| Description | This is the first object in the catalog discovered by Méchain on June 14, 1779, still harvesting the fruits of observing the comet of 1779. Messier noted: "Nebula discovered by M. Méchain in Canes Venatici. M. Messier searched for it; it is faint, it has nearly the same light as the nebula reported under no. 59 [M59]: it contains no star, & the slightest illumination of the micrometer wires makes it disappear: it is close to a star of 8th magnitude.... M. Messier has reported its position on the Chart of the track of the Comet of 1779." <--> In my observation, M63 was in a prime observing location except for its proximity to the full moon, which upset the color balance. I opted to convert the image to monochrome and enhance it as such. The structure is much more evident. It's a fascinating, tight spiral, nearly circular. The sunflower moniker is apt, as it's bright enough to give us a good view of the disc's side... it appears to be floating, facing the sun. Lovely! |
