Galaxies: Introduction

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In 1930, only one paper was published on galaxies in the prestigious Astrophysical Journal (Ref. 1). The paper was by Edwin Hubble who studied the 15 elliptical "nebulae" listed below. Of course these nebulae were later found to be galaxies. The visual magnitudes of these objects fall in the range 8-12, easy targets for Origin whose maximum limit is around 20. For example, elliptical galaxy M32 in the Origin image above has a magnitude of 8 with hundreds of other objects much dimmer by comparison.

1. NGC 221 in Andromeda (M32)
2. NGC 410 in Pisces
3. NGC 584 in Cetus
4. NGC 3115 in Sextans
5. NGC 3379 in Leo (M105)
6. NGC 4278 in Coma Berenices
7. NGC 4283 in Coma Berenices
8. NGC 4374 in Virgo (M84)
9. NGC 4382 in Coma Berenices (M85)
10. NGC 4406 in Virgo (M86)
11. NGC 4472 in Virgo (M49)
12. NGC 4486 in Virgo (M87)
13. NGC 4552 in Virgo (M89)
14. NGC 4621 in Virgo (M59)
15. NGC 4649 in Virgo (M60)

Galaxy References:

1. "Distribution of luminosity in elliptical nebulae", Edwin Hubble, Astrophysical Journal, 71, 231-276 (1930). Hubble was affiliated with the Carnegie Institution of Washington, Mount Wilson Observatory.
2. Burnham's Celestial Handbook: Volume One, Robert Burnham, Jr., Dover Publications, Inc., New York, 1978, pp. 353-380.
3. Webb Society Deep-Sky Observer's Handbook: Volume 4, Galaxies, Edmund S. Barker, Kenneth Glyn Jones (Editor), Enslow Publishers, Hillside, New Jersey, 1981.
4. Webb Society Deep-Sky Observer's Handbook: Volume 5, Clusters of Galaxies, George S Whiston, Kenneth Glyn Jones (Editor), Enslow Publishers, Hillside, New Jersey, 1982.
5.  The Universe of Galaxies, Compiled by Paul W. Hodge, W.H. Freeman and Company, New York, 1984. A collection of 9 articles published in Scientific American Magazine between the years 1973-1983.
6. "Galaxy clusters: Urbanization of the cosmos", Michael West, Sky & Telescope, Vol. 93(1), January 1997, pp. 30-34. Saint Mary's University, Halifax, Nova Scotia.
7. "Shadows of creation: Quasar absorption lines and the genesis of galaxies", Jill Bechtold, Sky & Telescope, Vol. 94(3), September 1997, pp. 28-34.
8. "When galaxies collide", Joshua Roth, Sky & Telescope, Vol. 95(3), March 1998, pp. 48-52.
9. "The overlooked galaxies", Julianne Dalcanton, Sky & Telescope, Vol. 95(4), April 1998, pp. 28-33.
10. "A stab in the dark", Ron Cowan, Sky & Telescope, Vol. 108(1), July 2004, pp. 42-49.
11. "Cosmology with galaxy clusters", Megan Donahue, Sky & Telescope, Vol. 108(6), December 2004, pp. 32-39.
12.  Galaxies, Govert Schilling, Firefly Books, Buffalo, New York, 2018.
13. "A universe of galaxies", David J. Eicher, Astronomy, Vol. 47(3), March 2019, pp. 20-27.
14. "Hunting Dogs", Michael E. Bakich, Astronomy, Vol. 47(4), April 2019, p.54-55.
15. Galaxies, David J. Eicher, Clarkson Potter Publishers, New York, 2020.
16. "Target edge-on and face-on galaxies", Stephen James O'Meara, Astronomy, Vol. 48(5), May 2020, pp. 56-61.
17. "Explore the world of galaxies", David J. Eicher, Astronomy, Vol. 48(6), June 2020, pp. 28-35.
18. "Winter's galaxy groups", Ted Forte, Sky & Telescope, Vol. 141(1), January 2021, pp. 22-29.
19. "Picturing galaxies", Adam Block, Sky & Telescope, Vol. 141(1), January 2021, pp. 58-63.
20. "Studying galaxies with amateur images", David Martínez-Delgado and R. Jay GaBany, Astronomy, Vol. 49(2), February 2021, pp. 48-53.
21. "Discover the strangest galaxies in the sky", Alan Goldstein, Astronomy, Vol. 49(9), September 2021, pp. 40-43.
22. "Springtime's neglected binocular galaxies", Scott Harrington, Sky & Telescope, Vol. 143(5), May 2022, pp. 26-33.
23. "The great edge-on galaxy of autumn", Howard Banish, Sky & Telescope, Vol. 144(5), November 2022, pp. 28-33.
24. "Where do spirals come from?", Monica Young, Sky & Telescope, Vol. 145(3), March 2023, pp. 14-21.
25. "Minor gems of the spring sky", Michael E. Bakich, Astronomy, Vol. 51(5), May 2023, pp. 36-39.
26. "Target 10 galaxy groups", Alan Goldstein, Astronomy, Vol. 51(5), May 2023, pp. 40-43.
27. "Life in a galaxy cluster", Chris Mihos, Sky & Telescope, Vol. 149(1), January 2025, pp. 12-19.
28. "Viewing galaxies by the bunch", Mario Motta, Sky & Telescope, Vol. 149(6), June 2025, pp. 62-67.

1. ... in progress