Charles Messier discovered M66 = NGC 3627 = h857 = h875, along with M65, on 1 Mar 1780. On 12 Apr 1784, William Herschel recorded "vB, mE, iF. The extension is chiefly in the direction of the meridian, and the greatest brightness near the middle. John Herschel made 4 observations, once claiming it as a new (h875), with his RA 3 minutes too large. On sweep 22 he logged "vB; vL; sbM; 3' l, 2' br; E 60° np to sf in direction of 2 stars 10m, preceding."

George Stoney sketched the galaxy with Lord Rosse's 72" on 17 Apr 1849 (Plate XXVII, fig. 16 in the 1861 publication). Features included a well defined spiral arm along the western side and arcs within the main body that correspond with brighter sections of spiral arms. The 31 Mar 1848 observation by Rosse or assistant Rambaut mentions "a little above towards the right [nf] is a dark streak; spiral, resolved well about the Nucl, but no other part. From the right, and apparently springing from the nucleus, a vF portion of nebulosity extends for nearly 15', gradually melting away." A schematic in the 1880 publication shows the beginning of two arms on the eastern side and a long, thick arm on the western side.

William Lassell also sketched M66 using his 48-inch from Malta on 21 Apr 1862, though misidentified it as M65. The galaxy was drawn as more irregular than spiral, though the primary arm on the west side is clearly sketched, along with a dark gap between it and the core. Also a loop was sketched on the north side corresponding with part of the eastern arm as well as a continuation of the western arm as it curls towards the core.

300/350mm - 13.1" (4/24/82): bright elongated core, stellar nucleus. A diffuse spiral arm extends south and a second short arm extends to the east. A dark patch is visible just east of the nucleus.

400/500mm - 17.5" (1/31/87): very bright, large, elongated N-S, 5'x3', bright elongated core contains a stellar nucleus. Two spiral arms are visible although the western arm is more prominent.

900/1200mm - 48" (4/13/10): this showpiece galaxy stretches 7'x3' N-S. The central region is dominated by a prominent, 3'x1.2' central bar that is elongated NNW-SSE. The central region has a mottled, irregular surface brightness and increases gradually towards the center and then suddenly to a very bright, stellar nucleus. A very faint star or HII knot was seen at the very north tip of the bar [confirmed as #44 in Hodge's "Second Survey of HII regions in Galaxies", ApJS, 27, 113 (1974)]. The longer, better defined arm is attached at the north end and sweeps directly south along the western flank of the galaxy for a total length of ~5'. The western edge of this arm is very well defined as it fades to the southern tip, though the inner edge merges with the glow within the central region. The arm and bar are brightest where they join at the north end of the central region. The second spiral arm is attached at the south end of the bar and shoots north on the eastern side of the galaxy. This arm fades after a shorter distance, so is not as prominent, but is brightest at the root where it emerges from the bar. A mag 9.8 star lies 3' NW of center at the outer edge of the halo.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 2903 = H I-56 = h604.I on 16 Nov 1784 (sweep 318) and recorded "cB, cL, a small bright spot in the middle; at first sight appears very much elongated, but by careful attention it appears to consist of two; the nf of which less bright than the sp, though nearly of the same size and shape with the former, it has also a brightish spot in the middle but not nearly so brilliant as the other; dist of the center about a minute." John Herschel recorded on sweep 244, "I. 56 is vB; E; gbM; r[esolvable]. Long attentions shows a vF, L, R, neb attached n f." NGC 2905 = h604.II is the "neb attached n f" and refers to the northeast spiral arm (or a brighter region in the spiral arm).

Lord Rosse first observed this galaxy on 24 Mar 1846 and noted "a tendency to an annular or spiral arrangement discovered." He commented the night was bad, though. NGC 2903 was probably the second galaxy (after M51) in which spiral structure was noted. On 9 Mar 1848 Romney Robinson, director of Armagh Observatory and a regular observer at Birr Castle, commented "Night excellent, a spiral seen in an oblique direction, resolved well, particularly towards the vB centre." LdR was a bit more conservative in his assessment of spiral structure and didn't include this galaxy in his table of 16 spirals in the 1850 Philosophical Transactions paper, though a published sketch from 5 Mar 1848 shows multiple spiral arms with a knot embedded NGC 2905). Dreyer later commented, "the engraving does not agree with the numerous sketches taken later..."

William Lassell published three different sketches of NGC 2903 made in 1862 with his 48-inch on Malta. (plate II, Fig. 12). They all showed a "wavy" or curved body with "hooks" at the ends of the spiral arms.

200/250mm - 8" bright, large, elongated, bright mottled core.

300/350mm - 13.1" (12/22/84): very bright, elongated bright core. Contains a very faint knot at the north end = NGC 2905.

400/500mm - 17.5" (1/31/87): this is one of the brightest non-Messier galaxies. Very bright and large, elongated 5:2 SSW-NNE, 10'x4'. A very faint knot is involved on the NNE side 1.2' from center = NGC 2905. An extremely faint knot is also symmetrically placed opposite the core on the SW end 1.2' from center. The galaxy has a dusty, mottled appearance with knots and arcs easily visible with averted vision.

17.5" (3/23/85): a second knotty region is definitely visible on the SW edge. Lord Rosse mentions these two knots as "thickened regions".

600/800mm - 24" (2/22/14): excellent view at 200x and 375x. This beautiful barred spiral is sharply concentrated with an extremely bright, mottled core. A prominent central bar runs along the major axis, extending ~2'x0.4' SSW-NNE. The central bar is the brightest portion of an more oval, brighter central region, ~2.0'x1.0'. Just beyond the northeast end of the central bar is a bright, irregular "knot" (NGC 2905) where the northern spiral arm attaches. This arm bends sharply to the west (clockwise), but only curves for ~1' and quickly fades, as if it was angled towards us. A prominent arm (more cleanly separated from the central region) is attached at the south-southwest end of the bar where there is another brighter, irregular "knot". The southern arm bends east and then north, paralleling the orientation of the bar and extending as far north as the core, perhaps just beyond a mag 13.7 star 2' ESE of center. A darker dust lane separates this arm from the central region.

900/1200mm - 48" (4/18/15): this superb spiral was observed at 375x. Several luminous patches were visible along the central bar, which trends SSW-NNE, including a patch (NGC 2905) at the northeast end near the beginning of the western spiral arm. Another patch is at the south end of the core with a third near the southern end of the bar where the outer eastern arm emanates. The outer western arm extends south for a length of ~4', just beyond the southern edge of the main body. The outer eastern arm emerges from the south end of the galaxy, curls east and shoots north. Although the surface brightness becomes quite low, the arm extends well beyond the main body for a total length of ~7'! At the northern end is a low surface brightness larger patch about 5.5' NE of center. The tips of the spiral arms are over 9' apart.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

Pierre Méchain discovered M96 = NGC 3368 = h749 on 20 Mar 1781. Four nights later it was confirmed by Messier. William Herschel observed M96 on 11 Mar 1784 (sweep 164) and recorded "A fine, bright nebula, much like the former [M95], but the brightest part in the middle is more joined to the nebulosity than in the former, and the bright part is rather longer, though not quite so vivid as in the former. It may still be called cometic, though it begins to depart a little from that kind."

Johnstone Stoney, LdR's assistant, noted "Is, I think, certainly a spiral." (3 Mar 1850). A year later, Bindon Stoney added "vBM, perhaps shaped like an S reversed." A sketch clearly shows a spiral arm curving counterclockwise on the east side towards the south. It also shows a darker strip just west of the central region between the western arm. M96 was included in the list of "Spiral or curvilinear" nebulae in LdR's 1850 PT paper.

200/250mm - 8" (3/28/81): bright, fairly large, slightly elongated.

300/350mm - 13.1" (2/25/84): very bright, small bright nucleus.

400/500mm - 17.5" (2/28/87): very bright, fairly large, elongated NW-SE, 5'x3.5', small bright core, stellar nucleus. Brightest in the Leo group (M96 Group) with M95 40' WSW and M105/NGC 3384 ~50' NNE.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

Pierre Méchain discovered M105 = H I-17 = h757 on 24 Mar 1781, four days after he discovered M95 and M96. It was discovered after Messier's final catalogue was sent to publication (in the 1784 Connaissance des temps) but was included in a letter dated 6 May 1783 to Johann Bernoulli, the editor of the Berliner Astronomisches Jahrbuch and published in the 1786 Jarbuch volume. Méchain wrote, "Mr. Messier reports in the Connoissance des temps 1784, p. 264 & 265 two nebulous stars, which I have discovered in the Leo M95 and M96]; I find nothing to change for my positions which I have established by comparing these nebulae to Regulus; but there is also a third one to the north; it is a bit more beautiful [brighter] than the 2 others; I have discovered it on March 24, 1781, 4 or 5 days after the other two. On April 10, I compared it to Gamma Leonis & I have concluded the right ascension 159d 3' 45"; the declination 13d 43' 58" north."

William Herschel independently found M105 on 11 Mar 1784 (sweep 164) and recorded "Three nebula in the field together [with NGC 3384 and 3389]. The two preceding ones [M105 and NGC 3384] cometic and much like the two former bright ones M95 and M96], but considerably less." John Herschel's earliest observation was on 10 Apr 1825 (sweep 2). The NGC position is accurate (measured by Auwers and d'Arrest).

200/250mm - 8" (3/28/81): fairly bright, round.

300/350mm - 13.1" (2/25/84): bright, very small bright core, slightly elongated. First of three bright galaxies in the field with NGC 3384 7.3' NW and NGC 3389 9.7' ESE.

600/800mm - 24" (4/20/14): very bright, large, slightly elongated ~SW-NE, ~3.0'x2.5'. Sharply concentrated with a large, brilliant core containing to an intense nucleus, which increases towards the center. First in a prominent trio with NGC 3384 7.3' NW and NGC 3389 9.8' ESE. M105 is a member of the M96 or Leo I Group (LGG 217), along with NGC 3384.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

Charles Messier discovered M65 = NGC 3623 = h854, along with M66, on 1 Mar 1780. William Herschel first observed it on 31 May 1783 with his 12-inch and noted "almost a certainty of its being stars. There is however in both the nebulas [65 and 66] a certain whitishness left which may be nebulosity." With his 20-ft scope (18.7-inch), he recorded "a very brilliant nebula extended in the meridian, about 12' long. It has a bright nucleus, the light of which suddenly diminishes on its border, and two opposite very faint branches."

Lord Rosse first observed M65 on 31 Mar 1848 and called it a "Curious nebula with bright nucleus at left a little above and towards the right is a streak spiral; resolved very well about the nucleus, but no other part. From the right, and apparently springing from the nucleus, a very faint portion of nebulosity extends for about 15', gradually melting away. William Rambaut (LdR's assistant) sketch on this night was published in the 1850 PT paper (plate XXXVII, fig. 7). On 25 Feb 1854, "Lord Rosse suspected dark spaces on either side of the nucleus.", though this suspicion wasn't confirmed the following year. William Lassell also sketched M65 using the 48" from Malta.

300/350mm - 13.1" (4/10/86): very bright, elongated N-S, elongated bright core, possible stellar nucleus.

400/500mm - 17.5" (1/31/87): very bright, very large, very elongated N-S, 7.5'x2.0', bright core, stellar nucleus. A mag 12 star is west of the south end 2.1' from the center. Forms a remarkable trio with M66 20' ESE and NGC 3628 36' NE. Requires low power (31 Nagler) to easily fit all three in the same field.

900/1200mm - 48" (5/1/19): at 375x; beautiful, extremely large, showpiece spiral extending 7:2 N-S. The galaxy displayed a strong concentration with a very bright, round core and an intensely bright, prominent nucleus. There was a slight enhancement along the major axis but no impression of a bar. A long, low contrast dust lane runs N-S along the length of the galaxy on the east side. The edge was a bit ragged and the glow of the galaxy on its east side had a low surface brightness. A mag 14.5 star is at the W edge of the dust lane, due east of the core. Also a mag 16 star is at the W edge of the galaxy, slightly south of the nucleus [1.2' WSW of the mag 14.5 star]. A mag 12.3 star is 2.3' SSW of center, just off the W side.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3628 = H V-8 = h859 on 8 Apr 1784 (sweep 187) and recorded "B, vmE, lbM than towards the ends. It seems to extend 9 or 10' if not more." JH called it "a v long narrow ray, vgbM; 15' long, a most curious object. E by diag in pos 105°.

Lord Rosse first observed NGC 3628 on 31 Mar or 1 Apr 1848. Samuel Hunter, observing on 10 Feb 1861, noted "split into two parallel rays." A month later he added "split extends its whole length, the f part being partially filled with faint nebulosity." Robert Ball, observing on 18 Mar 1866 also noted "there seems to be a dark channel on south side in direction of elongation."

300/350mm - 13.1" (4/24/82): the dust lane is clearly visible along the entire length and divides the galaxy into two asymmetric halves with the south slice much fainter.

400/500mm - 17.5" (1/31/87): bright, unusually large edge-on WNW-ESE, 11'x2.5'. A broad irregular dust lane is prominent bisecting the galaxy along the entire length. Appears brighter to the north of the dark lane and fainter on the south side.

900/1200mm - 48" (5/12/18): at 375x; very prominent, stunning dust lane extending along most of the length of the galaxy [for roughly 8']. The lane widens on both the WNW and ESE end. On the ESE end, the outer halo has a fairly low surface brightness and spreads or flares out in width. At the WNW end, the outer halo was easily visible and sprayed out noticeably in a wide cone, more extensively towards the north, creating an asymmetric appearance. A mag 16.5 star is along the N edge, at the brightest section, and a mag 15.5 star is 40" further NE. A brighter mag 14.8 star is along the ESE flank, 2.5' from center.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

Pierre Méchain discovered M95 = H I-26 = h743 on 20 Mar 1781. WH observed M95 on 11 Mar 1784 (sweep 164) and recorded a "fine, bright nebula, much brighter in the middle than at the extremes, of a pretty considerable extent, perhaps 3 or 4' or more. The middle seems to be of the magnitude of 3 or 4 stars joined together, but not exactly round; from the brightest part of it there is a sudden transition to the nebulous part, so that I should call it cometic."

Just a week later (19 Mar 1784) he found H. I-26 and wrote, "cB, pL, not R, and much brighter about the middle than towards the ends." There is nothing at his position, but ~20' south and 1 min of RA east is M95, which was not observed in the sweep, and Dreyer concludes in his 1912 revision of H's catalogoues that H I-26 is probably a duplicate of M95.

R.J. Mitchell, observing with LdR's 72" on 16 Feb 1858, noted "I sev times thought it had two spiral arms, p and f." Sir Robert Ball commented on 10 Feb 1867, "The central bright section seems rather more complex than usual. It may be divided into two ellipses, the inner one is uniform in light and brighter than the other one." This appears to describe the core and the surrounding inner ring.

200/250mm - 8" bright, fairly large, round.

300/350mm - 13.1" (2/25/84): very bright, small bright nucleus.

400/500mm - 17.5" (2/28/87): very bright, very bright core. The outer halo is 4.5'x3.0' oriented SSW-NNE. A bar is highly suspected extending WNW-ESE of the central core with inner ring structure suspected extending from this bar. M96 (brightest in the group) lies 40' ENE.

900/1200mm - 48" (4/21/17): at 375x; extremely bright, very large, dominated by an intensely bright, round nucleus/core and a prominent central bar running nearly E-W. A strong, round ring is attached at the ends of the bar, forming a striking "Theta" shape. A well defined darker region is inside the ring to the north and south of the bar though the contrast is higher on the north side of the bar. Surrounding the ring is a very large, low surface brightness outer halo extending SSW-NNE, perhaps 5.5'-6' by 4'. With averted vision, low contrast spiral arm structure was noticed in the outer halo, particularly on the southwest side.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3521 = H I-13 = h818 on 22 Feb 1784 (sweep 153) and recorded "a fine B nebula, with a bright star or nucleus in the middle; it sends out a milky ray towards the north, and another more F towards the south, the extent of the whole, faint rays included, may be about 7 or 8'. On 13 Aprl 1828 (sweep144) John Herschel described NGC 3521 as "vB; L; mE in PA 140° +/-, 4' l, 1' br; vsvmbM; a double star follows. The NGC position (measured by Auwers, d'Arrest, Peters) is accurate.

R.J. Mitchell, observing at Birr Castle on 29 Mar 1856, recorded "The nucleus projects into the dark space along the p edge. Outside this dark space there is faint nebulosity, which I see joining the nebula at the north end."

200/250mm - 8" fairly bright, fairly large, elongated, bright core. Located 33' E of a mag 6 star.

400/500mm - 17.5" (1/19/91): very bright, very large, elongated 5'x2' NNW-SSE. This is an impressive galaxy! Contains a well-defined small bright oval core NNW-SSE and a stellar nucleus. Appears mottled near the core and on the west side. Along the west side is a dust lane evident as a sharp light cut-off. The west side is somewhat fainter due to dust but extends beyond the dust lane.

900/1200mm - 48" (3/1/19): at 488x; showpiece spiral with a prominent dust lane and an outer spiral arm! The galaxy appeared extremely bright, very large, elongated ~5:2 NNW-SSE, at least 8'x3.2', sharply concentrated with a very bright, elongated core. The core itself was sharply concentrated with a brilliant quasi-stellar nucleus! A high contrast, fairly wide dust lane runs in the direction of the major axis along the entire west side of the core! The principal spiral arm was easily visible emerging NNW from the NE side of the central region. This arm displayed a hard outer edge (high contrast) and curved sharply clockwise on the north end. The arm dimmed or lost contrast but could be traced to the west of the dust lane, extending south. The galaxy was slightly brighter at the south end (along the major axis), where the opposite arm curled east and north.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3384 = H I-18 = h758, along with NGC 3379 = M105 and NGC 3389, on 11 Mar 1784 (sweep 164). He recorded, "Three nebula in the field together. The two preceding ones NGC 3379 and 3384] cometic and much like the two former bright ones [M95 and M96] but considerable less. The following NGC 3389] r[esolvable] and of a longish form, elongated. These three together form a beautiful sight." John Herschel made three observations, each time calling it "vB".

200/250mm - 8" (3/28/81): fairly bright, round, moderately large.

300/350mm - 13.1" (2/25/84): bright, bright stellar nucleus, elongated 5:2 SW-NE. Second of three with M105 7.3' SW and NGC 3389 6.4' SSE.

600/800mm - 24" (4/20/14): very bright, large, elongated at least 2:1 SW-NE, ~3.2'x1.5' though the outer halo increases in size with averted vision. Sharply concentrated with a large, brilliant, rounder core that gradually increases to the center. Forms a prominent trio with M105 7.4' SW and NGC 3389 6.4' SSE. NGC 3384 is a member of the M96 or Leo I Group, along with M105.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

Édouard Stephan discovered NGC 3501= St XI-10 on 23 Apr 1881 and recorded "vF, gbM, mE N30°E, 3' long." His position and description matches UGC 6116.

400/500mm - 17.5" (4/1/95): faint, edge-on 7:1 SSW-NNE, 3.0'x0.4', low surface brightness, very slightly brighter elongated core. A mag 14 star is 2.3' SE of center. NGC 3507 lies 12.7' NE.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3607 = H II-50 = h845, along with NGC 3605 and 3608, on 14 Mar 1784 (sweep 170). See NGC 3605 for description.

300/350mm - 13.1" (2/16/85): bright, slightly elongated, bright core, stellar nucleus. Brightest in a group with NGC 3608 5.7' N, NGC 3605 3.0' SW and NGC 3599 21' WNW.

600/800mm - 24" (5/27/17): very bright, large, oval 4:3 NW-SE, sharply concentrated with an intensely bright core that increases to an extremely bright nucleus. A nice group of 5 stars is roughly 4' SE with one a wide pair [17"]. In a small group of bright galaxies (part of the larger group USGC U376) with NGC 3605 2.9' SW and NGC 3608 5.8' N.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

400/500mm - 17.5" (4/14/01): at 141x, easily visible as a very large, irregular glow with a broad and weak concentration (no core or nucleus), slightly elongated. At this power there was no problem with glare from Regulus which was just 20' S. IC 591 lies 15' W and CGCG 64-74 15' N.

17.5" (1/31/87): at 80x this Local Group dwarf appears as a very large low surface brightness glow, slightly elongated E-W. Despite being a well known visual challenge, it was easily visible with averted vision placing Alpha Leonis (Regulus) just outside the south end of field. A pair of mag 11 stars at 1.5' separation oriented E-W lies 5' NE of center. Located 20' N of Regulus. IC 591 lies 15' W.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3810 = H I-21 = h943 on 15 Mar 1784 (sweep 174) and noted "pB, L, lE, r." His position was 50 seconds of RA too far east. John Herschel made 5 observations, the earliest on 10 Apr 1823 (sweep 2), while still developing his sweeping technique: "vF; R; vgbM; a *9m 15' dist in parallel."

Several interesting observations were made at Birr Castle. On 18 Mar 1851, Bindon Stoney recorded "BM, F neby all round of a mottled charachter, knot or appendage in the p part. On 10 Apr 1852, he queried "Spriral? glbM." Dreyer, though, observing in 1878, comments "Beyond doubt a glob cl, outlying F branches on a F background which fades away gradually."

400/500mm - 17.5" (5/2/92): bright, fairly large, elongated 3:2 SSW-NNE, broad concentration, increases to brighter core but no nucleus, large very faint halo of dimensions 3.0'x2.0'. A group of three mag 11-12 stars mag is located between 9'-11' S.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3338 = H II-77 = h737 on 19 Mar 1784 (sweep 177) and recorded "a considerable, pB, E, resolvable nebula, brightest about the middle." On 23 Mar 1830 (sweep 242), John Herschel logged, "F; E; pL; vgbM; follows a * 7m 10s."

R.J. Mitchell, Lord Rosse's assistant on 22 Mar 1854, noted "B Nucl, R, about 2' dia, light irr, has a second minute Nucl preceding the L one? Spiral?" There is no second nucleus, but he was correct about the spiral structure.

400/500mm - 17.5" (4/18/87): fairly bright, fairly large, broad concentration to an elongated brighter core with a brighter nucleus embedded, hints of internal structure. The fainter outer halo is elongated 3:2 E-W in the direction of mag 8.7 SAO 99253 which lies 2.7' W of center.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3646 = H III-15 = h866 on 15 Feb 1784 (sweep 146) and recorded "Two, a Large nebula [NGC 3646] followed by a small one [NGC 3649], in the same field of view with it. The large one is extremely and small one still fainter, so that I did not perceive it immediately. I suppose the large one cannot be less than 5 or 6' of extent." JH logged "F; L; E; 2' long. The sp of two [with[NGC 3649]."

Bindon Stoney, observing with LdR's 72" on 13 Apr 1852, remarked "L neb [NGC 3646] is bM. It has a knot in sp end and a dark curved passage on p and n sides of centre; Spiral." This description is similar to the view in Jimi Lowrey's 48".

300/350mm - 13.1" moderately bright and large, elongated, broad concentration with no nucleus. An extremely faint star or knot is involved.

400/500mm - 17.5" (4/14/01): moderately bright, fairly large, elongated 3'x2' SW-NE. Gradually increases to a brighter 30" oval core. A quasi-stellar nucleus is occasionally visible with direct vision. Forms a pair with NGC 3649 7.8' ENE.

900/1200mm - 48" (5/16/12 and 4/6/13): this showpiece spiral appeared bright, large, oval ~2:1 SW-NE, sharply concentrated with a very bright core. The visual treat was a prominent lens or eye-shaped ring surrounding the core! The ring was slightly brighter in an arc along the north side. At the west edge of this arc was a very faint quasi-stellar knot (SDSS J112141.34+201039.0, V = 17.2). Another section of the ring that stands out is along the southwest edge, with a brighter linear piece about 40" long that has several SDSS designations. The interior of the ring is fairly dark near this section, as well as other sections, providing a good contrast between the core and ring. A very small, weak brightening was also noted on the northeast end of the ring. A mag 14 star lies 1.4' NW of center and a mag 16 star is 1' SSE of center.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 2964 = H I-114 = h622, along with NGC 2968, on 7 Dec 1785 (sweep 487). He recorded, "cB, cL, iF, mbM." John Herschel made 4 observations, logging on 5 Mar 1828 (sweep 127), "B; vL; vglbM; E; 2.5' by 1.5'."

Fourteen observations were made at Birr Castle and interesting structure was noted. On 1 Feb 1856, R.J. Mitchell described "h622 NGC 2968] has nucleus and is mE, its light is very unequal, and I suspect one dark lane running throughout its length south of nucleus; * in preceding edge?" The dark lane probably refers to a dip in brightness between the nucleus and the southern spiral arm.

300/350mm - 13.1" (2/23/85): fairly bright, fairly large, elongated 4:3 E-W, brighter core. Brightest in a group with NGC 2968 5.8' NE and NGC 2970 11' NE.

600/800mm - 24" (2/22/14): at 260x appeared bright, fairly large, oval 5:3 E-W, 1.8'x1.1'. Sharply concentrated with a very bright, very small nucleus. Slightly brighter through the major axis like a bar. Outside the nucleus the surface brightness is irregular, with a slight dip in brightness just north and south of the nucleus [dust or dust lanes]. A brighter arm extends E-W along the south side of the halo and a weak arm runs parallel along the north side. Brightest in a linear trio (KTG 25, a physical group) with NGC 2968 6' NE and NGC 2970 11' NE.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3239 = H IV-10 = h710 = h3246 on 21 Mar 1784 (sweep 181)and recorded "A pretty considerable star, with a milky vF brush after it. The position of the brush is about 15 or 20° nf. With 240 I saw 2 vF stars towards the confines of the brush; but they seemed to have no connection with it. The bright star is the following one of a triangle, the preceding stars of which are a little smaller. It precedes a large star 3 1/2 min of time and is 2' more north." His description and position applies to Arp 263 = VV 95.

10 observations were made at Birr Castle, with knots in NGC 3239 mentioned several times. On 10 Jan 1856, R.J. Mitchell commented "A knot north of the star and another nff, the space between them and the star is filled with faint mottled nebulosity. A star suspected in np end of the following knot. A very faint nebula suspected following?". The last comment probably refers to CGCG 094-042, which is 3' ESE.

On the POSS, the bright knot on the southeast end seems like it could be an interacting galaxy but on the SDSS it looks like a large, blue HII region. Also the area immediately north seems dusty. Contains unusual asymmetric arcs to the south as if very disturbed. This galaxy has a listed redshift of only 0.0025, while the surrounding galaxies (6 viewed on 3/28/09) have a redshift of z = .044.

400/500mm - 17.5" (4/13/91): fairly faint, moderately large, elongated 2:1 E-W, very unusual appearance as a mag 9 star (BD+17 2217) is superimposed on the south side. An unusually bright knot is following the bright star by 51" on the SE side of the galaxy. This is possibly an offset nucleus or more likely an HII knot. The galaxy appears to extend to the west from this knot. The galaxy exhibits an irregular surface brightness with edges difficult to define as it fades into the background. The halo is more extensive to the north with averted vision. About 2' NW and 2' W are two mag 11 and 12 stars.

900/1200mm - 48" (5/4/16): NGC 3239 was examined at 488x, specifically looking for the two tidal tails not seen in the previous observation with Lowrey's 48". A very faint curving tail or hook (identified as "Tail A" in Krienke & Hodge's 1990 paper "The structure of the irregular galaxy, NGC 3239") was seen extending from the very bright HII knot (VV 95b) on the southeast side. It curves clockwise to the southeast in the direction of a mag 15.8 star [2' ESE of the mag 10 superimposed star].

Beyond the west end of the main glow is a fairly wide, very low surface brightness glow (the start of "Tail B") in the direction of a mag 12.5 star (2.4' due W of the bright star); it then sweeps broadly towards the south. A narrow extension heading southwest ends at a faint HII knot, perhaps 6" diameter, which is identified in NED as NGC 3239:[HK83] 75 and 80.

48" (2/19/12): NGC 3239 = Arp 263 is a large, disrupted irregular, dominated by numerous HII regions. It was a fascinating sight at 488x. A mag 10 star is superimposed on the southwest side of the galaxy with the patchy, highly irregular surface brightness glow of the galaxy extending mainly north and east of the star.

A very bright, round knot of ~15" diameter is prominent on the southeast side of the galaxy. This HII complex is catalogued as VV 95b in NED and as region #6 and #10 in Hodge-Kennicutt's 1983 "An Atlas of HII Regions in 125 Galaxies". A faint star or knot is attached on the north side. A "star" recorded just off the west side of this knot turns out to be supernova SN 2012A, discovered on 7 Jan 2012, still currently around 14th magnitude (see image at http://skycenter.arizona.edu/gallery/Galaxies/ngc3239). Very faint haze extends southeast of VV 95b, but the "tail" structure was not seen.

Along the north side of the galaxy (elongated east-west) are several additional knots. About 30" due north of VV 95B is HK[83] #3 and #4. This close pair of knots appeared as a faint, small, irregular glow, ~6" diameter. Patchy haze is just west, but with no condensed spots. Further west, and 40" due north of the mag 10 star, is a moderately bright, small, round knot, ~10" diameter that has several HK[83] entries (#28/29/31/34). To the west of this knot, the glow of the galaxy ends near HK[83] #57/58, a faint low surface brightness knot that is elongated N-S.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3596 = H II-102 = h841 on 8 Apr 1784 (sweep 187) and recorded "Faintish, pS, R, rather bM, resolvable." His position is 2'-3' north-northwest of UGC 6277. John Herschel made two observations of this galaxy and noted on 23 Apr 1832 (sweep 419). "pF; vL; gbM; 2' dia."

R.J. Mitchell, observing with LdR's 72" on 22 Mar 1857, wrote that he "strongly suspect either a vF nebulous ring round nucleus, or a branch joining centre at the following side. Difficult object." Suprisingly, E.E. Barnard announced in 1906 (AN 172, 123) the discovery of a new large planetary found on a photographic plate and observed visually with the Yerkes 40" refractor. But his position and description (about 2.5' in diameter) applies to this galaxy!

300/350mm - 13.1" (4/10/86): moderately bright, fairly large, diffuse, slightly elongated NW-SE, sharp stellar nucleus is possibly offset to the west of the geometric center.

600/800mm - 24" (5/27/17): bright, large, broad fairly weak concentration in halo to a slightly brighter core, small brighter nucleus. The galaxy is bracketed by a mag 13.5 star 3.7' SSW and a similar star 3.4' N. A third 13th mag star is 4.7' due E forming a near equilateral triangle with sides 7'.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3226 = H II-28 on 15 Feb 1784 (sweep 146) and recorded "Two nebula almost close together. Perhaps 1 1/2 or 2' asunder, they are pretty considerable in size and of a roundish form; but not cometic; they are vF." His position was 17' too far north, but d'Arrest and Schultz measured accurate positions used in the GC and NGC.

Father Secchi found NGC 3226 and 3227 on 6 Mar 1853 with the 9.5" Merz refractor and announced the pair as new in Astronomische Nachrichten 36, p. 243 (1853). He mentioned the nebulae were "not listed in Herschel's Observations of nebulae and clusters of stars [Slough catalogue]." Like a number of observers, Secchi missed the prior discovery as he only checked the Slough catalogue or was misled by Herschel's poor positions. In 1855, d'Arrest reported these nebulae were discovered previously.

300/350mm - 13.1" (4/16/83): fairly faint, broad concentration to a brighter middle.

400/500mm - 17.5" (4/25/92): moderately bright and large, slightly elongated SSW-NNE, smoothly increases from halo to a bright core and an almost stellar nucleus. The halo extends to almost 2' diameter with averted vision and fades into background. Forms a striking pair with NGC 3227 at the south side with 2.3' separation between centers. The outer halo is just in contact with NGC 3227 at the SSE edge. NGC 3222 lies 13' W.

900/1200mm - 48" (4/22/17): at 375x and 488x; very bright, moderately large, slightly elongated, ~1.8'x 1.5'. Sharply concentrated with an intensely bright non-stellar nucleus. The halo has only a weak concentration and with averted vision appears to merge with the halo of NGC 3227. A low surface brightness spiral arm on the west side of NGC 3227 extends north to the outer halo of NGC 3226.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3367 = H II-78 = h748 on 19 Mar 1784 (sweep 177) and simply noted "pB". His position was off by 15' (too far northwest), but he measured a more accurate position on a later sweep. On 4 Apr 1831 (sweep 338), John Herschel noted, "pB; vL; irreg R; vgbM; 2' diam" and measured an accurate position in sweep 338. The description under h748 on 23 Mar 1830 (sweep 242) also probably refers to NGC 3379.

On 23 Mar 1851, Bindon Stoney noted "probably spiral, dark spaces in it and * suspected in preceding edge."

200/250mm - 8" (3/28/81): fairly bright, slightly elongated, slightly brighter core. Located about 25' SSE of 5th magnitude 52 Leonis.

300/350mm - 13.1" (2/25/84): fairly bright, fairly large, almost even surface brightness, slightly elongated ~E-W. NGC 3377 lies 20' NE.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

400/500mm - 17.5" (3/23/85): moderately bright, fairly small, pretty diffuse, weak broad concentration, faint stellar nucleus. A mag 13.5 star is 1.1' SE, a mag 10.5 star 3.4' W and a mag 11.5 star 3.7' NE. Located 1° SE of Zeta Leonis (V = 3.6).

900/1200mm - 48" (3/1/19): at 488x; bright, large, roundish, ~1.8' diameter. A very strong, well defined spiral arm is attached at the southeast side of the core. It curled ~90° counterclockwise to the south and west. The arm dimmed significantly at the apparent end, but looking carefully I could detect very faint haze further SW in the outer fringes of the galaxy. Further south of this arm, the outer edge of the galaxy was barely visible as the surface brightness was very low. The spiral arm on the north side of the galaxy was poorly seen, but a relatively large knot [several HII knots on the SDSS] was visible 25" N of center. A short section of the spiral arm was also visible extending east from this knot. A mag 15.4 star is east of the core [40" from center] and very faint haze from the ragged outer halo was detected beyond this star, along with a very dim knot (HII region in the outermost spiral arm) 1' E of center. A mag 13.9 star is 1.1' SE of center, just beyond the halo. A mag 10.9 star is 3.4' W.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3370 = H II-81 = h750 on 21 Mar 1784 (sweep 181) and noted "pB, pL, not R, r." John Herschel made two observations, first recording on 25 Mar 1827 (sweep 63), "pB; R; bM; r."

300/350mm - 13.1" (1/18/85): moderately bright, fairly weak concentration, elongated 3:2 NNW-SSE. The nucleus is displaced to the west.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3433 = H III-20 = h783 on 11 Mar 1784 (sweep 164) and noted as "vF, r[esolvable]". There is nothing at his position, but 1 minute of RA east and 2' N is UGC 5981 = PGC 32605. On 18 Jan 1828 (sweep 120), John Hershel recorded "eF; vL; R; vglbM; 2' diam."

400/500mm - 17.5" (2/28/87): moderately bright, moderately large, diffuse, weak concentration, slightly elongated. NGC 3438 lies 25' NNE.

600/800mm - 24" (2/22/14): moderately bright, large, irregularly round, 2.5'x2.0', fairly low surface brightness, weak even concentration to small, slightly bright core and a faint stellar nucleus. Appears to be a face-on spiral, though too faint to resolve the arms. A mag 9.6 star is 8.5' E and 6' further NE of this star is NGC 3444.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3485 = H II-100 = h804 = 3309 on 8 Apr 1784 (sweep 187) and noted "F, pL r." JH made three observations at Slough and one at the Cape of Good Hope.

Bindon Stoney, observing on 9 Apr 1852 at Birr Castle "suspected a dark curved passage sp centre." Also on 15 Mar 1855, R.J. Mitchell "suspect[ed] a knot in p and one in f edge. Query, a ring with a Nucl in centre?"

400/500mm - 17.5" (4/18/87): fairly faint, moderately large, fairly diffuse, oval slightly elongated WSW-ENE, faint stellar nucleus. A mag 12 star is 1.7' W of center. Possible member of the Leo group.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

Edward Swift, Lewis' 20 year-old son, discovered IC 676 = Sw. X-20 on 8 Apr 1891 and reported "vF; pS: lE; bet 2 distant stars." The position matches UGC 6245.

400/500mm - 18" (3/5/05): moderately bright, fairly small, elongated 3:2 ~N-S, 1.2'x0.8'. Contains an elongated brighter core and brighter along the major axis. At low power, collinear with a mag 10 star 9' WNW and a mag 10 star 14' ESE.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 2872 = H II-57 = H II-546 = h597 on 15 Mar 1784 (sweep 172) and recorded, "Two neb. [with NGC 2874] about 3/4' or a little more from each other; Of the resolvable kind. The position of the first [NGC 2872] is about 15° or 20° np the second; they are pS and rather brighter towards the middle, but not much. The neby of the f one is rather more diluted than than of the p one, and it also somewhat larger." His position was exactly 1.0 min of RA too far west and 11' too far north. Herschel recorded the pair again two years later (H II-546 and II-547) on sweep 534, this time at the correct position, but assumed they were new. John Herschel included separate entries for the two H numbers in the GC, but Dreyer realized the equivalence and combined them in the NGC.

400/500mm - 17.5" (2/20/88): moderately bright, small, round, sharp concentration with a very bright core. Brightest of three with NGC 2874 1.3' ESE and NGC 2873 2.0' NE.

600/800mm - 24" (2/8/18): at 375x; bright, moderately large, slightly elongated, 60"x50", strong concentration with an intense core and very small brighter nucleus. Forms a striking pair with NGC 2874 1.3' S. Much fainter NGC 2873 is 2.0' NE. NGC 2871 was seen as a 16th mag star 1.1' NW.

900/1200mm - 48" (2/21/12): very bright, moderately large, irregularly round, 1.2'x1.0', sharply concentrated with an intensely bright 20" core. A mag 15.8 star = NGC 2871 is 1.1' NW. Forms a striking trio with NGC 2874 and 2873.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3507 = H IV-7 = h812 on 14 Mar 1784 (sweep 170). He described it as "F, pL. The nebulosity is of the milky kind. It situated between 2 bright stars but near the most north of them and to the south of that star. At first sight the nebula appears like an electric brush to the great star, but on examination I find it to have no connection with it. There is in the nebula, and pretty near the center of it, a vF star. The milky nebulosity is of a circular form." On 25 Mar 1827 (sweep 63), John Herschel called this object "a * 9m with vF neb attached; pos 70° sp = 200° +/- dist 30".

400/500mm - 17.5" (4/1/95): unusual appearance as a bright mag 10.5 star is superimposed very close to the center! Fairly faint, moderately large, 2.5' diameter, irregularly round. The core is difficult to view but is located just 30" SW of the superimposed star and the galaxy is slightly offset to the west side of the star. NGC 3501 lies 12.7' SW.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

400/500mm - 18" (5/3/11): at 108x from Lake Sonoma, I felt confident of detecting an extremely faint, low surface brightness glow, perhaps 3'-4' diameter and roughly circular, surrounding a mag 13 star. This Local Group dwarf elliptical was discovered in 1950, along with Leo I.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3067 = H II-492 = h657 on 7 Dec 1785 (sweep 487) and noted "pB, pL, lE nearly in the parallel." John Herschel made 3 observations and wrote on 6 Mar 1828 (sweep 128), "pB; pL; E in parallel; gbM; 60" l, 40" br; has a * 10th mag n f."

