Nebula · In the Milky Way

Lagoon Nebula

Star-forming region, M8

From the Sun

4,300 light-years

Lagoon NebulaOpen in 3D
Picture: ESO/VPHAS+ team

What it is

A giant cloud in Sagittarius, bright enough to see with the naked eye from a dark site.

The picture hangs at that distance facing Earth, as large as it is on the sky; how deep the object is cannot be seen, so it is flat.

The picture

Taken by
European Southern Observatory
Picture spans
about 73 ly
From the Sun
4,300 light-years
RA / Dec
270.90° / -24.39°

Lagoon Nebula

The Lagoon Nebula is a giant emission nebula with an H II region located in the constellation Sagittarius. Discovered by Giovanni Hodierna in 1654, it is one of only two star-forming nebulae faintly visible to the naked eye from mid-northern latitudes.

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In the Milky Way