Deep Sky Astronomers

Discoverers of Deep Sky Objects

Homer (c. 800-700 BC)
Hesiod (c. 740-670 BC)
Aristotle (384-322 BC)
Aratos (310-245 BC)
Hipparchus (c. 190-120 BC)
Ptolemy (c. 85-165 AD)
Al Sufi (903-986 AD)
Ulugh Begh (1394-1449)
Vespucci, Amerigo (1451-1512)
Martyr, Peter (1457-1526)
Yanez Pinzon, Vicente (1463-1514)
Magellan, Fernando de (1480-1521)
Brahe, Tycho (1546-1601)
Bayer, Johann (1572-1625)
Galilei, Galileo (1564-1642)
Peiresc, Nicholas-Claude Fabri de (1580-1637)
Cysatus, Johann Baptist (1588-1657)
Marius, Simon (1570-1624)
Huygens, Christiaan (1629-95)
Hodierna, Giovanni Battista (1597-1660)
Bullialdus, Ismail (1605-94)
Hevelius, Johan [Jan] (1611-87)
Ihle, Johann Abraham (1627-99?)
Picard, Abbe Jean (1620-82)
Halley, Edmond (1656-1742)
Flamsteed, John (1646-1719)
Kirch, Gottfried (1639-1710)
Cassini, Giovanni Domenico (Cassini I; 1625-1712)
De Mairan, Jean-Jacques Dortous (1678-1771)
Bevis, John (1695-1771)
Derham, William (1657-1735)
De Chéseaux, Philippe Loys (1718-51)
Maraldi, Jean-Dominique (Maraldi II; 1709-88)
Le Gentil de la Galaziere, Guillaume-Joseph-Hyacinthe-Jean-Baptiste (1725-92)
Lacaille, Abbe Nicholas Louis de (1713-62)
Messier, Charles (1730-1817)
Koehler, Johann Gottfried (1745-1801)
Bode, Johann Elert (1747-1826)
Darquier de Pellepoix, Antoine (1718-1802)
Pigott, Edward (1753-1825)
Oriani, Barnabus (1752-1832)
Méchain, Pierre (1744-1804)
Herschel, Caroline (1750-1848)
Herschel, William (1738-1822) 
Harding, Karl Ludwig (1765-1834)
Cacciatore, Nicolò (1780-1841)
Struve, Friedrich Georg Wilhelm (1793-1864)
Dunlop, James (1793-1848)
Herschel, John (1792-1871)

Persons important for the Messier Catalog

Flammarion, Camille (1842-1925)  -  added M104
Thomas, Oswald (1882-1963)  -  identified M48
Sawyer Hogg, Helen (1905-1993)  -  added M105, M106, M107
Morris, T.F. - identified M47, M48
Gingerich, Owen (b. 1930) -  added M108, M109
Jones, Kenneth Glyn (1915-1995)  -  added M110
Williams, William C.  -  identified M91

Mallas, John (-1975) - identified M40
Kreimer, Evered

Winnecke, A. (1835-97) - found various deepsky objects and double stars including M40

Comet Discoverers and Hunters

Palitzsch (1723-1788)
Messier
Klinkenberg (1709-1799)
Helfenzrieder (1724-1803)
Montaigne (1716-1785?)
Bode
Méchain
Herschel, Caroline
Gregory, Edward

Other persons important in Messier's life

Maskelyne, Nevil (1723-1811)
Delisle, Joseph Nicholas (1688-1768)
Lalande, Joseph-Jerome le Francais de (1732-1807)
Lexell, Anders (1740-84)
Pingre, Alexandre-Guy (1711-96)
Saron, Jean-Baptiste-Gaspard (Bochart) de (1730-94)
D'Angos, Chevalier Jean Auguste (1744-1833)

Astronomers important for deep sky astronomy

Barnard, Edward Emerson (1857-1923)
Bessel, Friedrich Wilhelm (1784-1846)
Bond, William Cranch (1789-1859)
Bond, George Phillips (1826-65)
Cassini II, Jacques (1677-1756)
Cassini III, César François (1714-1784)
Cassini IV, Jean DDominique (1748-1825)
D'Arrest, Heinrich Ludwig (1822-1875)
Draper, Henry (1837-1882)
Dreyer, John Louis Emil (1852-1926)
Fortin, Jean Nicolas (1750-1831)
Gore, John Ellard (1845-1910)
Hahn, Friedrich von (1742-1805)
Hartwig, Ernst (1851-1923)
Huggins, William (1824-1910)
Lassell, William (1799-1880)
Maraldi I, Jacques Philippe (1665-1729)
Maupertuis, Pierre Louis Moreau de (1698-1759)
Michell, John (1724-1793)
Piazzi, Giuseppe (1746-1826)
Roberts, Isaac (1829-1904)
Rosse, William Parsons, 3rd Earl of (1800-1867)
Smyth, William Henry (1788-1865)
Spitzer, Jr., Lyman (1914-1997)
Tempel, Ernst Wilhelm Leberecht (1821-1889)
Webb, Thomas William (1807-1885)
Zach, Francis Xavier, Baron de (1754-1832)

Slipher, Vesto Melvin (1875-1969)
Curtis, Heber Doust (1872-1942)
Shapley, Harlow (1885-1972)
Hubble, Edwin Powell (1889-1953)
Trumpler, Robert Julius (1886-1956)
Seyfert, Carl Keenan (1911-60)

Alphabetic Index

Al Sufi
Aratos
Aristotle

Barnard
Bayer
Bessel
Bevis
Bode
Bond, G.P.
Bond, W.C.
Brahe, Tycho
Bullialdus

Cacciatore
Cassini, G.D. (I)
Cassini, J. (II)
Cassini, C.F. (III)
Cassini, J.D. (IV)
Curtis
Cysatus

D'Angos
Darquier
D'Arrest
De Chéseaux
Delisle
De Mairan
Derham
Draper
Dreyer
Dunlop

Flammarion
Flamsteed
Fortin

Galileo
Gingerich
Gore
Gregory

Hahn
Halley
Harding
Hartwig
Helfenzrieder
Herschel, C.
Herschel, J.
Herschel, W.
Hesiod
Hevelius
Hipparchus
Hodierna
Hogg, H.S.
Homer
Hubble
Huggins
Huygens

Ihle

Jones, K.G.

Kirch
Klinkenberg
Koehler
Kreimer

Lacaille
Lalande
Lassell
Le Gentil
Lexell

Magellan
Mallas
Maraldi, G.F. (I)
Maraldi, J.D. (II)
Marius
Martyr
Maskelyne
Maupertuis
Méchain
Messier
Michell
Montaigne
Morris

Oriani

Palitzsch
Peiresc
Piazzi
Picard
Pigott
Pingre
Ptolemy

Roberts
Rosse

Saron
Seyfert
Shapley
Slipher
Smyth
Spitzer
Struve

Tempel
Thomas
Trumpler

Ulugh Begh

Vespucci

Webb
Williams
Winnecke

Yanez Pinzon

Zach

Links

• List of NGC/IC observers and related persons, by Wolfgang Steinicke
• Info on historic Deepsky Observers, by Yann Pothier
• History of Astronomy: Persons, Short biographies and links of astronomers, W.R. Dick

• Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature, IAU and USGS/Nasa
• Minor Planet Names (Alphabetical List) - Discovery Circumstances, IAU and MPC/Harvard - Small Bodies Cross-Identification

Last Modification: September 13, 2007