1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:01,802 [cheering] [intense music] 2 00:00:01,802 --> 00:00:06,473 The madness of March has begun! Who will rise through the ranks 3 00:00:06,473 --> 00:00:09,910 and come out victorious? I’m referring of course to the 4 00:00:09,910 --> 00:00:13,547 exciting, nail-biting challenge of amateur astronomy. 5 00:00:13,547 --> 00:00:16,116 Sky-watching enthusiasts across the northern hemisphere are 6 00:00:16,116 --> 00:00:19,219 prepping their telescopes for this year’s Messier marathon, 7 00:00:19,219 --> 00:00:23,423 where they try to find as many of the 110 Messier objects as 8 00:00:23,423 --> 00:00:29,096 they can in just one night. To celebrate, NASA’s Hubble Space 9 00:00:29,096 --> 00:00:34,234 Telescope is releasing 12 new images of Messier objects. 10 00:00:34,234 --> 00:00:37,571 Charles Messier was a French astronomer in the 1700s and 11 00:00:37,571 --> 00:00:41,675 early 1800s. He was interested in discovering comets, but it 12 00:00:41,675 --> 00:00:44,678 took time to determine which fuzzy features in the sky were 13 00:00:44,678 --> 00:00:48,715 new, moving objects and which were permanent and stationary. 14 00:00:48,715 --> 00:00:52,352 So, Messier compiled a list of the permanent features to make 15 00:00:52,352 --> 00:00:56,556 it easier to identify the new comets. This list, now known as 16 00:00:56,556 --> 00:01:00,027 the Messier catalog, includes star clusters, nebulas, and 17 00:01:00,027 --> 00:01:03,096 galaxies, and it’s popular with amateur astronomers because 18 00:01:03,096 --> 00:01:06,033 they’re all relatively bright and findable with a backyard 19 00:01:06,033 --> 00:01:10,170 telescope. There are a few weeks from mid-March to early April 20 00:01:10,170 --> 00:01:13,040 when it’s possible for people in the northern hemisphere to 21 00:01:13,040 --> 00:01:18,078 observe all 110 Messier objects in one night. This is best done 22 00:01:18,078 --> 00:01:22,916 close to the time of a new moon, which in 2018 is March 17th. 23 00:01:22,916 --> 00:01:26,219 Many astronomy clubs across the globe organize Messier marathons 24 00:01:26,219 --> 00:01:29,323 around this time, and only people with the most skill, 25 00:01:29,323 --> 00:01:33,660 endurance, will power, good luck, and darkest skies manage 26 00:01:33,660 --> 00:01:38,398 to find all 110 objects before the sun rises. The Hubble Space 27 00:01:38,398 --> 00:01:42,235 Telescope has plenty of skill and the darkest sky possible, 28 00:01:42,235 --> 00:01:46,340 but it doesn’t have the agility to point toward 110 objects in 29 00:01:46,340 --> 00:01:50,510 different parts of the sky within 12 hours. Over the years 30 00:01:50,510 --> 00:01:53,947 though, Hubble has provided fantastic zoomed-in images of 31 00:01:53,947 --> 00:01:57,718 most of the Messier catalog. These 12 new images were 32 00:01:57,718 --> 00:02:01,188 recently processed from existing Hubble data and compiled into 33 00:02:01,188 --> 00:02:04,391 Hubble’s gallery of Messier objects to share the excitement 34 00:02:04,391 --> 00:02:08,095 of stargazing, and let amateur astronomers compare their views 35 00:02:08,095 --> 00:02:11,898 to those of Hubble. The 12 new images include six spiral 36 00:02:11,898 --> 00:02:15,535 galaxies, four elliptical galaxies, and two globular 37 00:02:15,535 --> 00:02:19,306 clusters. M58 was one of the first galaxies recognized to 38 00:02:19,306 --> 00:02:24,411 have a spiral shape, and is the most distant Messier object. M90 39 00:02:24,411 --> 00:02:27,414 is one of the few galaxies to be moving toward our own Milky Way 40 00:02:27,414 --> 00:02:31,551 galaxy rather than away. Though Messier himself may have been 41 00:02:31,551 --> 00:02:34,921 disappointed that these objects weren’t comets, each of them has 42 00:02:34,921 --> 00:02:39,026 a unique story to tell. Whether you use a space observatory like 43 00:02:39,026 --> 00:02:42,629 Hubble, a small telescope on the ground, binoculars, or just your 44 00:02:42,629 --> 00:02:45,866 own eyes, there are always interesting things to look at in 45 00:02:45,866 --> 00:02:47,868 the night sky. 46 00:02:47,868 --> 00:00:00,000 www.nasa.gov/hubble @NASAHubble