Lewis Swift discovered NGC 190 = Sw. V-8 on 22 Oct 1886 with the 16" refractor at Warner Observatory. His position is just 6 sec of RA east of UGC 397. His description mentions "3 or 4 stars near sp". There are two mag 13 and 14.7 stars about 2' SW, but perhaps he also noticed the companion at the south edge (HCG 5B) and took it to be stellar. Herbert Howe, observing with the 20" refractor in Denver, noted a mag 12.5 star lies about 30" due south of the nebula. But this probably refers to HCG 5B. MCG identifies M+01-02-042 as NGC 190 instead of both -041 and -042.

400/500mm - 17.5" (12/11/99): Initially seen as a single faint, elongated glow at 220x. At 280x in moments of good seeing this object cleanly resolved into two very close, very small knots with the brighter component on the north side. HCG 5C was only intermittently visible with averted vision as a 15" threshold knot.

17.5" (9/5/99): NGC 190 is a challenging double system best viewed at high power. Using 280x, at first appeared as an elongated irregular glow but with extended viewing, two "knots" oriented N-S were resolved within a common halo. The brighter and larger component (HCG 5A) is at the north end and appears very faint, very small, round, 20" diameter. The southern component (HCG 5B) is extremely faint and small, perhaps 15" diameter. HCG 5C is a threshold knot 1' NW. The HCG is a subgroup of AGC 76 whose core is ~20' SSE and includes IC 1565, 1566 and 1568.

17.5" (10/8/88): very close double system, faint, small, elongated SSW-NNE, irregular. HCG 5B is a very small companion attached at the south edge just 22" between centers. In a compact group of four (HCG 5).

900/1200mm - 48" (10/25/11): HCG 5A is the brighter northern component of a double system forming NGC 190. It appeared bright, moderately large, slightly elongated E-W, 50"x40", bright core, stellar nucleus. Forms a very close double with smaller and fainter HCG 5B just 21" between centers. The halos of the two galaxies are in contact. HCG 5C is 0.8' NNE and HCG 5D is 0.9' S. The entire length of the N-S chain of four galaxies is 1.6'.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb