explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2851: Messier Objects

2023-11-06T17:46:41Z

Arthomnix: the caption is not title text

{{comic
| number = 2851
| date = November 6, 2023
| title = Messier Objects
| image = messier_objects_2x.png
| imagesize = 293x294px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = The debate over the correct Messier number for the Ship of Theseus is ongoing.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a DOG LABELLED M590263 - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This comic is a play on the Messier Catalog, which is a famous list of astronomical objects compiled by the French astronomer Charles Messier in the 18th century. The real Messier Catalog includes 110 objects, which are mostly galaxies, star clusters, and nebulae, all beyond Earth in space.

In the comic, it's humorously suggested that the catalog includes not just these distant celestial objects, but also very ordinary things found here on Earth. Each ordinary object is labeled with an "M" followed by a number, just as the real Messier objects are numbered (like M1, M31, etc.). However, the numbers are much higher than the 110 included in the actual catalog, and they point to mundane things such as the ground, Charles Messier himself, a tree, a butterfly, and a squirrel.

The numbers increase as the objects go from large and significant to humans (the Earth, Charles Messier) to those that are smaller and less significant (a tree, a butterfly, and a squirrel). However, this pattern isn't strictly numerical (i.e., there's no clear mathematical sequence), but rather a conceptual one where the numbers arbitrarily become larger for things that are commonly considered less monumental or noteworthy than celestial objects.

The caption "People usually focus on the first 110, but the Messier Catalog actually includes ALL objects" is the whole punchline. It says that the catalog doesn't stop at celestial bodies, but rather includes every single object in existence, which of course is not true in reality.

So, the comic is a playful take on a piece of astronomical history, suggesting that everything in the universe is part of the Messier Catalog, not just the deep sky objects Messier originally listed.

The title text refers to the Ship of Theseus, which according to legend had all of its parts replaced over the years, leading to the question of whether it is the same ship as the original. The title text suggests that this leads to a debate as to whether the original ship and the new ship (with all of its parts replaced) should be considered the same object and therefore given the same Messier number, or the two ships should be considered different objects with different Messier numbers.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

:[Multiple objects are labelled with M followed by a number.]
:[There is a tree, a bug, a squirrel, a man with a powdered wig labeled Charles Messier, a squirrel, and ground.]
:M137 (Earth) (pointing to the ground)
:M205 (Charles Messier) (pointing to Charles Messier)
:M21860 (pointing to a tree on the left of the panel)
:M41592 (pointing to a butterfly above Charles)
:M30712050 (pointing to a squirrel)

:[Caption below the panel:]
:People usually focus on the first 110, but the Messier Catalog actually includes '''''ALL''''' objects.

{{comic discussion}}

2851: Messier Objects

2023-11-06T17:45:13Z

Arthomnix: title text explanation

{{comic
| number = 2851
| date = November 6, 2023
| title = Messier Objects
| image = messier_objects_2x.png
| imagesize = 293x294px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = The debate over the correct Messier number for the Ship of Theseus is ongoing.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a DOG LABELLED M590263 - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This comic is a play on the Messier Catalog, which is a famous list of astronomical objects compiled by the French astronomer Charles Messier in the 18th century. The real Messier Catalog includes 110 objects, which are mostly galaxies, star clusters, and nebulae, all beyond Earth in space.

In the comic, it's humorously suggested that the catalog includes not just these distant celestial objects, but also very ordinary things found here on Earth. Each ordinary object is labeled with an "M" followed by a number, just as the real Messier objects are numbered (like M1, M31, etc.). However, the numbers are much higher than the 110 included in the actual catalog, and they point to mundane things such as the ground, Charles Messier himself, a tree, a butterfly, and a squirrel.

The numbers increase as the objects go from large and significant to humans (the Earth, Charles Messier) to those that are smaller and less significant (a tree, a butterfly, and a squirrel). However, this pattern isn't strictly numerical (i.e., there's no clear mathematical sequence), but rather a conceptual one where the numbers arbitrarily become larger for things that are commonly considered less monumental or noteworthy than celestial objects.

The title text "People usually focus on the first 110, but the Messier Catalog actually includes ALL objects" is the whole punchline. It says that the catalog doesn't stop at celestial bodies, but rather includes every single object in existence, which of course is not true in reality.

So, the comic is a playful take on a piece of astronomical history, suggesting that everything in the universe is part of the Messier Catalog, not just the deep sky objects Messier originally listed.

The title text refers to the Ship of Theseus, which according to legend had all of its parts replaced over the years, leading to the question of whether it is the same ship as the original. The title text suggests that this leads to a debate as to whether the original ship and the new ship (with all of its parts replaced) should be considered the same object and therefore given the same Messier number, or the two ships should be considered different objects with different Messier numbers.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

:[Multiple objects are labelled with M followed by a number.]
:[There is a tree, a bug, a squirrel, a man with a powdered wig labeled Charles Messier, a squirrel, and ground.]
:M137 (Earth) (pointing to the ground)
:M205 (Charles Messier) (pointing to Charles Messier)
:M21860 (pointing to a tree on the left of the panel)
:M41592 (pointing to a butterfly above Charles)
:M30712050 (pointing to a squirrel)

:[Caption below the panel:]
:People usually focus on the first 110, but the Messier Catalog actually includes '''''ALL''''' objects.

{{comic discussion}}

2851: Messier Objects

2023-11-06T17:38:38Z

Arthomnix: bug -> butterfly

2851: Messier Objects

2023-11-06T17:37:43Z

Arthomnix: Add initial explanation