A total of 15 observations were made at Birr Castle. On 13 Mar 1850, LdR (or assistant George Stoney) noted the following detail: "Longitudinal split visible occasionally, at least in following 2/3. A bright streak seemed to run transversely across neb."

200/250mm - 8" faint, very elongated ~E-W. A mag 9 star is 4' E.

400/500mm - 17.5" (4/13/91): moderately bright, moderately large, elongated 5:2 WNW-ESE, brighter core bulges but no nucleus, extensions taper towards ends. Located 3.8' WSW of a mag 9.5 star.

600/800mm - 24" (3/28/17): at 260x; fairly bright, moderately large, elongated 5:2 WNW-ESE, brighter elongated central section is mottled and appears to have a sharp light cut-off (dust lane) on the northern flank, the eastern end of the galaxy has a lower surface brightness, probably due to dust. Member of the USGC U268 group.

3C 232 = Ton 469, a distant quasar with a redshift of z = .531 (light-travel time of 5.3 billion years), lies 1.9' due north. It was easily visible at 375x as a very faint mag 16 star. A brighter mag 15 star is 1.4' WSW of the quasar. This QSR was central to another Arp controversy as a “HI finger” or bridge appears to connect the quasar and NGC 3067.

24" (4/20/14): fairly bright, elongated 5:2 WNW-ESE, 1.3'x0.5', contains a large bright core that is very mottled with several very small knots (HII regions and dust on the SDSS). The southeast side of the halo is weaker with an irregular surface brightness. A mag 9.8 star is 3.9' ENE.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 2894 = H III-8 = h603 on 23 Jan 1784 (sweep 101) and recorded "Nebula. I see 3 stars in it, & I believe it may all be resolved; yet my 240 power does not clear it quite of nebulosity. [Higher] power gives me 3 very obscure nebulous stars, but leaves it undetermined whether there are more stars in it or whether these are only nebulous for want of light." John Herschel's observation from 25 Dec 1827 (sweep 116) simply states, "2 or 3 st and nebulosity".

400/500mm - 17.5" (4/13/91): fairly faint, fairly small, elongated 2:1 SSW-NNE, prominent core with faint extensions. Unusual appearance as a mag 13.5 star is at the east end and a mag 14.5 star (Holmberg 133b) at the west end. Located 3.0' NNE of mag 8.6 SAO 117726.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3509 = H III-598 on 30 Dec 1786 (sweep 675) and recorded "Suspected, eF, S, lE. I could not verify it." There is nothing at his position, but 1.0 min of RA east and 3' north is UGC 6134 = Arp 335. JH made no observations and it was not found by Bigourdan.

Dreyer commented in his 1912 "Scientific Papers of WH" that this number should probably be rejected since WH noted there was fog "which indeed was so strong as to make everything swim about me." Still, this identification is reasonable as NGC 3604 has a similar offset error.

400/500mm - 17.5" (4/1/95): fairly faint, moderately large, elongated 5:2 SSW-NNE, 1.6'x0.7'. Low surface brightness with a very weak concentration (no visible core). It was difficult to determine the outer extent of the halo but appears to have an asymmetric shape (slightly curved?).

900/1200mm - 48" (2/20/12): NGC 3509 = Arp 335 displayed a fascinating amount of structure at 375x, though conditions were subpar in terms of transparency and seeing. The appearance is very asymmetric with the brighter "central" portion elongated SW-NE and containing a very small, round, bright core. A small knot is just 15" S of the core. Attached on the northeast side of the central body is a well defined, easily visible tidal arm that gracefully sweeps to the northeast and then hooks sharply counterclockwise towards the south. The total length of the arm is perhaps 1.5', though it ends about 45" E of the core. The southwest side of the galaxy has no corresponding arm, but is slightly brighter along the south edge. A mag 16.5-17 star is 30" SW of the core on the west edge.

PGC 93108, recorded as "fairly faint, small, elongated 2:1 N-S, ~15"x7", weak central concentration", lies 3.0' NW. The PGC galaxy is listed as C2 (collider) in the 2009 Atlas and Catalog of Collisional Ring Galaxies (Madore et al) and the knot close south of the core is listed as C1.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

John Herschel discovered NGC 3861 = h970 on 23 Mar 1827 and noted "F; S; R; bM. Doubtful." His position is just off the northwest side of UGC 6724.

300/350mm - 13.1" (2/25/84): faint, moderately large, small bright core, diffuse.

400/500mm - 17.5" (3/12/88): fairly faint, fairly small, slightly elongated, fairly sharp concentration with a very bright core and stellar nucleus, faint oval halo. This member of AGC 1367 is located 6.5' NW of mag 7.4 SAO 81972.

900/1200mm - 48" (5/15/12): fairly bright, fairly large, elongated 5:3 WSW-ENE, 1.7'x1.0', well concentrated with a large, bright core and very small brighter nucleus. A very faint spiral arm emerges on the north or northeast side of the core and winds counterclockwise, merging with MCG +03-30-094, a close companion on the southeast side. A similar second arm emerges from the south side of the core and unwinds towards the west, ending at 0.9' W of center. A very faint extension on the northwest side was not seen. The companion is situated just 50" SE of center and appeared fairly faint, elongated 5:2 WNW-ESE, 0.6'x0.25', even surface brightness. CGCG 97-133 lies 4.3' NE.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

600/800mm - 24" (3/13/10): at 200x this Local Group member appeared very faint, fairly large, round, ~3'-4' diameter. This dwarf has a very low, even surface brightness with no core or zone, but was visible immediately with averted vision once the position was pinpointed. A few faint stars are superimposed.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

Wilhelm Tempel discovered NGC 3664 on 14 Mar 1879 with the 11-inch refractor at the Arcetri Observatory in Italy. He called it a double nebula with the two nuclei separated by 15"-20", so he resolved the two brightest "knots" along the central bar. The discovery was reported in a short note in AN 94, p. 335.

300/350mm - 13.1" (4/10/86): very faint, slightly elongated ~N-S. Two stars lie SE and a bright star (82 Leo) is ~20' E.

400/500mm - 17.5" (5/4/02): fairly large, low surface brightness glow with just a weak concentration, ~2' diameter. Nearly collinear with a wide pair of mag 10.5/12.5 stars 3' SE with a mag 10.5 star 7' NW also on this line. In addition, three mag 13 stars to the east are collinear! Located 20' W of a mag 6.7 star. This Arp galaxy has an unusual extension that juts at a 90° angle from the main body.

900/1200mm - 48" (5/12/12): This disrupted spiral was a fascinating sight in Jimi Lowrey's 48-inch. The brightest feature is a very knotty 1' irregular bar oriented SW-NE, containing at least three brighter knots. The brightest knot is at the northeast end with at least two very close knots on the southwest side. A very short offshoot extends just north of the northeast end. Fainter haze surrounds the bar on the NW and SE sides.

The second brightest feature is a detached, mottled "arm segment" on the southwest side that's oddly cocked (NW-SE) perpendicular to the bar. As it appeared detached from the bar, it didn't seem like it was part of a spiral feature. But this arm segment dims significantly and continues curving clockwise around the south and east side, making a low surface brightness outer loop or ring, reaching around to the other side of the bar! Then I realized the bar was noticeably offset towards the northwest side within a rounder 1.6' outline.

NGC 3664A, situated 6.2' south, is a much fainter disturbed companion that was likely involved in a train wreck with NGC 3664 during an earlier encounter. NGC 3664 is a 30" fairly low surface brightness glow with a broad concentration, but it didn't reveal any irregular structure. UGC 6417, a more challenging edge on, is another 5' further south.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

400/500mm - 17.5" (3/19/88): fairly faint, small, oval slightly elongated E-W, bright core. Located 1.8' SE of mag 7.8 SAO 82077. This is one of the brightest members in the cluster.

