Messier was born in Badonviller in the Lorraine region of France, the tenth of twelve children of Françoise B. Grandblaise and Nicolas Messier, a Court usher. Six of his brothers and sisters died while young, and his father died in 1741. Charles' interest in astronomy was stimulated by the appearance of the great six-tailed comet in 1744 and by an annular solar eclipse visible from his hometown on 25 July 1748.
In 1751, Messier entered the employ of Joseph Nicolas Delisle, the astronomer of the French Navy, who instructed him to keep careful records of his observations. Messier's first documented observation was that of the Mercury transit of 6 May 1753, followed by his observations journals at Cluny Hotel and at the French Navy observatories.
He also co-discovered Comet C/1801 N1, a discovery shared with several other observers including Pons, Méchain, and Bouvard.[3] (Comet Pons-Messier-Méchain-Bouvard)
Near the end of his life, Messier self-published a booklet connecting the great comet of 1769 to the birth of Napoleon, who was in power at the time of publishing. According to Maik Meyer:[4]
As hard as it may seem to accept, the memoir is an ingratiation to Napoleon in order to receive attention and monetary support. It is full of servility and opportunism. Messier did not even refrain from utilizing astrology to reach his goal. Messier comes quickly to the point on the first page of the memoir, by stating that the beginning of the epoch of Napoleon the Great ... coincides with the discovery of one of the greatest comets ever observed.
The Orion Nebula as drawn by Messier, and which he gave the designation M 42 in his catalogue
Messier's occupation as a comet hunter led him to continually come across fixed diffuse objects in the night sky which could be mistaken for comets. He compiled a list of them,[5] in collaboration with his friend and assistant Pierre Méchain (who may have found at least 20 of the objects[6]), to avoid wasting time sorting them out from the comets they were looking for. The entries are now known to be 39 galaxies, 4 planetary nebulae, 7 other types of nebulae, and 55 star clusters.
Messier did his observing with a 100 mm (four-inch) refracting telescope from Hôtel de Cluny (now the Musée national du Moyen Âge), in downtown Paris, France. The list he compiled only contains objects found in the area of the sky Messier could observe, from the north celestial pole to a declination of about −35.7° . They are not organized scientifically by object type, or by location. The first version of Messier's catalogue contained 45 objects and was published in 1774 in the journal of the French Academy of Sciences in Paris. In addition to his own discoveries, this version included objects previously observed by other astronomers, with only 17 of the 45 objects being discovered by Messier himself.[7] By 1780 the catalog had increased to 80 objects.
The final version of the catalogue was published in 1781, in the 1784 issue of Connaissance des Temps.[8][9][10] The final list of Messier objects had grown to 103. On several occasions between 1921 and 1966, astronomers and historians discovered evidence of another seven objects that were observed either by Messier or by Méchain, shortly after the final version was published. These seven objects, M 104 through M 110, are accepted by astronomers as "official" Messier objects.
The objects' Messier designations, from M 1 to M 110, are still used by professional and amateur astronomers today and their relative brightness makes them popular objects in the amateur astronomical community.
LegacyEdit
Commemorative plaque in Messier's hometown of Badonviller
^Jakiel, Richard (February 2017). "The Obsessive Comet Hunter". Astronomy.
^Meyer, Maik. . Archived from the original on 16 July 2008. Retrieved 15 May 2008.
^Grego, Peter (19 October 2013). Blazing a Ghostly Trail: ISON and Great Comets of the Past and Future. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN9783319017754.
^Meyer, Maik (2007). Charles Messier, Napoleon, and Comet C/1769 P1(PDF). p. 3. (PDF) from the original on 18 October 2014.
^"The Messier Catalog". SEDS Messier Database. SEDS. 25 February 2008. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
^Knight, J.D. "Meet the Astronomers: Charles Messier". Sea and Sky. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
^Messier, Charles (1781). "Catalogue des Nébuleuses & des amas d'Étoiles". Connoissance des Temps Pour l'Année 1784 (Published 1781): 227–267. Bibcode:1781cote.rept..227M.
^"Original Messier Catalog of 1781". Messier.seds.org. Retrieved 10 November 2007.
^"Charles Messier's personal copy of his 1781 "Catalog of Nebulae and Star Clusters"". Messier.seds.org.
O'Meara, Stephen James (1998). Deep Sky Companions: The Messier Objects. Cambridge University Press.
"Charles Messier biography". Students for the Exploration and Development of Space. Retrieved 1 July 2007.
Zander, Jon. . OurDarkSkies.com. Archived from the original on 13 February 2007. Retrieved 1 July 2007.
Brake, Mark; Griffiths, Martin (Spring 2007). . Astrobiology Magazine (European ed.). Archived from the original on 27 May 2011. Retrieved 1 July 2007.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
External linksEdit
"Interactive Messier Catalog". Greenhawk Observatory.
. Archived from the original on 28 October 2005.
"Messier biography". Messier.seds.org.
"Messier marathon". Attempts to find as many Messier objects as possible in one night
. Archived from the original on 27 February 2010. Retrieved 1 July 2007. NGC/IC Project is a collaborative effort between professional and amateur astronomers to correctly identify all of the original NGC and IC objects, such that the identity of each of the NGC and IC objects is known with as much certainty as we can reasonably bring to it from the existing historical record.
"Charles Messier". a virtual exhibition by the "Paris Observatory digital library".
Charles Messier's manuscripts on Paris Observatory digital library
October 16, 2023
charles, messier, french, ʃaʁl, june, 1730, april, 1817, french, astronomer, published, astronomical, catalogue, consisting, nebulae, star, clusters, which, came, known, messier, objects, messier, purpose, catalogue, help, astronomical, observers, distinguish,. Charles Messier French ʃaʁl me sje 26 June 1730 12 April 1817 was a French astronomer He published an astronomical catalogue consisting of 110 nebulae and star clusters which came to be known as the Messier objects Messier s purpose for the catalogue was to help astronomical observers distinguish between permanent and transient visually diffuse objects in the sky Charles MessierCharles Messier c 1770Born 1730 06 26 26 June 1730Badonviller FranceDied12 April 1817 1817 04 12 aged 86 Paris FranceKnown forMessier catalogAwardsCross of the Legion of HonorScientific careerFieldsAstronomy Contents 1 Biography 2 Messier catalogue 3 Legacy 4 See also 5 Notes 6 References 7 External linksBiography EditMessier was born in Badonviller in the Lorraine region of France the tenth of twelve children of Francoise B Grandblaise and Nicolas Messier a Court usher Six of his brothers and sisters died while young and his father died in 1741 Charles interest in astronomy was stimulated by the appearance of the great six tailed comet in 1744 and by an annular solar eclipse visible from his hometown on 25 July 1748 In 1751 Messier entered the employ of Joseph Nicolas Delisle the astronomer of the French Navy who instructed him to keep careful records of his observations Messier s first documented observation was that of the Mercury transit of 6 May 1753 followed by his observations journals at Cluny Hotel and at the French Navy observatories In 1764 Messier was made a fellow of the Royal Society in 1769 he was elected a foreign member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and on 30 June 1770 he was elected to the French Academy of Sciences He was given the nickname Ferret of Comets by King Louis XV 1 Messier discovered 13 comets 2 C 1760 B1 Messier C 1763 S1 Messier C 1764 A1 Messier C 1766 E1 Messier C 1769 P1 Messier D 1770 L1 Lexell C 1771 G1 Messier C 1773 T1 Messier C 1780 U2 Messier C 1788 W1 Messier C 1793 S2 Messier C 1798 G1 Messier C 1785 A1 Messier Mechain nbsp Messier s grave in Pere LachaiseHe also co discovered Comet C 1801 N1 a discovery shared with several other observers including Pons Mechain and Bouvard 3 Comet Pons Messier Mechain Bouvard Near the end of his life Messier self published a booklet connecting the great comet of 1769 to the birth of Napoleon who was in power at the time of publishing According to Maik Meyer 4 As hard as it may seem to accept the memoir is an ingratiation to Napoleon in order to receive attention and monetary support It is full of servility and opportunism Messier did not even refrain from utilizing astrology to reach his goal Messier comes quickly to the point on the first page of the memoir by stating that the beginning of the epoch of Napoleon the Great coincides with the discovery of one of the greatest comets ever observed Messier is buried in Pere Lachaise Cemetery Paris in Section 11 The grave is faintly inscribed and is near the grave of Frederic Chopin slightly to the west and directly north and behind the small mausoleum of the horologist Abraham Louis Breguet citation needed Messier catalogue EditSee also Messier object nbsp The Orion Nebula as drawn by Messier and which he gave the designation M 42 in his catalogueMessier s occupation as a comet hunter led him to continually come across fixed diffuse objects in the night sky which could be mistaken for comets He compiled a list of them 5 in collaboration with his friend and assistant Pierre Mechain who may have found at least 20 of the objects 6 to avoid wasting time sorting them out from