canopus56 posted:

My apologies if the informal designation of Herschel 3945, the Winter
Albireo, as 145 CMa, caused more heat than light. I had always learned
this binary as "145 CMa," I believe it was from Harrington's TUBA. You
are correct to critize the informal desigation of this binary as 145
CMa. As to an authoritative cite, the short answer is that the "A"
component (HD56577, HR2764) are cross-referenced in Kostjuk (2002)
HD-DM-GC-HR-HIP-Bayer-Flamsteed Cross Index CDS IV/27 as:

HD56577
HR2764
CD-23 5189
HIP35210
---- 145 CMa ------
http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/Cat?IV/27

You have no reason to apologize to anyone over this. While h3956 is one
of the more common designations for this colorful double star (along
with ADS 5951), I have seen it referred to as "145 CMA" from time to
time from a variety of sources. Probably the earliest published work I
have seen that designation in was David Eicher's book DEEP-SKY OBSERVING
WITH SMALL TELESCOPES (1989), so it goes back for a while. I ran into
it again when testing my NexStar telescope, as it had 145 CMa listed in
its double star database. Whether it is actually an original Flamsteed
number is uncertain, as I understand that the highest Flamsteed number
within any constellation is 140 (140 Tauri). In any case, the 145 CMa
designation is somewhat valuable here, as it it easier to remember than
h3945 and tells you instantly what constellation it is in. You also did
a valuable service by bringing this "winter Albireo" to the attention of
people who might not have hear of it. Clear skies to you.
--
David W. Knisely
Prairie Astronomy Club: http://www.prairieastronomyclub.org
Hyde Memorial Observatory: http://www.hydeobservatory.info/

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