600/800mm - 24" (3/22/14): moderately bright, fairly small, elongated 3:2 E-W, 30"x20", bright core. Situated 1.6' SE of mag 8.2 HD 103913. NGC 4011 lies 3.7' ESE.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

400/500mm - 18" (4/14/12): at 282x appeared fairly faint, elongated 4:3 E-W, ~30"x22", irregular surface brightness. On extended viewing, it was clear that there was a brighter, elongated bar along the north side of the galaxy, extending east-west. NGC 3338 (large spiral) lies 20' NW.

900/1200mm - 48" (5/2/19): at 545x; this unusual galaxy appeared moderately bright, with a 3:1 central bar oriented E-W and a slightly brighter core. A semi-elliptical glow (halo) extends to the south of the bar. The interior of the oval was slightly brighter, forming a very subtle ring.

48" (2/19/12): at 488x, the bright portion of the galaxy is an elongated bar oriented E-W and extending 0.6'x0.2'. A faint oval glow extends off the south side of the bar. I had the strong impression of a slightly darker region in the glow [this corresponds with the interior of a spiral arm] just south of the bar, particularly on the west side. A mag 13.3 star is 0.9' SW and a mag 17 star is a similar distance NW. A brighter mag 10.9 star is 1.8' NNW.

Arp 291 was placed in Arp's category of "double galaxies with wind effects" and was classified by Theys and Spiegel as a Ring galaxy (type RK4) in the 1976 paper "Ring Galaxies. I" (ApJ 208, 650). But Romano et al classify it as a misclassified ring that "resembles a one-armed spiral emanating at the end of a bar" in "Stellar Disks of Collisional Ring Galaxies" (AJ 136, 1259,2008).

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

CGCG 92-065, located 12' N, appeared extremely faint, very small, round, 15" diameter. Contained a stellar nucleus in moments of steady seeing.

Édouard Stephan discovered NGC 3040 = St XIII-53 on 25 Mar 1884. His position is accurate.

400/500mm - 17.5" (4/9/99): faint, fairly small, elongated 2:1 NNW-SSE, 0.8'x0.4'. Fairly well concentrated with a bright, round 20" core and faint extensions. A mag 14 star lies 1.8' SSE. Brightest in a triple system, including Ho 148b at the northeast edge (companions not seen).

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3808 = H III-338 on 10 Apr 1785 (sweep 394) and noted "vF, vS." CH's reduction is 10 sec of RA east and 3.8' north of this interacting system.

400/500mm - 17.5" (4/15/93): faint, small, slightly elongated 4:3 NW-SE, weak concentration, very faint stellar nucleus. Located 3.5' NNE of mag 9.1 SAO 81939. Forms a close, interacting pair (Arp 87) with NGC 3808A = VV 300b 1' N. The companion appeared very faint, very small, round, very small brighter core.

900/1200mm - 48" (4/20/17): NGC 3808 is the brighter member of a remarkable interacting pair with NGC 3808A 1' N. At 375x it appeared fairly bright, moderately large, oval 3:2 WNW-ESE, brighter core.The beginning of spiral arms extend south on the northwest end and north on the east end . On deep images, the northern arm extends into a tidal bridge to NGC 3808A (and wraps around the companion), but visually the arm only extended roughly half-way.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

William Herschel discovered NGC 3303 = H III-66 = h730 on 21 Mar 1784 (sweep 181) and recorded "vF, S, E, r. 240 showed it no better than 157, though larger." John Herschel made two observations and measured an accurate position.

400/500mm - 17.5" (3/1/03): faint, moderately large, elongated 4:3 N-S, 1.0'x0.8', broad concentration to a slightly brighter core but no nucleus. Overall fairly low surface brightness.

900/1200mm - 48" (2/19/12): Arp 192 is a highly disturbed double system with a enormous irregular plume to the south and diffuse haze off the east side. At 488x, the size of the main body was ~1.0'x0.7', extended NNW-SSE and split into two components. LEDA 93104 is a large knot with a stellar center on the northwest side of the main core. It is likely the core of an interacting companion. The plume or tail was visible as a diffuse, fairly wide extension attached at the south-southeast end and extending south for ~1.0', roughly doubling the length of the galaxy. A mag 15 star lies 1.6' S.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

Heinrich d'Arrest discovered NGC 2929, along with NGC 2930 and 2931, on 21 Feb 1863. His position, measured on 3 nights, matches UGC 5126 = PGC 27398.

400/500mm - 17.5" (4/15/93): first and largest of a close trio in a line. Faint, fairly small, very elongated 3:1 NW-SE, 1.0'x0.3'. A mag 13 star is 1.7' NW. Located 10' NE of mag 7.1 SAO 80931 at the edge of the field. NGC 2930 lies 2.8' NNE and similar brightness to NGC 2931 5' NNE.

600/800mm - 24" (2/15/18): at 375x; first in a nice string of an equally spaced and collinear triplet. fairly faint to moderately bright, fairly small, elongated 3:1 NW-SE, 0.9'x0.3', slightly brighter bulging core. Located 11' NE of mag 7.1 HD 83145 and 20' ESE of mag 7.5 HD 83004. Brightest in a group (WBL 227) which includes NGC 2927, 2930, 2931, PGC 27435 and PGC 27434. PGC 27435, located 5.6' E of NGC 2929, was extremely faint (V = 15.6), fairly small, elongated 2:1 ~E-W, ~25"x12". It was often visible at 225x (10mm ZAO) and 375x (6mm ZAO), but I couldn't hold steadily for a significant length of time. PGC 27434, located 7' ESE of NGC 2929, was marginally glimpsed 1.2' ESE of PGC 27435. I probably only noticed the slightly brighter central region (~10") but too ephemeral (V = 16.1) to notice a shape. It only popped a few definite times but was verified in the same position.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

Johann Palisa discovered NGC 2944 on 27 Mar 1886 with the 12-inch refractor at the Vienna University Observatory. His micrometric position in AN 2782 matches UGC 5144. This is a disrupted double or triple system in contact. The listed dimensions (from UGC) are for the combined system. The same night Palisa also discovered NGC 2926 and Samuel Oppenheim discovered NGC 2981. See Harold Corwin's identification notes.

NGC 2944 is in the Arp category of Spiral Galaxies with small, high surface-brightness companions on arms. Vorontsov-Velyaminov also considered this a pair of galaxies, although VV 82a appears to be double itself.

400/500mm - 17.5" (4/25/98): extremely faint, very small, elongated 2:1 ~E-W, slightly brighter core but overall low surface brightness. Collinear with two mag 13 stars 3.4' and 4.4' NE. This double system was not resolved under noticeably hazy sky conditions and soft seeing. UGC 5146 = Arp 129, another double system, lies 3.7' NE.

900/1200mm - 48" (4/18/15): At 697x, this double (or possibly triple) system appeared moderately bright, very elongated 3:1 E-W, ~36"x12", weak concentration. A small roundish knot (SDSS J093916.79+321837.7 ) attached at the west end has a moderately high surface brightness and a diameter of 8"-10". On the SDSS this "knot" appears to be the core of a merged interacting companion! VV 82b is another interacting companion, just 27" SE of center. It appeared extremely faint, very small, round, 10" diameter. It was only visible with averted for short periods. PGC lists a photographic mag of 18.6.

The double system Arp 129 = VV 83 = UGC 5146 is 3.5' NNE. At 697x; the eastern component appeared moderately to fairly bright, small, round, high surface brightness, ~20" diameter. A mag 12 star, superimposed on the western component VV 83a = MCG +06-21-071 is just 30" WSW. The western component of Arp 129 appeared fairly faint, fairly small, roundish, nearly even surface brightness? Although easily visible, the view is significantly impaired by the 12th magnitude star and the galaxy was only visible on the east side of the star.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

600/800mm - 24" (4/20/14): this compact triplet fits within a 1' circle! At 375x, UGC 6361A = KTG 36A appeared faint, very small, round, 12" diameter. UGC 6361B = KTG 36B is just 23" ESE! The two objects (cores of the respective galaxies) are similar 12" knots, though occasionally an extremely faint, short extension was glimpsed on KTG 36B, extending SSE. Just 35" SSE of the center of KTG 36B is UGC 6361C = KTG 36C, the last and faintest member of the trio. It appeared extremely faint and small, round, just 6" diameter. It was only visible for short glimpses but was not difficult to reacquire with averted vision once identified. CGCG 011-017 lies 5' SW. Shkh 154 (9 members viewed in the 48") lies 50' NE.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

Otto Struve discovered NGC 3534 on 18 Mar 1869 with the 15-inch Merz refractor at St Petersburg while searching for Comet Winnecke (7P/Pons-Winnecke). He recorded a "Very faint nebua of uniform light, located 3' southeast (PA 145°) from a mag 9 star. His position is 12 sec of RA west of UGC 6190.

