Astronomy Picture of the Day ·

Messier Catalog at Uniform Scale

The Astronomy Picture of the Day for May 14, 2026 is “Messier Catalog at Uniform Scale,” an image. It is credited to Image Credit: Sylvain Villet Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC , UMCP , CRESST II ). The original explanation runs about 166 words.

A grid over a black background shows astronomical objects with different sizes, labeled from M1 to M110.
Credit: Image Credit: Sylvain Villet Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC , UMCP , CRESST II ) Shown from science.nasa.gov. Not hosted by OpenOrbit.

From the explanation

“What are some of the most interesting astronomical objects you can see in the night sky? Armed with a good pair of binoculars or a small telescope, if you live in the Northern Hemisphere, you can look for the very popular objects in the Messier Catalog .”

— APOD editors, May 14, 2026

Read the full explanation on science.nasa.gov

At a glance

Date
May 14, 2026
Type
Image
Credit
Credit: Image Credit: Sylvain Villet Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC , UMCP , CRESST II )
Copyright
No copyright notice on the entry. Check the credited institution’s own usage rules before reusing it.
Explanation length
About 166 words

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Topics in this entry

Andromeda GalaxyNebulaeStar clustersComets

Topics are matched from words in the title and explanation.

On this day: May 14 in other years

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Source

Copy taken Oct 28, 2026, 2:39 AM EDT. The image and explanation belong to their creators. OpenOrbit is not affiliated with or endorsed by NASA.