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Messier Catalogue Completion

47 / 110
✓ 47 photographed ○ 63 remaining
M1 Crab Nebula Crab Nebula ✓ M2 M 2 M 2 ✓ M3 M 3 Apr M4 M 4 Jun M5 M 5 May M6 Butterfly Cluster Jun M7 M 7 Jun M8 Lagoon Nebula Lagoon Nebula ✓ M9 M 9 Jun M10 M 10 Jun M11 Wild Duck Cluster Wild Duck Cluster ✓ M12 M 12 Jun M13 Hercules Globular Cluster Hercules Globular Cluster ✓ M14 M 14 Jun M15 M 15 M 15 ✓ M16 Eagle Nebula Eagle Nebula ✓ M17 Omega Nebula or Swan Nebula Omega Nebula or Swan Nebula ✓ M18 M 18 Jul M19 M 19 Jun M20 Trifid Nebula Trifid Nebula ✓ M21 M 21 Jul M22 M 22 M 22 ✓ M23 M 23 Jun M24 Sagittarius Star Cloud Jul M25 M 25 Jul M26 M 26 M 26 ✓ M27 The Dumbbell Nebula The Dumbbell Nebula ✓ M28 M 28 Jul M29 Cooling Tower Cooling Tower ✓ M30 M 30 M 30 ✓ M31 Andromeda Galaxy Andromeda Galaxy ✓ M32 M 32 M 32 ✓ M33 Triangulum Galaxy Triangulum Galaxy ✓ M34 M 34 Nov M35 M 35 Jan M36 M 36 Dec M37 M 37 Dec M38 M 38 Dec M39 M 39 M 39 ✓ M40 Winnecke 4 Winnecke 4 ✓ M41 M Jan M42 The Orion Nebula The Orion Nebula ✓ M43 De Mairan's Nebula De Mairan's Nebula ✓ M44 M Feb M45 The Pleiades The Pleiades ✓ M46 M 46 M 46 ✓ M47 M Jan M48 M Feb M49 M Apr M50 M 50 M 50 ✓ M51 Whirlpool Galaxy Whirlpool Galaxy ✓ M52 M 52 M 52 ✓ M53 M Apr M54 M Jul M55 M Jul M56 M 56 M 56 ✓ M57 Ring Nebula Ring Nebula ✓ M58 M Apr M59 M Apr M60 M Apr M61 M Apr M62 M Jun M63 M Apr M64 Black Eye Galaxy Black Eye Galaxy ✓ M65 M 65 M 65 ✓ M66 M 66 M 66 ✓ M67 M Feb M68 M Apr M69 M Jul M70 M Jul M71 M 71 M 71 ✓ M72 M 72 M 72 ✓ M73 M Aug M74 M Oct M75 M Aug M76 Little Dumbbell Nebula Little Dumbbell Nebula ✓ M77 M Nov M78 M 78 M 78 ✓ M79 M Dec M80 M Jun M81 Bode's Galaxy Bode's Galaxy ✓ M82 Cigar Galaxy Cigar Galaxy ✓ M83 M Apr M84 M Apr M85 M Apr M86 M Apr M87 M Apr M88 M Apr M89 M Apr M90 M Apr M91 M Apr M92 M 92 M 92 ✓ M93 M Jan M94 Cat's Eye Galaxy Cat's Eye Galaxy ✓ M95 M Mar M96 M Mar M97 Owl Nebula Owl Nebula ✓ M98 M Apr M99 M Apr M100 M Apr M101 Pinwheel Galaxy Pinwheel Galaxy ✓ M102 Spindle Galaxy Spindle Galaxy ✓ M103 M 103 M 103 ✓ M104 Sombrero Galaxy Sombrero Galaxy ✓ M105 M Mar M106 M Apr M107 M Jun M108 M 108 M 108 ✓ M109 M 109 M 109 ✓ M110 M 110 M 110 ✓

✨ Deep Sky Showpieces

21 / 40
✓ 21 captured ○ 19 on the wishlist

Curated collection of spectacular deep-sky targets beyond Messier — iconic nebulae, unusual galaxies, and must-image objects.

Sculptor Galaxy
Sculptor Galaxy NGC 253

One of the brightest galaxies outside the Local Group, stunning dust lanes

7.1 mag 27.5' × 6.8'
Oct
✓ Captured
Pacman Nebula
Pacman Nebula NGC 281

Emission nebula resembling Pac-Man, excellent in Hα

— mag 35'
Oct
✓ Captured
Double Cluster
Double Cluster NGC 869 & 884

Naked-eye pair of open clusters in Perseus, stunning low-power target

3.7 mag 60'
Nov
✓ Captured
NGC 891
NGC 891 NGC 891

Edge-on spiral with prominent dust lane, classic galaxy portrait

10.8 mag 13.5' × 2.5'
Nov
✓ Captured
Cocoon Nebula
Cocoon Nebula IC 5146

Star-forming region with surrounding dark nebulosity (Barnard 168)

7.2 mag 10'
Aug
✓ Captured
Cartwheel Galaxy
Cartwheel Galaxy PGC 2248

Ring galaxy formed by galactic collision — one of the most unusual objects in the sky

