Discovering The Universe

- Herschel 400 Catalog


 Herschel 400 Catalog   

William Herschel
William Herschel **1

Many amateur astronomers start their viewing quest with the famous Messier Catalog, but after they have worked their way through that catalog, what next?

Sky&Telescope
The Ancient City Astronomy Club of St. Augustine, Florida (ACAC) dealt with that question after reading a letter to the editor of Sky & Telescope in 1980 that suggested amateur astronomers should set their gaze upon the 2,500 targets identified in William Herschels original catalog.


The ACAC expanded their quest to include the 5,000 objects the New General Catalog (NGC). They culled the best and brightest to form their list and called it the Herschel 400.

Astronomy League

The Astronomical League has created an observing program for the Herschel 400.     It is an advanced amateur astronomer challenge with telescopes 6” and larger.

      Astronomical League Herschel 400 Observing Program
    





A list of the full catalog may be viewed here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herschel_400_Catalogue
Herschel 400 Star Chart
Herschel 400 Star Chart **4
























       ** - Photo Credits:
               1 - © National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London
               2 - www.skyandtelescope.org
               3 - www.astroleague.org
               4 - Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported