These men were the first to find Planetary Nebulae

[glenc (Glen)]

These 14 men were the first to find Planetary Nebulae, PN
Most PN are difficult objects to find and observe because they are small.

Charles Messier discovered the Dumbbell Nebula M27 in 1764 and the Ring Nebula M57 in 1779
Messier’s friend Pierre Mechain discovered M76 in 1780 and M97 in 1781 with a 3” refractor
William Herschel discovered an impressive 33 PN between 1782 and 1794 mostly with an 18.5” reflector. The brightest ones, in discovery order, were NGCs 7009, 7662, 3242, 6543 and 6826

Karl Ludwig Harding discovered the large Helix PN, NGC 7293 in 1823 with an 8.5” reflector
William’s son John Herschel discovered one PN in 1825 and 17 more from Cape Town between 1834 and 1837 with his father’s 18.5” aperture speculum reflector. The brightest ones, in discovery order, were NGCs 2867, 3918, 5882 and 3132.
Wilhelm Struve was looking for double stars when he discovered NGCs 6210 and 6572 in 1825 with a 9.6” refractor

James Dunlop discovered four southern PN in 1826, NGCs 2818, 5189, 6326 and 6563 from Parramatta, NSW with a 9” aperture speculum reflector
Lewis Swift discovered NGC 1360 in 1859 with a 4.5” refractor
Albert Marth discovered four faint PN with a large 48” reflector in 1863 and 1864 from Malta
Edouard Stephan discovered NGC 7048 in 1866 and NGC 7027 in 1878, with a 31” reflector

Truman Safford discovered IC 1295 in 1867
Sherbourne Burnham discovered NGC 7026 in 1873 with a 6” refractor
Wilhelm Tempel discovered NGC 6309 in 1876 and
Edward E Barnard discovered the bright PN NGC 6302 in 1880 with a 5” refractor

Honorable mention
Walter Gale discovered IC 5148/5150 in 1894 from Sydney, NSW with an 8.5” refractor
William Herschel and John Herschel found the most NGC PN

Refr http://www.klima-luft.de/steinicke/ngcic/obs_e.htm

[EpickCrom (Joe)]

Originally Posted by glenc

These 14 men were the first to find Planetary Nebulae, PN
Most PN are difficult objects to find and observe because they are small.

Charles Messier discovered the Dumbbell Nebula M27 in 1764 and the Ring Nebula M57 in 1779
Messier’s friend Pierre Mechain discovered M76 in 1780 and M97 in 1781 with a 3” refractor
William Herschel discovered an impressive 33 PN between 1782 and 1794 mostly with an 18.5” reflector. The brightest ones, in discovery order, were NGCs 7009, 7662, 3242, 6543 and 6826

Karl Ludwig Harding discovered the large Helix PN, NGC 7293 in 1823 with an 8.5” reflector
William’s son John Herschel discovered one PN in 1825 and 17 more from Cape Town between 1834 and 1837 with his father’s 18.5” aperture speculum reflector. The brightest ones, in discovery order, were NGCs 2867, 3918, 5882 and 3132.
Wilhelm Struve was looking for double stars when he discovered NGCs 6210 and 6572 in 1825 with a 9.6” refractor

James Dunlop discovered four southern PN in 1826, NGCs 2818, 5189, 6326 and 6563 from Parramatta, NSW with a 9” aperture speculum reflector
Lewis Swift discovered NGC 1360 in 1859 with a 4.5” refractor
Albert Marth discovered four faint PN with a large 48” reflector in 1863 and 1864 from Malta
Edouard Stephan discovered NGC 7048 in 1866 and NGC 7027 in 1878, with a 31” reflector

Truman Safford discovered IC 1295 in 1867
Sherbourne Burnham discovered NGC 7026 in 1873 with a 6” refractor
Wilhelm Tempel discovered NGC 6309 in 1876 and
Edward E Barnard discovered the bright PN NGC 6302 in 1880 with a 5” refractor

Honorable mention
Walter Gale discovered IC 5148/5150 in 1894 from Sydney, NSW with an 8.5” refractor
William Herschel and John Herschel found the most NGC PN

Refr http://www.klima-luft.de/steinicke/ngcic/obs_e.htm

Hi Glen, a very interesting read, thanks for sharing with us.

Indeed planetary nebulae can be devilishly hard to find, particularly the tiny faint ones! I searched unsuccessfully last night for over an hour for Minkowski 1-27 in Scorpius with my 10 inch dob. Still a lot of fun though, wishing you clear skies

[glenc (Glen)]

Thanks Joe
I like looking for NGC & IC PN with my 10" Dob, no goto.

[Pierre_C]

Thanks for sharing your list, Glen.

It is interesting to see what people with a keen interest in astronomy can achieve.

I am amazed that someone with a 3" refractor could discover a planetary nebula. I guess they had much darker skies back then. Sometimes I wonder if I am just imagining the nebulosity when using my 4" refractor from middle suburbia.