ASTR_2011Introduction to Observational

Astronomy

Week - 3

Maps, Charts and Catalogues

UranometriaJohannes Bayer 1603. Naked eye stars. Bayer designation uses Greek letters and possessive form of constellation

John Flamsteed’s Celestial Atlas was published in 1725

after his death

Flamsteed used a number followed by the possessive form of the constellation. 51 Pegasi is an example

Other catalogues•Bright Star Catalogue…last published in paper form in 1982. Now only available in electronic form•Henry Draper Catalogue…final version published in 1949. Based on the work of the women of Harvard Observatory•General Catalogue of Variable Stars…first published in 1948. Now contains over 42,000 variables•Palomar Sky Survey (POSS)…completed in 1957. Photographic atlas of the sky take by the Oschin Schmidt telescope•Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory catalogue (SAO)…almost 259,000 stars

More Star Catalogues•Hubble Guide Star Catalogue…digitized version of the Palomar Sky Survey. Available online•United States Naval Observatory A2.0 catalogue…digitized combination of POSS, Science Research Council J-images and European Southern Observatory R-images•Hipparcos…astrometric data for 118,000 stars•Tycho catalogue…continuation of Hipparcos data•Sloan Digital Sky Survey…over 180 million objects•Sky Atlas 2000.0…printed sky atlas•Uranometria 2000.0…220 charts covering the entire sky

The Messier Catalogue

109 objects (110 if you count a duplicate or substitute another object for it). Probably the most popular objects among amateur astronomers

Charles Messier 1730 - 1817

The NGC and IC CataloguesNew General Catalogue compiled by J.L.E. Dreyer based on the observations of John Herschel. First published in 1888. Lists 7840 non-stellar objects. The Index Catalogue (IC) expanded the list by adding 5000 additional objects in two groups. IC I published in 1895 and IC II published in 1908

Other non-stellar cataloguesGeorge Abell also published a Galaxy Cluster catalogue in 1958. Based on examinations of the original POSS plates and done as a part of his PhD thesis. He started adding the southern sky using the UK Schmidt telescope in Australia but died before completing it. Ronald Olowin completed the southern sky in 1989, six years after Abell’s death.

Hickson’s Compact Groups of Galaxies

Published by Paul Hickson in 1982. Based mostly on examinations of the POSS images. 100 groups of galaxies

Arp’s Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies

338 unusual galaxies compiled by Halton Apr in 1966

Barnard’s Catalogue of Dark Nebulae

Published by Edward Barnard in 1919. Consists of 366 dark nebulae like the Horsehead Nebula, the Pipe Nebula and the Snake Nebula

Electronic Catalogues

IAU Archive database maintained by the Centre de Données Astronomique de Strasbourg

Image Tool

Databases

Astronomical Software•The Sky…Software Bisque•Starry Night…Imaginova•Guide…Project Pluto•Others too numerous to list. Some freeware, some payware