Abstract
THE Crab Nebula in Taurus, which has the distinction of being No. 1 in Messier's Catalogue, is of peculiar interest, as is shown by articles published respectively in L'Astronomie (August 1939) and in the Telescope (September 1939). These articles summarize the results of several technical papers published on this subject during the past few years. It seems likely that the Crab Nebula was first recorded by John Bovis, an English physician, in 1731. It was rediscovered in 1758 by the French astronomer, Charles Messier, and was later the subject of careful scrutiny by Sir William Herschel. It was observed with the great reflector at Parsonstown, Ireland, by Lord Rosse, whose drawing of the nebula, published in 1844, probably suggested its name. It remained, however, for astronomical photography to show, first in 1892 by Isaac Roberts and later by the American astronomers (Keoler, Curtis and Ritchey), its peculiar filamentary structure and afterwards to provide data for measuring its linear rate of expansion of about 0·18” per annum.
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The Crab Nebula: a Probable Super-Nova. Nature 144, 874 (1939). https://doi.org/10.1038/144874a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/144874a0