The Caldwell catalogue is an astronomical catalogue of 109 star clusters, nebulae, and galaxies for observation by amateur astronomers. The list was compiled by Patrick Moore as a complement to the Messier catalogue.
While the Messier catalogue is used by amateur astronomers as a list of deep-sky objects for observation, Moore noted that Messier's list was not compiled for that purpose and excluded many of the sky's brightest deep-sky objects, such as the Hyades, the Double Cluster (NGC 869 and NGC 884), and the Sculptor Galaxy (NGC 253). The Messier catalogue was actually compiled as a list of known objects that might be confused with comets. Moore also observed that since Messier compiled his list from observations in Paris, it did not include bright deep-sky objects visible in the Southern Hemisphere, such as Omega Centauri, Centaurus A, the Jewel Box, and 47 Tucanae. Moore compiled a list of 109 objects to match the commonly accepted number of Messier objects (he excluded M110), and the list was published in Sky & Telescope in December 1995.
Moore used his other surname – Caldwell – to name the list, since the initial of "Moore" is already used for the Messier catalogue. Entries in the catalogue are designated with a "C" and the catalogue number (1 to 109).
Unlike objects in the Messier catalogue, which are listed roughly in the order of discovery by Messier and his colleagues, the Caldwell catalogue is ordered by declination, with C1 being the most northerly and C109 being the most southerly, although two objects (NGC 4244 and the Hyades) are listed out of sequence. Other errors in the original list have since been corrected: it incorrectly identified the S Norma Cluster (NGC 6087) as NGC 6067 and incorrectly labelled the Lambda Centauri Cluster (IC 2944) as the Gamma Centauri Cluster.
Reception The Caldwell Catalogue has generated controversy in the amateur astronomy community for several reasons.
Moore did not discover any of the objects in his catalogue which are often very well known objects and not 'neglected' as claimed by Moore. Its presentation as a catalogue with distinct designations, rather than a list, potentially may cause confusion amongst amateur astronomers as the 'C' Designation is not commonly used. The list was promoted as an extension of the Messier Catalogue, however the objects are often arbitrary with many easily viewable objects omitted while some objects not readily available to visual observers are included.
Caldwell advocates, however, see the catalogue as a useful list of some of the brightest and best known non-Messier deep-sky objects. Thus, advocates dismiss any "controversy" as being fabricated by older amateurs simply not able or willing to memorize the new designations despite every telescope database using the Caldwell IDs as the primary designation since the late 1990s. NASA/Hubble also lists the 109 objects by their Caldwell number.
Caldwell star chart
Number of objects by type in the Caldwell catalogue
Type of object Number of objectsDark nebulae 1Galaxies 35Globular clusters 18Nebulae 9Star clusters 25Star clusters and nebulae 6Planetary nebulae 13Supernova remnants 2Total 109
Caldwell objects
