Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Orion Nebula

New Photo: Great Orion Nebula
ETX70AT, DSI IIC



The Orion Nebula (also known as Messier 42, M42, or NGC 1976) is a diffuse nebula situated south[b] of Orion's Belt. It is one of the brightest nebulae, and is visible to the naked eye in the night sky. M42 is located at a distance of 1,270±76 light years[2] and is the closest region of massive star formation to Earth. The M42 nebula is estimated to be 24 light years across. Older texts frequently referred to the Orion Nebula as the Great Nebula in Orion or the Great Orion Nebula. Yet older, astrological texts refer to it as Ensis (Latin for "sword"), which was also the name given to the star Eta Orionis, which can be seen close to the nebula from Earth.[5]
Visit Wikipedia.org for more information.

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Planets Align

Took this photo with our digital camera mounted on a tripod. Moon, Jupiter and Venus all lined up. 12/1/08 6:00 pm PST.