Orion Nebula
A stellar nursery where new stars are forming from glowing hydrogen. To the naked eye it is the fuzzy middle star of Orion's sword.
- Constellation
- Orion
- Distance
- 1,344 light-years
Rusty Gilreath, astrophotography
Target M42
RA 05h 35m 17s
Dec −05° 23′ 28″
Deep sky
Whirlpool Galaxy
A face-on spiral tugging at a smaller companion, NGC 5195, the yellow glow at the end of the upper arm.
- Constellation
- Canes Venatici
- Distance
- about 31 million light-years
Andromeda Galaxy
The nearest large galaxy to our own. Its small companion galaxy M32 sits just beside the bright core.
- Constellation
- Andromeda
- Distance
- 2.5 million light-years
Spiral galaxy
Tightly wound dust lanes circle a bright core. The two spiked stars beside it sit in our own galaxy, far in the foreground.
- Type
- Spiral galaxy
- Spikes
- Diffraction from the telescope
How far the light came
Every photo shows light that left its source long ago. Travel out to each one.
- Orion Nebula, 1,344 light-yearsThis light left around the year 680.
- Galactic core, about 26,000 light-yearsThis light left during the last ice age.
- Andromeda Galaxy, 2.5 million light-yearsThis light left before modern humans existed.
- Whirlpool Galaxy, about 31 million light-yearsThis light left in the Oligocene epoch.
Departing
Leaving Earth
Even the nearest star is 4.2 light-years away.
Nightscapes
Say hello
Want a print of one of these frames, or curious how a shot was made? Reach out to Rusty directly.