M42: Rise, Set, Nighttime Path
![M42](https://sky-tonight.com/image/card/nebula/M42/M42.png)
M42 Daily Motion
M42 will rise at 05:03, during twilight, and will ascend to 3° by the time twilight ends at 05:17.M42 will become visible in August, 27. After being too close to the Sun to observe, it will reappear in the night sky. Starting from August, 27, M42 can be seen again, providing a good opportunity for observation.
M42 Rise and Set Timetable
Time | Elevation | |
Astrosession begin | 03:27 | -18° |
M42 Rise | 05:03 | |
Astrosession end | 05:17 | 3° |
Civil sunrise | 05:55 | 10° |
Sunrise | 06:27 | 16° |
M42 transit | 10:44 | 45° |
M42 Sky Tracker Map
Time | |
Altitude | |
Azimuth |
M42 - Orion Nebula
The Orion Nebula (M42) is a diffuse nebula located in the constellation Orion. It was discovered by Nicholas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc in 1610 and later cataloged by Charles Messier in 1769. M42 is one of the brightest nebulae in the sky and can be seen with the naked eye.
M42 spans about 24 light-years across and contains a rich population of young stars, including the Trapezium, a group of four massive stars. The nebula is approximately 1,344 light-years away from Earth and has an apparent magnitude of 4.0, making it a popular target for amateur astronomers.
M42 Image Gallery
DSS Blue
![M42 photo taken with blue filter](https://sky-tonight.com/images/nebulae/256/dss_blue/M42.webp)
DSS Red
![M42 photo taken with red filter](https://sky-tonight.com/images/nebulae/256/dss_red/M42.webp)
DSS Near-Infrared
![M42 photo taken with Near-Infrared filter](https://sky-tonight.com/images/nebulae/256/dss_nir/M42.webp)
DSS Composite image
![M42 color image](https://sky-tonight.com/images/nebulae/256/dss_color/M42.webp)
The photos are taken from the Digitized Sky Survey 2 (DSS2), which was produced at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) under NASA contract, using data from the UK Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), the European Southern Observatory (ESO), and the National Geographic Society-Palomar Observatory Sky Survey (POSS II).
Special thanks to the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO), the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh, and the California Institute of Technology for their significant contributions.
Finder Chart for M42
Object name | M42 |
Field of view | |
Limiting magnitude | |
M42 coordinates | 5.58791, -5.38967 |
Center coordinates | 5.58791, -5.38967 |
M42 Passage Through Night
Current position of M42
Time | 03:27 |
Latitude | 39.9625 |
Longitude | -83.0061 |
M42 elevation | -18° |
M42 Azimuth | -81° |
Annual motion of M42
Date | Sun, 28 July 2024 |
Twighlight start | 22:36 |
Twighlight end | 04:31 |
Twighlight duration | 6h 55m |
Rise | 04:59 |
Set | 16:21 |
Elevation at transit | 45° |
Transit time | 10:40 |
Equatorial coordinate | RA: 05h 35m 16s, Dec: -5° 23' 22" |
Magnitude | 4 |
Constellation | Orion |