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The Messier Catalogue
 In the late 18th
century, Charles Messier compiled a catalogue of “objects to avoid” while
hunting for comets. This has been
added to and modified over the years to the point where the “official”
Messier Catalogue now has 110 entries.
When I acquired my MX716 CCD camera, I set myself the
target of imaging all of these objects.
As the seasons go round different objects in the catalogue are
visible, so I set myself a target time of a year as well. I just managed to achieve this but the
quality of some of the images weren’t great, especially the low objects and
some that were taken in a bit of a hurry (there are lots of Coma / Virgo
galaxies to get through in a limited number of clear Spring nights!)
The first images were taken using a Meade 12” LX200 with
the MX716 camera. Later ones were
taken with a Tak Sky 90 or a TEC 140 refractor with a SXV-H9 camera all mounted
on a Paramount ME (see equipment).
I’ve carried out a rolling programme of updates to the gallery,
introducing more colour images, where appropriate. I’ve also imaged all of the Caldwell objects up to C67, which
is the limit with my current horizon – See Caldwell Catalogue.
My Messier Catalogue Gallery is best viewed with screen
resolutions of 1024*768 or higher.
Enter Messier Gallery
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