Galaxies..............

[Naseeb]

Galaxies

M51 Spiral Galaxy - Gordon Rogers

Most
of the stars we see in the night sky belong to our own Galaxy, the
Milky Way. However, observers can also make out a handful of other
Galaxies with the naked eye. The two brightest Galaxies, the
'Magellanic Clouds' are only visible from the southern hemisphere.
However, others, including the Andromeda Galaxy, can be seen from
northern latitudes.

'M101 Spiral Galaxy
David Moth'



'M63 Sunflower Galaxy
Gordon Rogers'


'M13 Globular Cluster
Steve Moore'


'N6949 Spiral Galaxy
David Moth'

Galaxies
are identified by their Messier numbers. This convention was introduced
by the French astronomer Charles Messier, who began a catalogue of
diffuse objects in the night sky. Along with galaxies, nebulae and
smaller star clusters are also given Messier numbers.