Reflection nebula
Messier 78
Also M78 · NGC 2068
A blue reflection nebula: dust in the Orion B cloud scattering the light of young stars.
Measured
- Distance
- 1,360 light-years
- Size
- about 10 light-years across (approximate)
- Constellation
- Orion
- Position (J2000)
- RA 5h 46m 47s, Dec +0.01°
How far, from the Sun
1,360 light-years. To cross it:
- Light1,360 years
- Voyager 1's speed24.2 million years
- Driving at 100 km/h14.7 billion years
Voyager 1 at the speed it moved outward over the year to 2026-10-25 (JPL Horizons). Driving: nonstop, never refuelling.
Facts
- It shines by starlight bouncing off dust, not by glowing gas of its own.
- It is one of the brightest reflection nebulae in the sky, at about magnitude 8.
How it was found
- Pierre Méchain discovered it in 1780.
Where this comes from
- Kounkel et al. 2018, AJ 156, 84, Gaia DR2 (Orion B 407 ± 4 pc; NGC 2068 417 ± 5 pc; NGC 2024 403 ± 4 pc)
Every catalogue Ouranos draws is credited on the credits page.