E.E. Barnard discovered IC 4677 on 24 Apr 1900 with the 40-inch Yerkes refractor, apparently visually. Harold Corwin comments that Vorontsov-Velyaminov "included it in his first list [1959] of interacting galaxies (where it is No. 121), and in the MCG (it is MCG +11-22-017). This is a bit surprising as VV was an early authority on planetary nebulae; his book from the 1930's is now something of a classic on the topic. Still, the object does look something like a distorted late barred spiral on the PSS prints." IC 4677 is now known to be a shock-excited knot (or FLIER) in the halo of NGC 6543.

400/500mm - 17.5" (6/3/00): at 140x with a UHC filter, this ionized knot in the outer halo of the Cat's Eye was faint but clearly visible as a low surface brightness arc, located just south of the midpoint of the line connecting the geometric center of the PN with a mag 11 star 2.7' NW.

17.5" (11/1/97): this unusual object is a irregular knot in the outer halo of NGC 6543 1.7' W of center and appearing visually completely detached from the bright planetary. Suspected at 220x without filtration close to a mag 15 star located 1' NW of the planetary. Using a UHC filter, IC 4677 is clearly visible with averted vision as a very faint elongated patch, ~25"x15" oriented SW-NE. Requires averted for a good view but can almost hold continuously. Also visible at 140x with OIII filter and 280x with the UHC, but 220x provided the best view.

900/1200mm - 48" (4/1/11): IC 4677 appeared as a prominent, triangular or wedge-shaped knot with the vertex pointing east, situated 1.8' due west of center near the edge of the outer halo of NGC 6543 (Cat's Eye Nebula). This shock-excited condensation or "flier (flocculi) appeared much larger than previously seen, ~50"x30", and brighter along a well-defined, straight southern edge. The north side is brightest near the east end at the vertex. A 15th magnitude star lies 45" NE and a mag 9.8 star is 1.2' NW. A second fainter (uncatalogued) knot in the outer halo is located 2.6' ESE of center, just 30" N of a mag 14.5 star. This knot was only 15"-20" in size and had a low surface brightness.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb