2024-01-23, 02:56 AM
I see your point, Howard. And just as importantly, some observers might want to "link" several objects together when they link together in the same field of view. For example, an observer might want a way to link M31 with M32 and M110. Or what if we wanted to link M84, M86, NGC 4477, NGC 4473, NGC 4461, NGC 4458, NGC 4438 and NGC 4435. Just seeing those objects listed like that, maybe a new observer might not see any correlation. But if an observer could somehow associate them together and mark any of them with the name (any guesses? : ) ), Markarian's Chain, now they instantly have meaning. It's the association together in a field of view that makes them special.