3 1764 May 3 Messier M4 1745-46 de Chéseaux No. 19; Lac I.9 1752 Apr 13 M5 1702 May 5 Kirch, Messier May 23, 1764 M6 <1654 Hodierna II.4, de Chéseaux No. 1, 1745-46, Lacaille III.12, 1752 Jun 16 M7 138 AD Ptolemy, Halley No. 29 1678, Lac II.14 1752 Jun 15 M8 <1654 Hodierna II.6, Flamsteed 1680 (No. 2446), De Cheseaux No. 8 1745-46; Le Gentil 1749, Lacaille III.13, 1752 Apr 6; Messier 1764 May 23 M9 1764 May 28 Messier M10 1764 May 29 Messier, Bode (# 33) 1774 Aug 14 M11 1681 Kirch; resolved by Derham 1733 M12 1764 May 30 Messier, Bode (# 32) 1774 Aug 14 M13 1714 Halley M14 1764 Jun 1 Messier M15 1746 Sep 7 Maraldi; Messier 1764 Jun 3, Bode (#71) 1774 Sep 23 M16 (cluster) 1745-46 de Chéseaux No. 4; nebula: Messier 1764 Jun 3 M17 1745-46 de Chéseaux No. 20; Messier 1764 Jun 3 M18 1764 Jun 3 Messier M19 1764 Jun 5 Messier M20 1764 Jun 5 Messier M21 1764 Jun 5 Messier M22 1665 Aug 26 Ihle (Hevelius may have seen it before) M23 1764 Jun 20 Messier M24 1764 Jun 20 Messier (may be not counted, because starcloud) M25 1745-46 de Chéseaux No. 5; Messier 1764 Jun 20 M26 1764 Jun 20 Messier M27 1764 Jul 12 Messier M28 1764 Jul 27 Messier M29 1764 Jul 29 Messier, Bode (#69) 1774 Dec 5 M30 1764 Aug 3 Messier M31 < 905 AD Al Sufi; S. Marius 1612 Dec 15 telescopic M32 1749 Oct 29 Le Gentil; Messier 1757 and 1764 Aug 3 M33 <1654 Hodierna IV.4 (?), Messier 1764 Aug 25, Bode (#5) 1775 Aug 18 M34 <1654 Hodierna IV.12 (?), Messier 1764 Aug 25, Bode (#7) 1774 Sep 2 M35 1745-46 de Chéseaux No. 12; in Bevis' Atlas 1750; Messier 1764 Aug 30 M36 <1654 Hodierna II.7, Le Gentil 1749 M37 <1654 Hodierna II.7, Messier 1764 Sep 2, Bode (#13) 1774 Nov 2 M38 <1654 Hodierna II.7, Le Gentil 1749 M39 1764 Oct 24 Messier, Bode (#75) 1774 Oct 27; Burnham: Le Gentil 1750 ? Aristotle 325 BC ? M40 1764 Oct 24 Messier (Double star, thus may not be counted) M41 <1654 Hodierna IV.2, Flamsteed 1702 Feb 16; perhaps seen by Aristotle 325 BC. M42 1610 Peiresc; Cysatus 1611; Hodierna <1654; Huygens 1656 M43 1731 de Mairan; Bode (with M42=# 10) late 1775 M44 Praesepe 300-250 BC Aratus/Theophrastus; Hipparchos 130 BC. Recognized as cluster by Galileo 1609. M45 Pleiades pre-hist (mentioned by Homer c. 750 B.C., Amos c. 750 B.C., Hesiod c. 720-700 BC, Book of Job c. 1,600-300 B.C., MUL-APIN c. 1,100-300 B.C., Nebra disk 1,600 c. B.C.) M46 1771 Feb 19 Messier M47 <1654 Hodierna IV.1, Messier 1771 Feb 19 (but missed) W. Herschel H VIII.38 1785 Feb 4 M48 1771 Feb 19 Messier (but missed); Bode <1782; Caroline Herschel 1783 M49 1771 Feb 19 Messier M50 1772 Apr 5 Messier; perhaps seen by G.D. Cassini 1711, Bode (#16) 1774 Dec 2 M51 1773 Oct 13 Messier (NGC 5194 only; 5195 seen by Méchain 1781), Bode (#25) 1774 Jan 5 M52 1774 Sep 7 Messier M53 1775 Feb 3 Bode (#26), Messier 1777 Feb 26 M54 1778 Jul 24 Messier M55 1752 Jun 16 Lacaille I.14, Messier 1778 Jul 24 M56 1779 Jan 19 Messier M57 1779 Jan Darquier, Messier 1779 Jan 31 M58 1779 Apr 15 Messier M59 1779 Apr 11 Koehler, Messier 1779 Apr 15 M60 1779 Apr 11 Koehler, Oriani 1779 Apr 12, Messier 1779 Apr 15 M61 1779 May 5 Oriani, Messier 1779 May 11 (saw it May 5!) M62 1771 Jun 7 Messier (measured 1779 Jun 4) M63 1779 Jun 14 Méchain M64 1779 Mar 23 Pigott, Bode (#77) 1779 Apr 4, Messier 1780 Mar 1 M65 1780 Mar 1 Messier M66 1780 Mar 1 Messier M67 <1779 Koehler (#19), Messier 1780 Apr 6 M68 1780 Apr 9 Messier M69 1780 Aug 31 Messier; probably not Lac I.11 (1751-52) M70 1780 Aug 31 Messier M71 1745-46 de Chéseaux No. 13; Koehler 1772-8; Méchain 1780 Jun 28 M72 1780 Aug 30 Méchain, Messier 1780 Oct 4 M73 1780 Oct 4 Messier (may not be counted, 4 stars) M74 1780 Sep end Méchain, Messier 1780 Oct 18 M75 1780 Aug 27 Méchain, Messier 1780 Oct 5 M76 1780 Sep 5 Méchain, Messier 1780 Oct 21 M77 1780 Oct 29 Méchain, Messier 1780 Dec 17 M78 1780 "begin" Méchain M79 1780 Oct 26 Méchain, Messier 1780 Dec 17 M80 1781 Jan 4 Messier, Méchain 1781 Jan 27 M81 1774 Dec 31 Bode (#17), Koehler (# 8A) 1772-78, Méchain 1779 Aug M82 1774 Dec 31 Bode (#18), Koehler (# 8B) 1772-78, Méchain 1779 Aug M83 1752 Feb 23 Lacaille I.6, Messier 1781 Mar 18 M84 1781 Mar 18 Messier M85 1781 Mar 4 Méchain, Messier 1781 Mar 18 M86 1781 Mar 18 Messier M87 1781 Mar 18 Messier M88 1781 Mar 18 Messier M89 1781 Mar 18 Messier M90 1781 Mar 18 Messier M91 1781 Mar 18 Messier, but missed, W Herschel H II.120 1784 Apr 8 M92 1777 Dec 27 Bode (#76), Messier 1781 Mar 18 M93 1781 Mar 20 Messier M94 1781 Mar 22 Méchain, Messier 1781 Mar 24 M95 1781 Mar 20 Méchain, Messier 1781 Mar 24 M96 1781 Mar 20 Méchain, Messier 1781 Mar 24 M97 1781 Feb 16 Méchain, Messier 1781 Mar 24 M98 1781 Mar 15 Méchain, Messier 1781 Apr 13 M99 1781 Mar 15 Méchain, Messier 1781 Apr 13 M100 1781 Mar 15 Méchain, Messier 1781 Apr 13 M101 1781 Mar 27 Méchain (Messier 1781) M102 (NGC 5866) 1781 Mar-Apr Méchain? (disclaimed), Messier? 1781 (position), W Herschel H I.215 1788 May 5 missed and still dubious: may be duplication of M101, or NGC 5866. M103 1781 Mar-Apr Méchain (Messier 1781 added position) M104 1781 May 11 Méchain (added 1921 Flammarion) W Herschel H I.43 1784 May 9 M105 1781 Mar 24 Méchain (added 1947 H.S. Hogg) W Herschel H I.17 1784 Mar 11 M106 1781 Jul Méchain (added 1947 H.S. Hogg) W Herschel H V.43 1788 Mar 9 M107 1782 Apr Méchain (added 1947 H.S. Hogg) W Herschel H VI.40 1793 May 12 M108 1781 Feb 19 Méchain, Messier 1781 Mar 24 (added 1953 O. Gingerich) W Herschel H V.46 1789 Apr 17 M109 1781 Mar 12 Méchain, Messier 1781 Mar 24 (added 1953 O. Gingerich); W Herschel H IV.61 1789 Apr 12 M110 1773 Aug 10 Messier (not measured; added 1966 Glyn Jones), Caroline Herschel H V.18 1783 Aug 27
Last Modification: October 18, 2007