| 释义 |
Messier, n. Astron.|ˈmɛsɪə(r)|
[The name of Charles Messier (1730–1817), French astronomer.]
Used (a) attrib. and in the possessive (as Messier('s) catalogue, Messier number, Messier object) with reference to Messier's catalogue of diffuse non-stellar objects visible in the northern sky, first published in 1774; (b) with a following numeral to denote a particular object in this catalogue (more commonly as the abbrev. M).
1861Monthly Notices R. Astron. Soc. XXI. 33 The cluster known as 80 Messier changed, apparently, from a pale cometary looking object, to a well-defined star..and then returned to its usual and original appearance. 1899Astrophysical Jrnl. X. 255 The cluster Messier 5..contains about 900 stars on the photographs made with the 13-inch Boyden refractor. 1917Publ. Astron. Soc. Pacific XXIX. 177 Most of the Messier numbers, however, have been identified with numbers of Dreyer's New General Catalogue. 1929Astrophysical Jrnl. LXIX. 104 Messier 31, the great nebula in Andromeda, is the most conspicuous of all the spirals and the only one which can be seen easily with the naked eye. 1943H. Shapley Galaxies iv. 86 Many a modern amateur and some professional astronomers have since come upon one of these Messier objects and have excitedly telegraphed the supposed discovery of a new comet to the information bureau at the Harvard Observatory. 1947Jrnl. R. Astron. Soc. Canada XLI. 268 This last is the complete list, and is the document usually referred to as Messier's Catalogue. 1964V. Barocas tr. Abetti & Hack's Nebulae & Galaxies i. 23 After the Messier catalogue and John Herschel's general catalogue of 1864 and the others already mentioned. 1968K. G. Jones Messier's Nebulae & Star Clusters i. 29 Many of the Messier Objects, being on the whole, easily visible, have played a large part in revealing much of our present knowledge of stellar evolution and general cosmology. 1978Sci. Amer. Dec. 127/1 Their Messier numbers.., together with their popular names, are M8, the Lagoon Nebula; M16, the Eagle Nebula; [etc.]. 1987New Yorker 2 Feb. 26/2 Messier 1 turned out to be the Crab nebula in Taurus. |