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Sky-Tonight.com / Nebulae / M43

Mairan's Nebula (M43) Observation Details

M43

M43 Daily Motion

M43 will not be observable tonight. It will reach its transit at 45° by 16:43 and set at 22:24. Throughout the night, from 02:47 to 05:31, it will be below the horizon. M43 will rise again after sunrise, at 10:57.
M43 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, M43 can be seen again, providing a good opportunity for observation.

M43 Visibility Timetable on April 28

M43 Rise and Set Timetable

TimeElevation
Moon Rise, 0.3% illuminated06:12-50°
M43 transit16:4345°
Sunset20:2122°
Moon Set20:4219°
Civil sunset20:5217°
Astrosession begin22:054°
M43 set22:24
Astrosession end04:53-55°
M43 rise10:57

Track M43 Position Throughout the Night

← Mon, 28 April 2025 →

Elevation (degrees)
Time
Altitude
Azimuth
Shift the map to change the time and observe M43 changing position in the night sky.

M43 - De Mairan's Nebula

M43, also known as De Mairan's Nebula, is a diffuse nebula located in the constellation Orion. It was discovered by Jean-Jacques Dortous de Mairan before 1731 and later cataloged by Charles Messier in 1769. M43 is part of the Orion Nebula (M42) complex.

M43 spans about 4 light-years across and contains a bright, young star that illuminates the surrounding gas and dust. The nebula is approximately 1,344 light-years away from Earth and has an apparent magnitude of 9.0, making it visible with a small telescope.

M43 Image Gallery

DSS Blue

M43 photo taken with blue filter
These images are valuable for highlighting the presence of younger, hotter stars, which emit more light in the blue wavelengths.

DSS Red

M43 photo taken with red filter
These images are excellent for detecting older, cooler stars, as well as emission nebulae, which glow primarily in the red due to hydrogen alpha emissions.

DSS Near-Infrared

M43 photo taken with Near-Infrared filter
These images can penetrate dust clouds that obscure visible light, revealing structures and objects hidden within.

DSS Composite image

M43 color image
DSS Color images are composite images created by combining the blue, red, and often near-infrared images to produce a full-color representation.

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 M43

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Object nameM43
Field of view
Limiting magnitude
M43 coordinates5.59205, -5.26747
Center coordinates5.59205, -5.26747

M43 Passage Through Night

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Current position of M43

Time02:47
Latitude39.9625
Longitude-83.0061
M43 elevation-47°
M43 Azimuth44°
Here you can see the current position of the M43 on the map, as well as its positions for rise and set. This tool allows you to track the M43's movement throughout the night, providing you with accurate and up-to-date information.

Annual motion of M43

Time
DateTue, 29 April 2025
Twighlight start22:02
Twighlight end04:47
Twighlight duration7h 45m
Rise10:57
Set22:20
Elevation at transit45°
Transit time16:39
Equatorial coordinatesRA: 05h 35m 31s", Dec: -5° 16' 02s
Magnitude9
ConstellationOrion
The graph illustrates the annual visibility pattern of a M43, providing a comprehensive overview of its daily appearances and transit times throughout the year.
The graph is structured with the vertical axis showing the hours of the day, ranging from 12 AM to 12 AM the next day, while the horizontal axis spans each day of the year.
The reddish shaded area indicates the periods when the M43 is above the horizon, visible to observers. The white line marks the times when the celestial object reaches its highest point in the sky each day, known as the transit.

Data Credits

The nebulae information on this page is sourced from the OpenNGC project, developed by Matteo Verga. OpenNGC provides detailed data on the NGC catalog, which is a valuable resource for exploring deep-sky objects such as nebulae.

For more details or to contribute to OpenNGC, visit the official GitHub repository: OpenNGC on GitHub.