Messier Marathon
A Messier marathon is an attempt to see all 110 Messier objects in a single night. Messier objects are bright deep sky objects catalogued by the French astronomer and comet hunter Charles Messier in the 18th century. These objects can be seen in binoculars and amateur telescopes. All are visible from the northern hemisphere for at least part of the year. In late March and early April, they can all be seen in one night from low to mid-northern latitudes.
Charles Messier compiled the Messier catalogue to help observers distinguish between comets and bright deep sky objects. However, the catalogue has long outgrown its original purpose to become the most widely used guide for visual astronomy in the northern hemisphere.
The Messier marathon was invented in the 1970s by three American amateur astronomers – Donald Machholz, Tom Hoffelder, and Tom Reiland – who independently challenged themselves to catch all the Messier objects in one night.
Want to find out more:
The Messier Marathon
Starwalk
Messier Marathon Planner
2025 Attempt
Dates:
22nd/23rd March 2025
29th/30th March 2025
The Planners below have been setup with the following settings:
Longitude: 3.33
Latitude: 50.28
UTC Offset: 0 Hours
Horizontal Limit: 20
Order Table By: Viewing Sequence
Messier Marathon Planner 22-23 March 2025 .pdf22nd/23rd March 2025 Messier Marathon Planner
Messier Marathon Planner 29-30 March 2025.pdf29th/23rd March 2025 Messier Marathon Planner
MessierMarathon Log.pdfMessier Marathon Log
CelestronMessierObjectsChecklist.pdfMessier Marathon Checklist