15.0 mag 1.1' × 0.9'
Oct
✓ Captured
Cat's Eye Nebula
Cat's Eye Nebula NGC 6543

One of the most structurally complex planetary nebulae known

8.1 mag 22"
Jun
✓ Captured
Veil Nebula
Veil Nebula NGC 6960/6992

Supernova remnant spanning 3°, stunning in OIII — Western & Eastern sections

7.0 mag 180'
Aug
✓ Captured
North America Nebula
North America Nebula NGC 7000

Giant emission nebula near Deneb, iconic shape visible in widefield

4.0 mag 120' × 100'
Aug
✓ Captured
Saturn Nebula
Saturn Nebula NGC 7009

Planetary nebula with ansae (projections) resembling Saturn's rings

8.0 mag 36"
Aug
✓ Captured
Helix Nebula
Helix Nebula NGC 7293

Closest large planetary nebula — the 'Eye of God'

7.6 mag 25'
Sep
✓ Captured
Deer Lick Group
Deer Lick Group NGC 7331

Milky Way analogue with companion galaxies, gateway to Stephan's Quintet

10.4 mag 10.5' × 3.7'
Sep
✓ Captured
Stephan's Quintet
Stephan's Quintet NGC 7317-20

Famous compact galaxy group — first compact galaxy group ever discovered

13.6 mag 3.5'
Sep
✓ Captured
Running Man Nebula
Running Man Nebula NGC 1973/75/77

Reflection nebula adjacent to the Orion Nebula, often imaged together

— mag 40' × 25'
Dec
✓ Captured
Flame Nebula
Flame Nebula NGC 2024

Emission nebula next to Alnitak in Orion's Belt

— mag 30'
Dec
✓ Captured
Eskimo Nebula
Eskimo Nebula NGC 2392

Planetary nebula with double-shell structure, bright and detailed

9.2 mag 48"
Jan
✓ Captured
NGC 2403
NGC 2403 NGC 2403

Intermediate spiral in M81 Group, bright HII regions

8.9 mag 21.9' × 12.3'
Jan
✓ Captured
Splinter Galaxy
Splinter Galaxy NGC 5907

Edge-on spiral with faint stellar stream — the 'Knife Edge Galaxy'

11.1 mag 12.6' × 1.4'
May
✓ Captured
NGC 7463 Group
NGC 7463 Group NGC 7463/64/65

Interacting galaxy triplet, tidal distortions visible

13.2 mag 2' × 0.6'
Sep
✓ Captured
NGC 2023
NGC 2023 NGC 2023

Reflection nebula near the Horsehead, one of the brightest in the sky

— mag 10'
Dec
✓ Captured
Horsehead Nebula
Horsehead Nebula Barnard 33 / IC 434

The most iconic dark nebula in astrophotography — silhouetted against IC 434

— mag 8' × 6'
Dec
✓ Captured
💫
Heart Nebula IC 1805

Large emission nebula in Cassiopeia, spectacular in narrowband

6.5 mag 150' × 150'
Nov
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Soul Nebula IC 1848

Companion to the Heart Nebula, often imaged as a pair

6.5 mag 150' × 75'
Nov
☆ Wishlist
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Rosette Nebula NGC 2237

Massive star-forming region in Monoceros, spectacular flower shape

9.0 mag 80' × 60'
Jan
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Cone Nebula NGC 2264

Dark nebula + Christmas Tree Cluster, dramatic widefield subject

3.9 mag 20'
Jan
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Elephant Trunk Nebula IC 1396A

Dark globule within a large emission region, stunning narrowband target

— mag 20' × 15'
Aug
☆ Wishlist
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Iris Nebula NGC 7023

Beautiful blue reflection nebula surrounded by dark dust

6.8 mag 18'
Aug
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Thor's Helmet NGC 2359

Wolf-Rayet bubble nebula with dramatic winged shape

— mag 22'
Jan
☆ Wishlist
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Crescent Nebula NGC 6888

Wolf-Rayet emission nebula in Cygnus, excellent OIII target

— mag 25' × 18'
Aug
☆ Wishlist
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Bubble Nebula NGC 7635

Stellar wind bubble from a massive star, Hubble-famous subject

— mag 15' × 8'
Sep
☆ Wishlist
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Pelican Nebula IC 5070

Adjacent to the North America Nebula, rich emission region with dark lanes

— mag 60' × 50'
Aug
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Cave Nebula Sh2-155

Diffuse nebula in Cepheus with emission, reflection and dark components

— mag 50' × 30'
Sep
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🌀
Antennae Galaxies NGC 4038/4039

Colliding galaxies with dramatic tidal tails — cosmological icon

10.7 mag 5.2' × 3.1'
Apr
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🌀
NGC 6822 (Barnard's Galaxy) NGC 6822

Nearby irregular galaxy in the Local Group, high surface brightness

9.3 mag 15.5' × 13.5'
Jul
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Medusa Nebula Abell 21

Ancient planetary nebula with filamentary structure, challenging but rewarding

— mag 10'
Jan
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Flaming Star Nebula IC 405

Emission/reflection nebula surrounding the runaway star AE Aurigae

6.0 mag 30' × 19'
Dec
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Witch Head Nebula IC 2118

Faint reflection nebula near Rigel in Eridanus, eerie profile

— mag 180' × 60'
Dec
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NGC 1333 NGC 1333

Active star-forming region in Perseus molecular cloud, Herbig-Haro objects

— mag 6'
Nov
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California Nebula NGC 1499

Giant emission nebula in Perseus — shape echoes the US state, stunning Hα target

6.0 mag 145' × 40'
Dec
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🌀
Tadpole Galaxy Arp 188 / UGC 10214

Disrupted barred spiral with a dramatic 280,000 ly tidal tail

14.4 mag 3.6' × 0.8'
Jun
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