NGC/IC Project Restoration Effort

===== NGC 4355 = NGC 4418. This is one of the 30-odd nebulae that David Todd ran across during his search for "the trans-neptunian" planet in 1877 and 1878. He estimated very crude positions for most of them using the setting circles on the USNO's 26-inch refractor. Fortunately, he also gave us sketches of the star fields around each of the objects and, often, measurements of RA differences between the stars and the nebulae. Unfortunately, these were not enough to allow Dreyer to identify the objects. Dreyer included in the NGC some objects that he thought might be "novae", but he skipped others that seem, to me, just as likely to be included -- and that were, in fact, new nebulae. In any event, Dreyer did include Todd's 17th nebula as NGC 4355. Using the sketch of that nebula's field, it's easy to see on the Sky Survey prints/films (even in a DSS field at least 15 arcmin on a side) that it clearly refers to NGC 4418. See NGC 3604 for more about Todd's search.

===== NGC 4355 See observing notes for NGC 4418.