Ring Nebula (M57) Observation Details

M57 Daily Motion

Tonight, observing M57 may prove challenging owing to its low elevation. It will reach its transit at by 12:05 and set before sunset at 20:03. Rising near twilight's end at 04:03, it will fade away by 04:05, peaking at just 0° above the horizon.
M57 will be visible until December, 23, when it will move too close to the Sun. During this time, its proximity to the Sun will cause it to disappear from the night sky, making it unobservable for a while.

M57 Visibility Timetable on December 05

M57 Rise and Set Timetable

	Time	Elevation
M57 transit	12:05	86°
Moon Rise, 99.8% illuminated	14:25	61°
Sunset	14:48	57°
Civil sunset	15:18	51°
Astrosession begin	16:22	38°
M57 set	20:03
Astrosession end	03:34	-4°
M57 rise	04:03
Civil sunrise	04:38	5°
Sunrise	05:08	10°
Moon Set	06:18	22°

Track M57 Position Throughout the Night

← Fri, 5 December 2025 →

Time
Altitude
Azimuth

Shift the map to change the time and observe M57 changing position in the night sky.

Where is Ring Nebula right now?

Ring Nebula (M57) is located in the constellation Lyra, at right ascension 18h 53m 35s" and declination 33° 01' 42s. At the current time, it is below the horizon and not visible from your location.

M57 - Ring Nebula

The Ring Nebula (M57) is a planetary nebula located in the constellation Lyra. It was discovered by Antoine Darquier de Pellepoix in 1779 and later cataloged by Charles Messier. M57 is one of the most famous planetary nebulae in the sky.

M57 spans about 1 light-year across and contains a central white dwarf star surrounded by a shell of ionized gas. The nebula is approximately 2,300 light-years away from Earth and has an apparent magnitude of 8.8, making it visible with a small telescope.

Finder Chart for M57

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Object name	M57
Field of view
Limiting magnitude
M57 coordinates	18.89306, 33.02858
Center coordinates	18.89306, 33.02858

M57 Passage Through Night

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Current position of M57

Time	23:05
Latitude	37.3541
Longitude	-121.955
M57 elevation	-18°
M57 Azimuth	13°

Here you can see the current position of the M57 on the map, as well as its positions for rise and set. This tool allows you to track the M57's movement throughout the night, providing you with accurate and up-to-date information.

Annual motion of M57

Date	Sat, 6 December 2025
Twighlight start	16:18
Twighlight end	03:28
Twighlight duration	11h 10m
Rise	04:03
Set	19:59
Elevation at transit	86°
Transit time	12:01
Equatorial coordinates	RA: 18h 53m 35s", Dec: 33° 01' 42s
Magnitude	9
Constellation	Lyra

The graph illustrates the annual visibility pattern of a M57, 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 M57 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.

Astrometric & Physical Parameters of M57

Coordinates & Visibility

Right Ascension	18.89306°
Declination	33.02858°
Magnitude	8.80
Constellation	Lyra
Elevation	-18.3°
Azimuth	12.7°

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.

Observation Settings