Caldwell numberNGC numberCommon nameImageTypeDistance(1000 ly)ConstellationApparent magnitude C1 NGC 188 Polarissima Cluster Open Cluster 4.8 Cepheus 8.1 C2 NGC 40 Bow-Tie Nebula Planetary Nebula 3.5 Cepheus 11 C3 NGC 4236 Barred Spiral Galaxy 7,000 Draco 9.7 C4 NGC 7023 Iris Nebula Open Cluster and Nebula 1.4 Cepheus 7 C5 IC 342 Hidden Galaxy Spiral Galaxy 10,000 Camelopardalis 9 C6 NGC 6543 Cat's Eye Nebula Planetary Nebula 3 Draco 9 C7 NGC 2403 Spiral Galaxy 14,000 Camelopardalis 8.4 C8 NGC 559 Open Cluster 3.7 Cassiopeia 9.5 C9 Sh2-155 Cave Nebula Nebula 2.8 Cepheus 7.7 C10 NGC 663 Open Cluster 7.2 Cassiopeia 7.1 C11 NGC 7635 Bubble Nebula Nebula 7.1 Cassiopeia 10 C12 NGC 6946 Fireworks Galaxy Spiral Galaxy 18,000 Cepheus 8.9 C13 NGC 457 Owl Cluster, E.T. Cluster Open Cluster - Cassiopeia 6.4 C14 NGC 869 & NGC 884 Double Cluster, h & χ Persei Open Cluster 7.3 Perseus 4 C15 NGC 6826 Blinking Planetary Planetary Nebula 2.2 Cygnus 10 C16 NGC 7243 Open Cluster 2.5 Lacerta 6.4 C17 NGC 147 Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy 2,300 Cassiopeia 9.3 C18 NGC 185 Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy 2,300 Cassiopeia 9.2 C19 IC 5146 Cocoon Nebula Open Cluster and Nebula 3.3 Cygnus 7.2 C20 NGC 7000 North America Nebula Nebula 2.6 Cygnus 4 C21 NGC 4449 Irregular galaxy 10,000 Canes Venatici 9.4 C22 NGC 7662 Blue Snowball Planetary Nebula 3.2 Andromeda 9 C23 NGC 891 Silver Sliver Galaxy Spiral Galaxy 31,000 Andromeda 10 C24 NGC 1275 Perseus A Supergiant Elliptical Galaxy 230,000 Perseus 11.6 C25 NGC 2419 Globular Cluster 275 Lynx 10.4 C26 NGC 4244 Spiral Galaxy 10,000 Canes Venatici 10.2 C27 NGC 6888 Crescent Nebula Nebula 4.7 Cygnus 7.4 C28 NGC 752 Open Cluster 1.2 Andromeda 5.7 C29 NGC 5005 Spiral Galaxy 69,000 Canes Venatici 9.8 C30 NGC 7331 Spiral Galaxy 47,000 Pegasus 9.5 C31 IC 405 Flaming Star Nebula Nebula 1.6 Auriga 13 C32 NGC 4631 Whale Galaxy Barred Spiral Galaxy 22,000 Canes Venatici 9.3 C33 NGC 6992 East Veil Nebula Supernova Remnant 2.5 Cygnus 7 C34 NGC 6960 West Veil Nebula Supernova Remnant 2.5 Cygnus 7 C35 NGC 4889 Coma B Supergiant Elliptical Galaxy 300,000 Coma Berenices 11.4 C36 NGC 4559 Spiral Galaxy 32,000 Coma Berenices 9.9 C37 NGC 6885 Open Cluster 1.95 Vulpecula 6 C38 NGC 4565 Needle Galaxy Spiral Galaxy 32,000 Coma Berenices 9.6 C39 NGC 2392 Eskimo Nebula, Clown Face NebulaDeep-Sky Companions: The Caldwell Objects, 2nd Edition, Stephen James O'Meara, 2016, p.181 Planetary Nebula 4 Gemini 10 C40 NGC 3626 Lenticular Galaxy 86,000 Leo 10.9 C41 Mel 25 Hyades Open Cluster 0.151 Taurus 0.5 C42 NGC 7006 Globular Cluster 135 Delphinus 10.6 C43 NGC 7814 Spiral Galaxy 49,000 Pegasus 10.5 C44 NGC 7479 Superman Galaxy Barred Spiral Galaxy 106,000 Pegasus 11 C45 NGC 5248 Spiral Galaxy 74,000 Boötes 10.2 C46 NGC 2261 Hubble's Variable Nebula Nebula 2.5 Monoceros - C47 NGC 6934 Globular Cluster 57 Delphinus 8.9 C48 NGC 2775 Spiral Galaxy 55,000 Cancer 10.3 C49 NGC 2237 Rosette Nebula Nebula 4.9 Monoceros 9.0 C50 NGC 2244 Satellite Cluster Open Cluster 4.9 Monoceros 4.8 C51 IC 1613 Irregular galaxy 2,300 Cetus 9.3 C52 NGC 4697 Elliptical galaxy 76,000 Virgo 9.3 C53 NGC 3115 Spindle Galaxy Lenticular Galaxy 22,000 Sextans 9.2 C54 NGC 2506 Open Cluster 10 Monoceros 7.6 C55 NGC 7009 Saturn Nebula Planetary Nebula 1.4 Aquarius 8 C56 NGC 246 Skull Nebula"The Night Sky", Astronomy Now, Oct 2008. Planetary Nebula 1.6 Cetus 8 C57 NGC 6822 Barnard's Galaxy Barred irregular galaxy 2,300 