Heinrich d'Arrest discovered NGC 63 = Sf 96 on 27 Aug 1865 with an 11" refractor at Copenhagen and recorded (combining two observations) "class II, round, 35", mag 16 nucleus; lying between two mag 12 and 13 stars, the first precedes the nebula by 9.7 sec." His position and description matches UGC 167.

Truman Safford made an independent discovery on 30 Sep 1867 with the 18.5" refractor at the Dearborn Observatory as well as Hermann Vogel on 16 Aug 1868 (he credited d'Arrest) with the 8.5" refractor at the Leipzig Observatory. Dreyer observed NGC 63 at Birr Castle on 30 Oct 1877 and logged, "pB, pS, oval p f, smbM. Inside a triangle of 3 st 12, one of them in PA 268.9 (W), Dist 143.7", the 2 others about the same distance np and f."

400/500mm - 17.5" (12/19/87): fairly bright, fairly small, very elongated ~E-W, bright core, stellar nucleus.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb