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Sky-Tonight.com / Nebulae and Deep-Sky Objects / Lagoon Nebula (M8)

Lagoon Nebula (M8) Position and Visibility Tonight

M8

Where is M8 right now?

M8 is located in the constellation Sagittarius. It is currently above the horizon at an altitude of 27° toward the south-west, with an apparent magnitude of 5.80.
Twilight begins at 19:01 local time. At that moment, M8 will be 27° above the horizon toward the south-west.
Open the interactive guide to M8’s position and path tonight

M8 visibility on 2026-09-09

M8 Visible from sunset until early morning

M8 rise and set timetable

TimeElevation
Moonrise, 12.4% illuminated 01:50-36°
M8 rise13:20
Moonset16:1323°
Sunset17:2428°
Civil sunset17:5228°
M8 transit17:5828°
Twilight start18:2328°
Astronomical observing session begins18:5527°
M8 set22:37
Astronomical observing session ends03:15-53°

Track M8 Position Throughout the Night

← 9 September 2026 →

Elevation (degrees)
Time
Altitude
Azimuth
Shift the map to change the time and observe M8 changing position in the night sky.

M8 - Lagoon Nebula

The Lagoon Nebula (M8) is a giant interstellar cloud in the constellation Sagittarius. It was discovered by Guillaume Le Gentil in 1747 and included in Messier's catalog in 1764. The nebula is a region of active star formation.

M8 spans about 110 light-years across and is illuminated by the hot young stars it contains. The nebula is approximately 4,100 light-years away from Earth and has an apparent magnitude of 6.0, making it visible to the naked eye under dark skies and easily seen with binoculars or a small telescope.

M8 — Image Gallery

DSS Blue

M8 — blue-filter image
Blue images highlight younger, hotter stars that emit strongly at blue wavelengths.

DSS Red

M8 — red-filter image
Red images reveal older, cooler stars and emission nebulae glowing strongly in hydrogen-alpha light.

DSS Near-Infrared

M8 — near-infrared image
Near-infrared images penetrate dust that obscures visible light and reveal hidden structures.

DSS Composite Image

M8 — composite color image
DSS color images combine blue, red and often near-infrared exposures into a composite view.

The images come from the Digitized Sky Survey 2 (DSS2), produced at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) under contract with NASA, using data from UK Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), European Southern Observatory (ESO), National Geographic Society-Palomar Observatory Sky Survey (POSS II).

Special thanks to National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO), Royal Observatory, Edinburgh, California Institute of Technology for their significant contributions.

Finder Chart for M8

Double-click to unlock the map.
Object nameM8
Field of view
Limiting magnitude
M8 coordinates18.06146, -24.38017
Center coordinates18.06146, -24.38017

Lagoon Nebula (M8) Passage Through Night

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Current position of Lagoon Nebula (M8)

Time19:01
Latitude37.3541
Longitude-121.955
Elevation27°
Azimuth196°
Here you can see the current position of M8 on the map, as well as its positions for rise and set. This tool lets you track its movement throughout the night with accurate, up-to-date information.

When Is Lagoon Nebula (M8) Visible Throughout the Year?


M8 will remain visible until December 5, when it moves too close to the Sun and temporarily disappears from the night sky. Time
DateThu, 10 September 2026
Twilight start18:53
Twilight end03:14
Twilight duration8h 21m
Rise13:16
Set22:33
Elevation at transit28°
Transit time17:54
Equatorial coordinatesRA: 18h 03m 41s", Dec: -24° 22' 48s
Magnitude6
ConstellationSagittarius
The graph illustrates the annual visibility pattern of M8, including its daily appearances and transit times. The vertical axis shows the hours of the day and the horizontal axis spans the year. The reddish area marks when the object is above the horizon, while the white line marks its daily transit.
You can also see when M8 is visible throughout the year in a table with exact rise, transit, and set times for each date.

Astrometric and Physical Parameters of M8

Coordinates and Visibility

Right Ascension18h 03m 41s
Declination-24° 22′ 49″
Magnitude5.80
ConstellationSagittarius
Elevation26.5°
Azimuth195.9°

Data Credits

The deep-sky information on this page comes from the OpenNGC project developed by Matteo Verga. OpenNGC provides detailed catalog data for nebulae, galaxies, clusters and other deep-sky objects.

For details or contributions, visit the official repository: OpenNGC GitHub.