Nebula
Sh2-206
H II region
A cloud of ionised hydrogen (H II region): a stellar nursery glowing in the ultraviolet light of the young, hot O and B stars inside it. The distance follows from the gas’s radial velocity and the Galaxy’s rotation curve (kinematic method).
| Type | Nebula |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Perseus |
| Distance | 2,520 pc (8.2 thousand ly) · estimated |
| Diameter | 38.4 ly |
| WISE name | G150.596-00.955 |
| Catalogue status | Known H II region |
| Source | WISE H II Catalog v3.0 |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 4h 03m 15.8s |
| Declination (J2000) | +51° 18′ 37″ |
In the sky
Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 39° S. North of latitude 39° N it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in November, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 8,219 years ago. At that time the first farming villages were being founded; there was no writing yet. At the speed of Voyager 1, the fastest craft leaving the Solar System (16.9 km per second), the trip would take 146 million years.