Hubble Stargazing

Do you have a telescope? Would you like to view some of the same objects Hubble has? If so, commemorate Hubble’s 30th anniversary this April by doing some Hubble stargazing. On a clear night, find a safe location with a dark sky away from bright lights, point your telescope upward, and gaze upon some of the same nebulas and galaxies Hubble has viewed.

Below is a list of some objects Hubble has observed that are visible from most locations in the Northern Hemisphere during the month of April. (Hubble was launched in April 1990.) The objects that begin with “M” are from the Messier catalog; the one that starts with “C” is from the Caldwell catalog. All of them can be seen with a large backyard telescope under a dark sky. (While binoculars and smaller telescopes can reveal some of these objects, we recommend using a telescope at least six inches in diameter for best viewing.)

Click on a picture below to learn more about that object and to see its location in the evening sky in April. Be sure to have a detailed star chart for each object you’d like to observe to serve as a guide. (Many books, software programs, apps and websites provide good star charts for the Messier and Caldwell objects listed here.)