Spatial Search & Name Resolver:

To search an area on the sky, provide the center location and search radius:

• Center: Enter a coordinate string or object name (must be resolvable into coordinates by NED first then SIMBAD). Coordinate strings with no equinox specified will be treated as J2000. Note: If an equinox year is provided, but is not preceded by either a Bessel "B" or a Julian "J", the year will be ignored and J2000 will be assumed. The search field is case- and space-insensitive.
  
  Examples:
    NGC 7479
    346.23595 12.32297 eq
    23h04m56.63s 12d19m22.7s Equ J2000
    16:39:54.38 +36:33:20.1 B1950
    34.55 54.23 gal
    34. 54. ecl
    17:44:34 -41:16:08 Equatorial B1950
  
  
• Radius: Determines the area around the center coordinates over which to search. The default search radius is 30 arcseconds; valid entries are 0.1 arcseconds to 6 degrees.

By default, NED is contacted first; if no matching location is found, SIMBAD will be searched. For stellar objects, SIMBAD locations may be more accurate.

Please note that observations taken of a specific object (i.e., M51) may not be returned when you perform a spatial search for that object, if the RA and DEC values of the observation are too far away from the NED or SIMBAD location of the object. If you don't see the results you expect when doing a spatial search by object name, try increasing the "Radius" value to increase the search area, or switching to "Search by TARGNAME keyword" (below).

For "More Search Options":
To instruct the search program to attempt to resolve the location using SIMBAD first, enter your search criteria and check the radio button labeled "SIMBAD first."