Sagittarius 9 C58 NGC 2360 Caroline's Cluster Open Cluster 3.7 Canis Major 7.2 C59 NGC 3242 Ghost of Jupiter Planetary Nebula 1.4 Hydra 9 C60 NGC 4038 Antennae Galaxies Interacting galaxy 83,000 Corvus 10.7 C61 NGC 4039 Antennae Galaxies Interacting galaxy 83,000 Corvus 13 C62 NGC 247 Spiral Galaxy 6,800 Cetus 8.9 C63 NGC 7293 Helix Nebula Planetary Nebula 0.522 Aquarius 7.3 C64 NGC 2362 Tau Canis Majoris Cluster Open Cluster and Nebula 5.1 Canis Major 4.1 C65 NGC 253 Sculptor Galaxy Spiral Galaxy 9,800 Sculptor 7.1 C66 NGC 5694 Globular Cluster 113 Hydra 10.2 C67 NGC 1097 Barred Spiral Galaxy 47,000 Fornax 9.3 C68 NGC 6729 R CrA Nebula Nebula 0.424 Corona Australis - C69 NGC 6302 Bug Nebula Planetary Nebula 5.2 Scorpius 13 C70 NGC 300 Sculptor Pinwheel Galaxy Spiral Galaxy 3,900 Sculptor 9 C71 NGC 2477 Open Cluster 3.7 Puppis 5.8 C72 NGC 55 String of Pearls Galaxy Barred Spiral Galaxy 4,200 Sculptor 8 C73 NGC 1851 Globular Cluster 39.4 Columba 7.3 C74 NGC 3132 Eight Burst Nebula Planetary Nebula 2 Vela 8 C75 NGC 6124 Open Cluster 1.5 Scorpius 5.8 C76 NGC 6231 Open Cluster and Nebula 6 Scorpius 2.6 C77 NGC 5128 Centaurus A Elliptical or Lenticular Galaxy 16,000 Centaurus 7 C78 NGC 6541 Globular Cluster 22.3 Corona Australis 6.6 C79 NGC 3201 Globular Cluster 17 Vela 6.8 C80 NGC 5139 Omega Centauri Globular Cluster 17.3 Centaurus 3.7 C81 NGC 6352 Globular Cluster 18.6 Ara 8.2 C82 NGC 6193 Open Cluster 4.3 Ara 5.2 C83 NGC 4945 Barred Spiral Galaxy 17,000 Centaurus 9 C84 NGC 5286 Globular Cluster 36 Centaurus 7.6 C85 IC 2391 Omicron Velorum Cluster Open Cluster 0.5 Vela 2.5 C86 NGC 6397 Globular Cluster 7.5 Ara 5.7 C87 NGC 1261 Globular Cluster 55.5 Horologium 8.4 C88 NGC 5823 Open Cluster 3.4 Circinus 7.9 C89 NGC 6087 S Normae Cluster Open Cluster 3.3 Norma 5.4 C90 NGC 2867 Planetary Nebula 5.5 Carina 10 C91 NGC 3532 Wishing Well Cluster Open Cluster 1.6 Carina 3 C92 NGC 3372 Eta Carinae Nebula Nebula 7.5 Carina 3 C93 NGC 6752 Great Peacock Globular Globular Cluster 13 Pavo 5.4 C94 NGC 4755 Jewel Box Open Cluster 4.9 Crux 4.2 C95 NGC 6025 Open Cluster 2.5 Triangulum Australe 5.1 C96 NGC 2516 Southern Beehive Cluster Open Cluster 1.3 Carina 3.8 C97 NGC 3766 Pearl Cluster Open Cluster 5.8 Centaurus 5.3 C98 NGC 4609 Open Cluster 4.2 Crux 6.9 C99 - Coalsack Nebula Dark Nebula 0.61 Crux - C100 IC 2944 Lambda Centauri Nebula Open Cluster and Nebula 6 Centaurus 4.5 C101 NGC 6744 Spiral Galaxy 34,000 Pavo 9 C102 IC 2602 Theta Car Cluster Open Cluster 0.492 Carina 1.9 C103 NGC 2070 Tarantula Nebula Open Cluster and Nebula 170 Dorado 8.2 C104 NGC 362 Globular Cluster 27.7 Tucana 6.6 C105 NGC 4833 Globular Cluster 19.6 Musca 7.4 C106 NGC 104 47 Tucanae Globular Cluster 14.7 Tucana 4 C107 NGC 6101 Globular Cluster 49.9 Apus 9.3 C108 NGC 4372 Globular Cluster 18.9 Musca 7.8 C109 NGC 3195 Planetary Nebula 5.4 Chamaeleon 11.6Caldwell numberNGC numberCommon nameImageObject typeDistance to object in thousands of light yearsConstellationApparent magnitude
See also Messier Catalogue Herschel 400 Catalogue New General Catalogue (NGC) Index Catalogue (IC) Revised New General Catalogue (RNGC) Revised Index Catalogue (RIC)
Notes
References
External links
The Caldwell Catalogue at SEDS The Caldwell Club Caldwell Star Charts, Images and more Searchable Caldwell Catalogue list Clickable Caldwell Object table