Emission nebula · Serpens

M16 Eagle Nebula

Also known as: NGC 6611, LBN 67

mag 6.07′ across

About

M16, the Eagle Nebula, is an emission nebula of magnitude 6.0 in Serpens, about 7′ across.

M16 is in the constellation Serpens.
Best evenings: around mid-August it is highest at about 9 pm (10 pm in summer time); a month earlier, two hours later.
Where on Earth: it is seen well, at least 10° up, from south of 66° N.

When it rises and sets tonight, how high it climbs and how much the Moon gets in the way are worked out in your browser for your place.

EyesNot visible to the naked eye.
Binoculars (10×50)Too faint for most binoculars.
Telescope (6–8 inch)A faint glow — a UHC or OIII filter and a dark sky make the difference.

For a dark country sky with no Moon. From a city, faint galaxies and nebulae can disappear completely.

Designations	M16, NGC 6611, LBN 67
Type	Emission nebula
Magnitude	6.0The smaller the number, the brighter.
Apparent size	7′ × 1.5′the full Moon is 31′ across
Constellation	Serpens
Right ascension (J2000)	18h 18m 48.2s
Declination (J2000)	−13° 48′ 26″

Catalog data: OpenNGC by Mattia Verga, CC BY-SA 4.0, and d3-celestial by Olaf Frohn, BSD 3-Clause. All data sources →