- H130 minutes (13 frames)
- S120 minutes (12 frames)
- O120 minutes (12 frames)
The Orion Nebula* (also known as Messier 42, M42, or NGC 1976) is a diffuse nebula located in the Milky Way. It is located south of Orion's Belt in the famous constellation Orion and is visible as the middle "star" in Orion's "sword". It is one of the brightest astronomical nebulae, with an apparent magnitude of 4.0, and can be seen with the naked eye even in light pollution.
Key Features
- Distance from Earth: about 1,344 ± 20 light-years.
- Size: The nebula extends for 25 light-years.
- Mass: approximately 2,000 solar masses.
- Location: Located in the same spiral arm of the Galaxy as the Sun.
The Orion Nebula is the closest star-forming region to us, making it a key object for studying the processes of star formation and planetary systems. Within it, astronomers have observed protoplanetary disks, brown dwarfs, turbulent gas motions, and photoionization of massive stars.
Trapezium Star Cluster
Within the nebula lies a young open star cluster known as the Trapezium:
- Diameter: about 1.5 light-years.
- Primary components: four bright stars that form an asterism. Under good observing conditions, two more stars can be distinguished, giving a total of six stars. - The entire region contains about 2,800 stars in a diameter of 20 light years.
The nebula is surrounded by the Orion Molecular Cloud Complex, which extends for hundreds of light years and encompasses the entire constellation of Orion.
Colors and Glow Features
- Green tint: associated with a low-probability electron transition in doubly ionized oxygen (the so-called "forbidden transition"), which occurs in the nearly molecular-free environment of deep space.
- Red color: emission from the Hα recombination line with a wavelength of 656.3 nm.
- Blue and violet: reflected light from massive O-type stars located at the center of the nebula.
The green glow was previously associated with a hypothetical element called nebulium, but this phenomenon was later explained based on atomic physics.
Interesting Facts
- The Orion Nebula is the most studied and photographed object in the night sky.
- It is visible to the naked eye as a fuzzy star in Orion's "sword".
- Runaway Stars: About two million years ago, the cluster may have been home to the stars AE Aurigae, 53 Arieti, and Mu Columbi, which are now moving away at over 100 km/s.
| Photo | Date | Frames | Exposure | H | O | S | N |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | 25 Jan 2022 | 37 | 06:10 | 02:10 | 02:00 | 02:00 | |
 | 16 Mar 2021 | 37 | 06:10 | 02:10 | 02:00 | 02:00 | |
 | 22 Feb 2021 | 37 | 06:10 | 02:10 | 02:00 | 02:00 | |
 | 09 Feb 2018 | 37 | 00:37 | 00:37 | |||
 | 21 Oct 2017 | 43 | 00:43 | 00:43 |
Visibility chart of Orion Nebula (M 42) during the day
| Date | Moon Phase | Exposure | CCD Temperature | Gain | Offset | Filter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
- 2023ixf•
- 40 Eri•
- Abell 74•
- Artemis A868 SA•
- a Canis Minoris•
- C 2020 R4 ATLAS•
- C 2020 T2 Palomar•
- C 2021 S3 (PANSTARRS)•
- Haumea (2003 EL61)•
- HCG 68•
- HCG 92•
- IC 1318B•
- IC 1396•
- IC 1795•
- IC 1805•
- IC 1848•
- IC 1871•
- IC 3322A•
- IC 342•
- IC 4015•
- IC 405•
- IC 417•
- IC 434•
- IC 443•
- IC 4703•
- IC 5070•
- IC 5146•
- IC 63•
- M 1•
- M 101•
- M 103•
- M 109•
- M 13•
- M 15•
- M 27•
- M 3•
- M 33•
- M 42•
- M 45•
- M 5•
- M 51•
- M 57•
- M 63•
- M 64•
- M 74•
- M 76•
- M 81•
- M 82•
- M 86•
- M 87•
- M 94•
- M 97•
- NGC 147•
- NGC 1491•
- NGC 1499•
- NGC 1579•
- NGC 1961•
- NGC 2146•
- NGC 2239•
- NGC 2403•
- NGC 281•
- NGC 4236•
- NGC 4565•
- NGC 4631•
- NGC 507•
- NGC 508•
- NGC 5866•
- NGC 5907•
- NGC 6503•
- NGC 6823•
- NGC 6888•
- NGC 6946•
- NGC 6992•
- NGC 6995•
- NGC 7000•
- NGC 7023•
- NGC 7129•
- NGC 7217•
- NGC 7331•
- NGC 7380•
- NGC 7538•
- NGC 7635•
- NGC 7640•
- NGC 7822•
- NGC 891•
- NGC 896•
- NGC 925•
- PGC 54559•
- Sh2-155•
- Sh2-168•
- Sh2 103•
- Sh2 109•
- Sh2 132•
- T CrB•
- UGC 6930•
- V1405 Cas•
- Vesta A807 FA•