Episode 1 of 3

First Observation

Name: First Observation
Start: 1885-08-17
Location: Andromeda Galaxy

When: 1885-08-17
Where: Andromeda Galaxy
Part of: Discovery of S Andromedae, first extragalactic supernova observed

French astronomer Ludovic Gully first observed the supernova in the Andromeda Galaxy during a public stargazing event.

Ludovic Gully observed the object on August 17, 1885, during a public stargazing event. This was the earliest recorded sighting of the supernova, although its significance as an extragalactic event was not immediately recognized.

Sources

SN 1885A Wikipedia, revision of 2026-07-14

Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.