A History of the Orion Neblua

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A nebula is a space dust that appears as a hazy bright, colorful patch in the sky. The Orion Nebula goes way back from millions of years ago and is made up of mostly hydrogen, but also helium, carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen (Wiley 1). The Orion Nebula is also known as M42, Messier 42, and NGC 1976 (Ivan P. 1). Even though the Orion Nebula may have a giant black hole in the middle of it, The Orion Nebula is still the brightest nebulae because it can be seen with the naked eye during certain times of the year and has the three brightest stars in it.
The Orion Nebula is not a difficult nebulae to find. It can be seen best during the colder months of January and February (Ivan P. 1). It is one of the many more noticeable star patterns in the sky during the winter (Franknoi 1). The three stars in it's center make it easier to find than most (Franknoi 1). If you live in the Northern Hemisphere, you can find the Orion Nebula in the southwest sky between Latitudes 86 and -75 degrees (Ivan P. 1). The Orion Nebula is 1,270 light years away from the earth (Fuller 1). The Orion Nebula is also between Jupiter and the brightest star, Sirius (Fuller 1). The Orion Nebula is fourteen light-years across (Ivan P. 1). If you really want to see the Orion Nebula up close then you need to use the Hubble Space Telescope to view it (Fuller 1). Since the Orion Nebula is so easy to find, it is a useful aid in finding other stars surrounding it including Sirius, Aldebaran, and Procyon (Garza 1). The Orion Nebula was also one of the first nebulae to be photographed (Britannica 1). Henry Drapper was the photographer and took the photograph in 1880 (Britannica 1).
The Orion Nebula originated from the Greeks. Orion has always been associated with mythology (I...

... middle of paper ...

...'s Sharpest View of the Orion Nebula." Www.spacetelescope.org. NASA, 2004. Web. 27 Mar. 2014. .
Templeton, Matthew. "Trapezium, BM Orionis, and Young Stellar Objects." Www.aavos.org/vsots_bmori. N.p., 4 Apr. 2012. Web. 24 Mar. 2014. .
Than, Ker. "The Splendor of Orion: A Star Factory Unveiled." Space.com. N.p., 11 Jan. 2006. Web. 25 Mar. 2014. .
Wiley, John. "Taking a Shine to Nebulae." Www.dummies.com/how-to/content/taking-a-shine-to-nebulae.html. N.p., 2014. Web. 27 Mar. 2014. .
Zimmerman, Kim Ann. "Orion Constellation: Facts About the Hunter." Space.com. N.p., 19 July 2012. Web. 26 Mar. 2014. .

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