March 21, 2026
Space dragons, but make it retro
An Atlas of DRAGNs
Scientists map 85 'space dragons' and the internet loses it
TLDR: An old-school atlas of 85 radio "space dragons" (galaxies with giant jets) is making waves online. Commenters are split between loving the retro, raw data vibe and demanding modern, mobile-friendly visuals and simple explanations, turning a niche science page into a debate over accessibility versus preservation.
An old-school web atlas just resurfaced, mapping 85 nearby "DRAGNs" — radio-loud galaxies whose cores blast out giant jets — and the comment sections exploded. The site, part of the classic 3CRR catalog, looks straight out of 1998: frames, FTP, and a note to use a browser that supports HTML tables. Some folks swooned over the nostalgia and the no-nonsense science ("download the FITS files and go"), others asked for a modern, clickable tour and plain-English explainers like What are DRAGNs?. And yes, DRAGN means "Double Radio source Associated with Galactic Nuclei," not fire-breathing lizards — cue the memes.
Strongest opinions: preservationists begging "don’t break links, citeability matters," while accessibility champs pushed "give us PNGs, mobile layouts, and a simple space dragons 101." A running joke roasted the "Real soon now!" page note, with users timing it at a decade. The "famous sources omitted" list sparked FOMO, and a few accused the curators of gatekeeping. Meanwhile, old-timers clapped back: this is a time capsule of open data done right. The mood? Chaotic, funny, and surprisingly wholesome — with threads sharing tips on viewing FITS and linking to Jodrell Bank. One thing everyone agreed on: space dragons are cool, even if they come in black-and-white radio.
Key Points
- •Online Atlas presents radio images and data for the nearest 85 DRAGNs from the 3CRR sample (1983).
- •Edited by J. P. Leahy, A. H. Bridle, and R. G. Strom; last updated October 15, 2013.
- •Provides introductory materials, data descriptions, classification, and anatomy of DRAGNs.
- •Offers object-level access via alphanumeric and icon listings, search, and FITS file downloads (via FTP).
- •Includes tables of radio, positional, and optical data from literature; structural data noted as forthcoming at the time.