Celestial hemisphere:  Southern  ·  Constellation: Orion (Ori)  ·  Contains:  Great Nebula in Orion  ·  M 42  ·  M 43  ·  NGC 1973  ·  NGC 1975  ·  NGC 1976  ·  NGC 1977  ·  NGC 1980  ·  NGC 1981  ·  NGC 1982  ·  The star 42Ori  ·  The star 45Ori  ·  The star θ1Ori  ·  The star θ2Ori  ·  The star ιOri
NGC 1976 - M42 - Nebuleuse d'Orion, Yannic Delisle
NGC 1976 - M42 - Nebuleuse d'Orion
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NGC 1976 - M42 - Nebuleuse d'Orion

NGC 1976 - M42 - Nebuleuse d'Orion, Yannic Delisle
NGC 1976 - M42 - Nebuleuse d'Orion
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NGC 1976 - M42 - Nebuleuse d'Orion

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Description

The Orion Nebula (also known as Messier 42, M42, or NGC 1976) is a diffuse nebula situated south of Orion's Belt in the constellation of Orion. M42 is located at a distance of 1,344 ± 20 light years and is the closest region of massive star formation to Earth. The M42 nebula is estimated to be 24 light years across. It has a mass of about 2,000 times that of the Sun. The peak surface brightness of the central region is about 17 Mag/arcsec2 (about 14 milli nits) and the outer bluish glow has a peak surface brightness of 21.3 Mag/arcsec2 (about 0.27 millinits).

The Orion Nebula contains a very young open cluster, known as the Trapezium due to the asterism of its primary four stars. Two of these can be resolved into their component binary systems on nights with good seeing, giving a total of six stars. The stars of the Trapezium, along with many other stars, are still in their early years. The Trapezium is a component of the much larger Orion Nebula Cluster, an association of about 2,800 stars within a diameter of 20 light years. Two million years ago this cluster may have been the home of the runaway stars AE Aurigae, 53 Arietis, and Mu Columbae, which are currently moving away from the nebula at speeds greater than 100 km/s.

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NGC 1976 - M42 - Nebuleuse d'Orion, Yannic Delisle