Astronomical catalogues

Compare the bundled references by object type, observing band or messenger, and purpose. Filters are combined: an entry must match every selected filter. Search names, original names, aliases and translated features; for example, Messier, NGC, Fermi LAT or astrometry. Activate a column heading to sort. Filter changes preserve the search and sort order.

The qualitative classifications describe the linked product conservatively. Several categories may apply, and an omitted category does not prove that a feature is absent. Mixed sources are not a single physical object class; a point source is not necessarily a star. Clusters may be stellar or galactic. Radio / mm / submm includes microwaves. Brightness covers photometry, fluxes and count rates. Messenger labels describe the catalogue observation, not all wavelengths used to identify counterparts.

Some entries refer to a release index, maps or a catalogue family rather than one source catalogue. The note beside the name identifies this scope. Catalogue family information does not confirm a particular historical release. The WISE All-Sky link does not describe unWISE; the DES reference points to DR2. At the XMM archive, choose the named legacy release. Display names describe the reference target; original names remain searchable.

The optional snapshot adds the original counts and years without verifying or updating them. They may refer to a different product from the reference page. Counts can represent sources, detections, events or other entries, so they do not provide a direct comparison of sky coverage. A dash means no value is supplied. Hiding the snapshot also resets a count/year sort to catalogue name. This reference list is not a scientific validation of every catalogue or its contents.

After the bundled list has loaded, filtering, searching and sorting work locally in the browser. A first visit without a connection is not guaranteed to load. The tool performs no live catalogue queries and downloads no external catalogue data. External pages open only when you choose a name. Filter, search, sort and snapshot settings can be restored on a later visit.