the comets they were looking for The entries are now known to be 39 galaxies 4 planetary nebulae 7 other types of nebulae and 55 star clusters Messier did his observing with a 100 mm four inch refracting telescope from Hotel de Cluny now the Musee national du Moyen Age in downtown Paris France The list he compiled only contains objects found in the area of the sky Messier could observe from the north celestial pole to a declination of about 35 7 They are not organized scientifically by object type or by location The first version of Messier s catalogue contained 45 objects and was published in 1774 in the journal of the French Academy of Sciences in Paris In addition to his own discoveries this version included objects previously observed by other astronomers with only 17 of the 45 objects being discovered by Messier himself 7 By 1780 the catalog had increased to 80 objects The final version of the catalogue was published in 1781 in the 1784 issue of Connaissance des Temps 8 9 10 The final list of Messier objects had grown to 103 On several occasions between 1921 and 1966 astronomers and historians discovered evidence of another seven objects that were observed either by Messier or by Mechain shortly after the final version was published These seven objects M 104 through M 110 are accepted by astronomers as official Messier objects The objects Messier designations from M 1 to M 110 are still used by professional and amateur astronomers today and their relative brightness makes them popular objects in the amateur astronomical community Legacy Edit nbsp Commemorative plaque in Messier s hometown of BadonvillerThe lunar crater Messier and the asteroid 7359 Messier were named in his honour 11 See also EditDeep sky object List of Messier objects Messier object Messier marathon Caldwell catalogueNotes Edit Jakiel Richard February 2017 The Obsessive Comet Hunter Astronomy Meyer Maik Catalog of comet discoveries Archived from the original on 16 July 2008 Retrieved 15 May 2008 Grego Peter 19 October 2013 Blazing a Ghostly Trail ISON and Great Comets of the Past and Future Springer Science amp Business Media ISBN 9783319017754 Meyer Maik 2007 Charles Messier Napoleon and Comet C 1769 P1 PDF p 3 Archived PDF from the original on 18 October 2014 The Messier Catalog SEDS Messier Database SEDS 25 February 2008 Retrieved 8 May 2010 Jones Kenneth Glyn 1991 Messier s nebulae and star clusters Practical astronomy handbook series 2nd ed Cambridge University Press p 5 ISBN 0 521 37079 5 Knight J D Meet the Astronomers Charles Messier Sea and Sky Retrieved 2 September 2014 Messier Charles 1781 Catalogue des Nebuleuses amp des amas d Etoiles Connoissance des Temps Pour l Annee 1784 Published 1781 227 267 Bibcode 1781cote rept 227M Original Messier Catalog of 1781 Messier seds org Retrieved 10 November 2007 Charles Messier s personal copy of his 1781 Catalog of Nebulae and Star Clusters Messier seds org Schmadel Lutz D International Astronomical Union 2003 Dictionary of minor planet names Berlin New York Springer Verlag pp 592 593 ISBN 978 3 540 00238 3 Retrieved 9 September 2011 References EditO Meara Stephen James 1998 Deep Sky Companions The Messier Objects Cambridge University Press Charles Messier biography Students for the Exploration and Development of Space Retrieved 1 July 2007 Zander Jon Short biography of Charles Messier and history of the Messier Object Catalog OurDarkSkies com Archived from the original on 13 February 2007 Retrieved 1 July 2007 Brake Mark Griffiths Martin Spring 2007 Life of a Comet Hunter Messier and Astrobiology Astrobiology Magazine European ed Archived from the original on 27 May 2011 Retrieved 1 July 2007 a href Template Cite magazine html title Template Cite magazine cite magazine a CS1 maint unfit URL link External links Edit Interactive Messier Catalog Greenhawk Observatory Amateur Photos of Charles Messier Objects Archived from the original on 28 October 2005 Messier biography Messier seds org Messier marathon Attempts to find as many Messier objects as possible in one night Revisions of the New General Catalog and Index Catalog Archived from the original on 27 February 2010 Retrieved 1 July 2007 NGC IC Project is a collaborative effort between professional and amateur astronomers to correctly identify all of the original NGC and IC objects such that the identity of each of the NGC and IC objects is known with as much certainty as we can reasonably bring to it from the existing historical record Clickable table of Messier objects Archived from the original on 20 October 2014 Charles Messier explains his catalog on YouTube Charles Messier a virtual exhibition by the Paris Observatory digital library Charles Messier s manuscripts on Paris Observatory digital library Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Charles Messier amp oldid 1179971180 Biography, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
