Ernst Hartwig discovered NGC 6508 = Sw. I-82 on 19 Sep 1883 with the 18-inch refractor at the Strasbourg Observatory and measured an accurate position (AN 2544). He found this galaxy while searching for "Comet Swift" (later NGC 6654), which Swift had announced on 14 Sep as a new comet. Swift responded on 20 Oct (AN 2561) that Hartwig's nebula was new, though he independently discovered on 1 Oct. He was probably both upset with himself and embarrassed he was deceived by the galaxy, adding the disparaging comments, "It would appear from his (Hartwig's) silence that he missed another about 4 minutes east and 1° 20' north, which I found Oct 3 [1883]."

Swift included NGC 6508 in his first list with a discovery date of 17 Jun 1884 and description "vF; S; forms with 3 stars a square." His position was 40 seconds of RA too far east, but the description of the nearby stars, which lie to the north, clinches the identification. Dreyer credited Swift with the discovery in the NGC, though Hartwig made the first observation.

400/500mm - 17.5" (6/11/88): fairly faint, small, round, even concentration to a small bright core.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb