Flamsteed designation

Flamsteed designations for stars are similar to Bayer designations, except that they use numbers instead of Greek letters. The numbers were originally assigned in order of increasing right ascension within each constellation, but due to the effects of precession they are now slightly out of order in some places. This method of designating stars first appeared in a preliminary version of John Flamsteed's Historia coelestis Britannica which was published by Edmond Halley and Isaac Newton in 1712 without Flamsteed's approval. The designations gained popularity throughout the eighteenth century, and are now commonly used when no Bayer designation exists. Examples of well-known stars which are usually referred to by their Flamsteed numbers include 51 Pegasi[?] (see Extrasolar planet), and 61 Cygni (see Parallax).

There are examples of stars bearing Flamsteed designations for constellations in which they do not lie, just as there are for Bayer designations, because of the compromises that had to be made when the modern constellation boundaries were drawn up. It should also be noted that Flamsteed's catalogue covered only the stars visible from Great Britain, and therefore stars of the far southern constellations have no Flamsteed numbers.

See also: star designations