Home     To Survive in the Universe    
Services
    Why to Inhabit     Top Contributors     Astro Photo     The Collection     Forum     Blog New!     FAQ     Login  

Henry Draper Catalogue

The Henry Draper Catalogue is an astronomy catalogue with astrometric and spectroscopic data about more than 225,000 of the brightest stars visible from the northern hemisphere. The catalogue was first published between 1918 and 1924. It was compiled by Annie Jump Cannon and co-workers at Harvard College Observatory under the supervision of Edward C. Pickering, and was named in honour of Henry Draper, whose widow donated the money required to finance it. Stars contained in the catalogue are of medium magnitude, down to about 9m (about 50 times dimmer than the faintest stars visible with the naked eye). This makes them average-looking in amateur telescopes, and bright stars for professional instruments. The catalogue covers the whole sky and is notable as the first large-scale attempt to catalogue spectral types of stars.

Changes History - External Links