
Nebulae represent clouds of gas and dust which appear as hazy or fuzzy objects when viewed through a telescope and are
characterized as one of four types (emission, planetary, reflection or dark). Emission nebulae, such as the Lagoon
nebula (M8), simply glow, for example, with a stunning shade of red. Planetary nebulae appear as small greenish disks
through a telescope, thus emulating the planets Uranus and Neptune, as a result of gas masses being thrown off by dying
stars (ex. M27, Dumbbell nebula) or represent supernova remnants (ex. M1, Crab nebula). In contrast, reflection nebulae
are characterized with gas surrounding young stars which reflect the stellar light (ex. M45, Pleiades) and, thus, yield
beautiful images of nebulosity. Finally, dark nebulae are detectable and studied only using parts other than the visible
spectrum and are believed to be associated with the formation of stars (ex. M16 in Serpens).
To enter a particular nebula image gallery, please click on the corresponding hyperlink under "Category".
| Category | Sample Images | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Dark Nebula |
![]() B33 in Ori |
![]() B72 in Oph |
![]() B85 in Sag |
![]() B86 in Sag |
![]() B92-B93 in Sag |
![]() B133 in Aql |
![]() B143 in Aql |
![]() B159 in Cyg |
![]() B343 in Cyg |
![]() B352 in Cyg |
|
Nebula |
![]() NGC 7000 in Cyg |
![]() IC 5070 in Cyg |
|||
![]() M16 in Ser |
![]() M17 in Sgr |
![]() NGC 6888 in Cyg |
![]() IC 5146 in Cyg |
![]() NGC 7822 in Cep |
|
Nebula |
![]() NGC 1435 in Tau |
![]() M78 in Ori |
|||
![]() NGC 1432 in Tau |
![]() NGC 1977 in Ori |
![]() M45 in Tau |
![]() NGC 7023 in Cep |
![]() NGC 7129 in Cep |
|
Nebula |
![]() Abell 12 in Ori |
![]() Abell 21 in Gem |
![]() Abell 39 in Her |
![]() Abell 71 in Cyg |
![]() Abell 74 in Vul |
![]() M27 in Vul |
![]() M76 in Per |
![]() Sh2-176 in Cas |
![]() Campbell's Hydrogen Star |
![]() NGC 2438 in Pup |
|
![]() HH 01 |
![]() HH 15 |
![]() HH 34 |
![]() HH 167 in Cep |
![]() HH 215 in Cep |
|
![]() Sh 2-117 in Cyg |
![]() Sh 2-142 in Cep |
![]() Sh 2-157 in Cas |
![]() Sh 2-184 in Cas |
||
![]() Sh 2-101 in Cyg |
![]() Sh 2-112 in Cyg |
![]() Sh 2-131 in Cep |
![]() Sh 2-132 in Cep |
![]() Sh 2-155 in Cep |
|
Remnants |
![]() CTB 1 in Cas |
![]() Sh2-96 in Cyg |
|||
![]() NGC 6960 in Cyg |
![]() NGC 6974 in Cyg |
![]() Sim 3-188 in Cyg |
![]() NGC 6992 in Cyg |
![]() NGC 6995 in Cyg |
|
Nebulae |
![]() vdB 21 in Tau |
![]() vdB 131 in Cyg |
![]() vdB 139 in Cep |
![]() vdB 142 in Cep |
![]() vdB 146 in Cep |
Bubbles |
![]() WR 007 |
![]() BD+602522 in Cas |
![]() WR 128 in Sge |
![]() WR 136 in Cyg |
![]() WR 153 in Cep |