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Hubble's Messier Marathon 2026

March 14-21, 2026
Hubble unveiled a suite of new Messier images!

A colorful grouping of red, yellow, orange, blue, and white stars sits at image center. The stars appear close together at image center and appear less dense as you move outward.
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Every year, stargazers convene for the “Messier Marathon” – a challenge to observe as many cosmic objects from the Messier catalog as possible in a single night! This catalog was compiled in the 1700s by French astronomer Charles Messier, and features several ideal targets for backyard astronomers. No telescope? No problem! Stargaze from your screen with Hubble.

Hubble's Messier Marathon 2026

New images were added every day between March 14-21, 2026!

Hubble's Complete Messier Catalog
A colorful grouping of red, yellow, orange, blue, and white stars sits at image center. The stars appear close together at image center and appear less dense as you move outward.

Messier 10

Hubble’s ultraviolet image of Messier 10’s dense core reveals its high population of blue stragglers.

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An oval-shaped, dwarf galaxy is centered in the image. Its bright-white core and more diffuse edges sit against a black background.

Messier 32

Messier 32 is a satellite galaxy of the Andromeda Galaxy (M31).

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A close-up view shows a galaxy’s bright, yellow center, surrounded by patches of glowing orange-brown dust and pink stars.

Messier 101

This new image combines data from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and James Webb Space Telescope.

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A face on spiral galaxy fills the view. Its bright, barred core is at the center of the image. The galaxy’s core is bisected by reddish-brown dust that extends into its spiral arms. Bright pink-white star forming regions dot the spiral arms.

Messier 95

Messier 95 is visible as a hazy smudge on a clear, dark night using a good pair of binoculars.

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White, blue, orange, and red stars are scattered throughout the scene.

Messier 4

Use the bright star Antares to help you find Messier 4.

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A beautiful, nearly face-on spiral galaxy in shades of blue and pink fills the view. Its bright-white core is bisected with rusty-brown clouds that extend into the inner part of the galaxy’s spiral arms. Bright reddish-pink star forming regions shine like beacons that dot its spiral arms.

Messier 58

Messier 58 was one of the first galaxies recognized to have a spiral shape.

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A massive spiral galaxy glows with a yellow core, surrounded by arms full of orange-brown dust and pink and blue patches of star formation. Framed by a haze of dark dust, the galaxy shines against black space dotted with a few stars.

Messier 64

This dusty galaxy is also known as the "Black Eye" or "Evil Eye" galaxy.

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A dense ball of stars sits at the center of the image, becoming less dense as you move away from the center. They are mostly bright-white stars, but red, yellow, blue, and orange stars are also dotted throughout the cluster.

Messier 5

Messier 5’s stars formed more than 12 billion years ago.

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Compare Your View to Hubble's

Hubble's Night Sky Observing Challenge

These monthly target lists offer backyard astronomers the sky charts and information they need to find and see some of the same objects that Hubble has observed.

Start Stargazing about Hubble's Night Sky Observing Challenge
Dark blue starry night sky. People looking through a telescope and at the sky silhouetted against the starry backdrop.
Gather your family and friends and explore the night sky with Hubble!
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History

Charles Messier

Charles Messier (1730–1817) was a French astronomer best known for his "Catalog of Nebulae and Star Clusters."

An avid comet-hunter, Messier compiled a catalog of deep-sky objects in order to help prevent other comet enthusiasts from wasting their time studying objects that were not comets.

Read more about Charles Messier
painting of Charles Messier
Belgian-born historical and portrait painter, Antoine Ansiaux is credited with creating this portrait of Charles Messier in 1771.
Kollar, Jean-Michel, “Portrait de Charles Messier - Pastel d'Ansiaume (1771)”, 1997, Bibliothèque de l'Observatoire de Paris, Dp 674. Consulté le 28 nov. 2022

Hubble Science Highlights

Hubble's most notable scientific discoveries reflect the broad range of research and the breakthroughs it has achieved.

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Hubble view of an expanding halo of light around star V838 Monocerotis. Center of the ball-like cloud holds a bright star surrounded by red gas. The outer region of the "ball" is a tan color dotted with stars. Black background dotted with stars.
This image, obtained with the Advanced Camera for Surveys on February 8, 2004, is of an expanding halo of light around a distant star, named V838 Monocerotis (V838 Mon).
NASA, the Hubble Heritage Team (AURA/STScI) and ESA
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