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Messier 78
Diffuse Nebula in Orion

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DESCRIPTION
M78 is the brightest diffuse reflection nebula in the sky. Discovered by Pierre Méchain in early 1780, Charles Messier added it to his catalog on December 17, 1780. It belongs to the Orion complex, a large cloud of gas and dust centered on the Orion Nebula M42/M43, and is about 1,600 light years distant. (Source: SEDS)


Constellation: Orion - Distance: 1,600 Light Years
RA: 05h 46.7m - DEC: +00d 03m - Magnitude: 8.3 - Apparent Size: 58' x 38 FOV
Date Taken: 03/05/07 - 03/10/07
Telescope: Intes MK-69 F6 6" MakCass
Camera: SBIG ST10XME
Mount: Software Bisque Paramount ME
Filters: Astrodon RGB
Guider: Self Guided

L 39 X 600 sec @ 1x1
R 6 X 600 sec @ 1x1
G 6 X 600 sec @ 1x1
B 6 X 600 sec @ 1x1

Image Aquired with CCDAutoPilot
Processed with CCDStack and Photoshop CS2