400/500mm - 17.5" (4/22/95): very faint, fairly small, elongated 2:1 E-W, 1.0'x0.5', broad weak concentration. A mag 9.5 star is 4.3' NW. This is a double system with separation 0.9' between centers (unresolved) and forms a triplet with MCG +05-26-064 2.9' ENE.

600/800mm - 24" (4/20/14): faint to fairly faint, fairly small, elongated 2:1 E-W, 0.8'x0.4', low even surface brightness. Largest in a trio (KTG 35) and brighter of a close pair with NGC 3534B = UGC 6193 just 0.9' S. The companion appeared faint, small, elongated 2:1 ~N-S, 24"x12", with the major axis perpendicular to NGC 3534. MCG +05-26-064 lies 2.9' ENE and appeared fairly faint, fairly small, elongated 5:3 N-S, 25"x15", small bright core.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

Ralph Copeland discovered NGC 3758 south of "Copeland's Septet on 18 Mar 1874 and logged "pB; S; R; smbM; Nucl not stellar." His offsets to nearby stars is a perfect match with CGCG 126-110 = PGC 35905, although it was placed too close to Copeland's Septet on the constructed sketch of 13 Apr 1876 showing all discovered nebulae. This galaxy was independently found by Stephan exactly 10 years later on 18 Mar 1884 and accurately placed in his list XIII-61.

Bill Keel dubbed this the "Owl" galaxy (because of twin nuclei) in a 1993 article in Mercury magazine article "The real astrophysical zoo - Colliding galaxies", though there are no Google hits on that nickname.

400/500mm - 17.5" (5/4/02): fairly faint, small, slightly elongated, 0.5' diameter. Following by 2.5' is mag 9.7 SAO 81899 which is the first of three on a line to the NE. Also in the field is a 43" pair of mag 9.5 stars ~8' SSE. Copeland discovered NGC 3758 and this galaxy is situated 30' SW of Copeland's Septet.

900/1200mm - 48" (4/20/17): at 697x; moderately bright, fairly small, round, 30" diameter. Two stellar nuclei were resolved, separated by only 6" E-W. The eastern nucleus seemed slighter brighter or perhaps more stellar. The western nucleus was quasi-stellar (perhaps a few arseconds diameter).

NGC 3758 is a post-merger pair and the twin nuclei (separated by ~11,000 light-years) both house super-massive black holes! The seeing was fairly poor at the time of the observation but the twin nuclei were still easily resolved. Located 2.6' ESE of a bright mag 9.7 star (SAO 81899).

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

900/1200mm - 48" (2/20/12): fairly faint to moderately bright, edge-on 6:1 WSW-ENE, 1.2'x0.2', nearly even surface brightness. This double system has a very faint, small companion (SDSS J101206.22+230521.7) at or barely off the ENE tip.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

Lewis Swift discovered IC 701 = Sw. VIII-57 on 22 Apr 1889 and recorded "eF; vS; R; 2 pB stars south following."

900/1200mm - 48" (5/12/12): at 488x, IC 701 = Arp 197 appeared fairly bright, oval 2:1 WNW-ESE, 0.6'x0.3', contains a small bright core. A very low surface brightness hazy plume extends to the NE about 30". Occasionally VV 3b, an extremely faint hazy spot, was glimpsed at the northeast tip of the tail. In Arp's class "galaxies with material ejected from nuclei". CGCG 126-073, a thin edge-on described by Arp as a shred of IC 701, lies 2.5' SSW. It appeared as a faint, extremely thin streak, 8:1 WNW-ESE, ~40"x5", fairly low surface brightness. Situated very close west of a mag 13-14 star.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

Albert Marth discovered NGC 2941 = m 177 on 1 Apr 1864 with Lassell's 48" on Malta and reported "eF, vS, lE." Dreyer added "p of 2 [with NGC 2943]" in the NGC description. His position is close north of CGCG 092-017 = PGC 27470. This is the 3rd of 6 members of the NGC 2943 group he discovered that night.

400/500mm - 17.5" (3/29/89): very faint, very small, slightly elongated. A mag 14 star is 1.2' NW. Located 2.2' WNW of NGC 2943 in a group.

600/800mm - 24" (2/15/18): at 375x; faint, small, slightly elongated, 20"x15", low even surface brightness. Located 2.3' WNW of NGC 2943 in a group.

24" (2/22/14): fairly faint, small, elongated ~2:1 N-S, 20"x12", a mag 15 star is 1' NW. NGC 2943 (brightest in the group WBL 229) is 2.2' ESE.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb

600/800mm - 24" (3/28/17): Arp 198 is an overlapping pair consisting of face-on spiral (VV 267a) and a thin edge-on (VV 267b) that extends right to the nucleus of the face-on. At 260x and 375x, the edge-on appeared as a very faint, fairly small, very elongated glow, ~0.4'x0.1', extending to the southwest of a mag 12.3 star. At its northeast end, close to the mag 12 star, is a very small "knot" (core of VV 267a = UGC 6073b, the face-on spiral) at most 10" diameter at the northeast end close to the mag 12 star [28" SW of the star].

24" (3/28/17): Arp 198 is an overlapping pair consisting of face-on spiral and a thin edge-on that extends right to the nucleus of the face-on. At 260x and 375x, the pair appeared as a very faint, fairly small, very elongated glow, ~0.4'x0.1', extending to the southwest of a mag 12.3 star. The faint glow had an unusual "spike" appearance, with a very small "knot" (core of VV 267a = UGC 6073b, the face-on spiral) at most 10" diameter at the northeast end close to the mag 12 star [28" SW of the star]. The spike or tail (VV 267b = UGC 6073a) extends southwest with the combined glow collinear with the star!

900/1200mm - 48" (5/1/19): at 545x; the bright edge-on in the overlapping pair Arp 198 = VV 267 appeared moderately bright, thin edge-on 6:1 SW-NE, 0.9'x0.15', very small brighter core. The slightly brighter core of the superimposed galaxy, VV 267a, was visible surrounded by a very faint halo. The view was improved by increasing the magnification to 813x. The core of the overlap was a fairly prominent round glow, surrounded by a faint but easy halo extending ~20" in diameter, nearly reaching the mag 12.3 star just off the NE tip.

48" (4/22/17): at 488x; the edge-on component (VV 267b) of Arp 198 appeared fairly faint, moderately large, edge-on SW-NE, ~45"x8", fairly low surface brightness with just a weak central brightening and no distinct core or nucleus. VV 267a = Arp 198 NED2 is attached on the northeast end forming a contiguous glow centered 50" SW of a mag 12 star that interferes with viewing.

48" (4/22/17): at 488x; the edge-on component (VV 267b) of overlapping Arp 198 appeared fairly faint, moderately large, edge-on 5:1 or 6:1 SW-NE, ~45"x8", fairly low surface brightness with just a weak central brightening and no distinct core or nucleus. VV 267a = Arp 198 NED2 is attached on the northeast end forming a contiguous glow centered 50" SW of a mag 12 star. The face-on (foreground) spiral component (VV 267a) appeared as a weak brightening at the northeast end of edge-on VV 267b. The core appeared slightly larger in diameter than the attached edge-on (~12" diameter) but the very low surface brightness halo was not seen, perhaps due to the glare from the 12th magnitude star less than 30" NE.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb