Messier 17

E105137

Messier 17, also known as the Omega or Swan Nebula, is a bright star-forming emission nebula located in the constellation Sagittarius.

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All labels observed (3)

Label Occurrences
Messier 17 canonical 4
M17 (Omega Nebula) 1
M17 star-forming region 1

Statements (47)

Predicate Object
instanceOf H II region
Messier object
NGC object
emission nebula
star-forming region
addedToMessierCatalogueBy Charles Messier
alsoKnownAs Checkmark Nebula
Swan Nebula
surface form: Horseshoe Nebula

Omega Nebula
Swan Nebula
angularSize 11 arcminutes × 6 arcminutes
apparentMagnitudeV 6.0
bestSeenIn binoculars
small telescopes
summer
catalogNumber M17
NGC 6618
contains dust lanes
molecular clouds
open star cluster
young massive stars
declination −16° 11′
discoveredBy Philippe Loys de Chéseaux
discoveryYear 1745
distanceFromEarth about 1.6 kiloparsecs
about 5,000 light-years
dominantEmissionLines hydrogen alpha
galacticLatitude −0.7 degrees (approximate)
galacticLongitude 15.1 degrees (approximate)
hasShapeAppearance omega-shaped
swan-like
ionizingSource massive O-type stars
locatedIn Milky Way
Sagittarius Arm
locatedInConstellation Sagittarius
locatedNear galactic plane
messierCatalogueEntryYear 1764
observableFrom Northern Hemisphere
Southern Hemisphere
partOf a giant molecular cloud complex
regionType massive star-forming complex
rightAscension 18h 20m
spectralType H II emission
starFormationActivity intense
visibleInWavelength infrared
optical
radio

Referenced by (6)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Sagittarius contains Messier 17
Open cluster M17 partOf Messier 17
this entity surface form: M17 star-forming region
Omega Nebula alsoKnownAs Messier 17
Omega Nebula catalogNumber Messier 17
Sagittarius Arm contains Messier 17
this entity surface form: M17 (Omega Nebula)