Messier Object

Owl Nebula – Messier 97

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The Owl Nebula, also known as Messier 97 (M97), is a planetary nebula located in Ursa Major. The nebula lies at an approximate distance of 2,030 light years from Earth. It is known for its distinctive shape, resembling a pair of owl-like eyes, that can be seen in larger telescopes.

The estimated age of the Owl Nebula is about 8,000 years. The nebula has the designation NGC 3587 in the New General Catalogue.
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Southern Pinwheel Galaxy – Messier 83

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The Southern Pinwheel Galaxy, also known as Messier 83 (M83), is a barred spiral galaxy located in Hydra constellation. M83 lies at a distance of 15 million light years from Earth. It is one of the nearest and brightest spiral galaxies, and can even be seen in binoculars. The galaxy appears face-on when viewed from Earth.

Messier 83 was nicknamed the Southern Pinwheel Galaxy because of its prominent, very well defined spiral arms, which give the galaxy an appearance similar to the famous Pinwheel Galaxy (Messier 101), located in Ursa Major. Messier 83 has the designation NGC 5236 in the New General Catalogue.
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Black Eye Galaxy – Messier 64

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The Black Eye Galaxy, also known as Messier 64 (M64), is a famous spiral galaxy located in the constellation Coma Berenices. The galaxy is also sometimes called the Evil Eye Galaxy or Sleeping Beauty Galaxy. It has the designation NGC 4826 in the New General Catalogue.

M64 lies at an approximate distance of 24 million light years from Earth. It is known for the enormous light-absorbing dust band in front of its central region, which has earned the galaxy the names Black Eye or Evil Eye. The dust band obscures the stars in the galaxy’s bright core.
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Trifid Nebula – Messier 20

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The Trifid Nebula, also known as Messier 20 (M20), is a large star-forming region located in the southern constellation Sagittarius.

The nebula’s name means “divided into three lobes,” and refers to the object consisting of three types of nebulae and an open star cluster. The open cluster is surrounded by an emission nebula, a reflection nebula, and a dark nebula within the emission nebula that gives M20 the trifurcated appearance for which it is known.

The dark nebula was catalogued by Edward Barnard and has the designation Barnard 85 (B85). The Trifid Nebula has the designation NGC 6514 in the New General Catalogue.
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Supernova SN 2014J

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The supernova SN 2014J is a Type Ia supernova first detected in January 2014 in the Cigar Galaxy (Messier 82), in Ursa Major.

SN 2014J is the nearest Type Ia supernova event observed in the last 42 years. It reached peak magnitude of 10.5 and was bright enough to be seen by amateur astronomers.
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Dumbbell Nebula – Messier 27

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The Dumbbell Nebula, also known as Messier 27 (M27), is a bright, large planetary planetary nebula located in Vulpecula constellation. The nebula lies at a distance of 1,360 light years from Earth. It is sometimes also called the Apple Core Nebula or Diablo Nebula, and has the designation NGC 6853 in the New General Catalogue.

The Dumbbell Nebula was the first planetary nebula to be discovered. Charles Messier included it as M27 in his catalogue of deep sky objects in 1764.
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