The Amateur Astronomer's Guide to the Deep-Sky Catalogs

Every amateur astronomer has at least heard of the many different catalogs of deep-sky objects; the most well known are the Messier, the Caldwell, the Herschel, and the NGC. All of these catalogs are, in general, readily available, but very few amateur observers are in a position to choose the best catalog for their particular deep-sky observing program, know how to use the catalog, or even realize just how many there are out there!

The Amateur Astronomer's Guide to the Deep-sky Catalogs is a single compilation of the historical and modern astronomical deep-sky catalogs. It discusses their origins, compares what's in them, explains how to interpret the data they contain, and even outlines how readers can create suitable 'custom' catalogs for their own use. The last section provides a set of three deep-sky catalogs created by the author, for observers of different levels of experience, from newcomer to expert.

Table of Contents:

• Claudius Ptolemy and the Almagest
• The Abd-Al-Rahman Al-Sufi Catalog
• Ulugh Beg
• The Tycho Brahe Catalog (1598)
• The Johannes Hevelius Catalog
• The Charles Messier Catalog
• The Johann Elert Bode Catalog
• Christian Mayer Catalog
• The Herschel Catalogs
• J. L. E. Dreyer and the NGC Catalog
• Halton Arp and the Arp Catalog
• The Caldwell Catalog

The author Jerry Cavin first turned to amateur astronomy while growing up under the dark skies of Iowa. After leaving the farm, he completed a BS in Computer Science with a minor in Electrical Engineering at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.