Korean Virtual Observatory

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Digitized Sky Survey, AstroNote, KASI

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Objects worth finding in the night sky.

Orion Nebula (M42, NGC 1976)A very bright emission nebula in Orion. On a clear night it is visible to the naked eye, and photographs reveal it even more vividly.
Andromeda Galaxy (M31)The most distant object visible to the naked eye: a collection of 100 billion stars about 2 million light-years away.
Pleiades (M45)An open cluster in Taurus, known in Korea as 'Jomsaengi-byeol'. It is the nearest and best-known cluster to the solar system and the most distinct to the naked eye.
Alcor and MizarA famous double star in the Big Dipper. It has long been celebrated — the Korean drama 'Queen Seondeok' even shows the Dipper's sixth star splitting in two to herald the birth of twins.
HyadesThe cluster arranged in a 'V' forming the head of Taurus. Its brightest star, Aldebaran, is not actually a member — it just happens to lie in the same direction. Visible to the naked eye in winter.
Horsehead Nebula (IC 434)A famous dark nebula in Orion, seen because it blocks light from the emission nebula behind it. It is very faint and hard to see by eye, but it is worth knowing where it is.
Crab Nebula (M1, NGC 1952)The remnant of supernova 1054 in Taurus. The explosion was recorded in Chinese and Arab astronomical records of the year 1054.
Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC)A dwarf galaxy orbiting the Milky Way, made of 10 billion stars at a distance of 160,000 light-years. At magnitude 0.9 it is visible to the naked eye from the Southern Hemisphere.
Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC, NGC 292)A dwarf galaxy orbiting the Milky Way, made of 100 million stars. At magnitude 2.7 it is visible to the naked eye from the Southern Hemisphere.
Praesepe (Beehive Cluster)Located in Cancer. People of old believed this cluster was where the souls of the dead ascended.
Antares, M4 and NGC 6144 regionAntares at the heart of Scorpius sits very close to the globular clusters M4 and NGC 6144, a favourite target for astrophotographers.
Sagittarius TripletNear Lambda, the lid of the 'Teapot' in Sagittarius, there is much to see: the Lagoon Nebula M8, the Trifid Nebula M20 and NGC 6559 are called the Sagittarius Triplet.
Sagittarius AThis powerful radio source is the black hole at the centre of our galaxy. Some 200 to 400 billion stars revolve around it, and the universe holds about 100 billion such galaxies.
Double Cluster in Perseus (NGC 884 & 869)Often named the most beautiful double cluster in the night sky. Visible to the naked eye as a hazy patch, it has been known since before Christ and was mentioned by Hipparchus and Ptolemy.
Butterfly Cluster (NGC 6405, M6)An open cluster in the tail of Scorpius, faintly visible to the naked eye.
Ptolemy Cluster (NGC 6475, M7)An open cluster in Scorpius. Charles Messier resolved about 30 of its stars with his telescope.
Wild Duck Cluster (M11, NGC 6705)An open cluster in Scutum, one of the densest open clusters known.
Hercules Globular Cluster (M13, NGC 6205)A globular cluster in Hercules, discovered by Edmond Halley in 1714 and added to Charles Messier's catalogue on 1 June 1764.
Pegasus Cluster (M15, NGC 7078)A globular cluster in Pegasus. Its absolute magnitude is −9.2, a total brightness 360,000 times that of the Sun.
Eagle Nebula (M16, NGC 6611)One of the best-known objects in the sky: an open cluster of young stars and an H II region in Serpens.
Omega Nebula (M17, NGC 6618)An H II region in Sagittarius. Including its clouds of interstellar matter it is about 40 light-years across.
Sagittarius Cluster (M22)A globular cluster in Sagittarius. At apparent magnitude 6.17 it is among the brightest clusters in the night sky.
Dumbbell Nebula (M27, NGC 6853)A planetary nebula in Vulpecula, shaped like a stretched spheroid seen along its equatorial plane.
Triangulum Galaxy (M33, NGC 598)A spiral galaxy in Triangulum and a member of the Local Group.
Beehive Cluster (Praesepe, M44, NGC 2632)An open cluster in Cancer. Visible to the naked eye, it has been known since ancient times.
Whirlpool Galaxy (M51a, NGC 5194)A spiral galaxy in Canes Venatici with striking spiral arms.
Ring Nebula (M57, NGC 6720)A planetary nebula in Lyra — the most famous planetary nebula of all.
Sunflower Galaxy (M63, NGC 5055)Located in Canes Venatici; like the Whirlpool Galaxy it forms a group with nearby dwarf galaxies.
Black Eye Galaxy (Sleeping Beauty, M64, NGC 4826)Located in Coma Berenices; even a small telescope shows its characteristic dark band of dust.
Little Dumbbell Nebula (M76, NGC 650/651)A planetary nebula in Perseus, also called the Barbell or Cork Nebula; it closely resembles the Dumbbell Nebula (M27) in Vulpecula.
Bode's Galaxy (M81, NGC 3031)One of the famous galaxies in Ursa Major, where supernova SN 1993J was discovered.
Cigar Galaxy (M82, NGC 3034)A radio galaxy in Ursa Major that can be seen together with nearby M81 in a small telescope.
Owl Nebula (M97, NGC 3587)A planetary nebula in Ursa Major that looks like an oblique cylindrical body seen from above.
Coma Pinwheel Galaxy (M99, NGC 4254)An unbarred spiral galaxy in Coma Berenices, where three supernovae have been discovered so far.
Pinwheel Galaxy (M101)A spiral galaxy in Ursa Major whose symmetry breaks down toward the outside, giving it an overall conch-shell shape.
Spindle Galaxy (M102, NGC 5866)A lenticular galaxy in Draco. Owing to an error in Messier's list, NGC 5866 is commonly called M102.
Sombrero Galaxy (M104, NGC 4594)A spiral galaxy in Virgo with a large bright core and a sharp dust lane across its tilted disk.
Maser Galaxy (M106, NGC 4258)A spiral galaxy in Canes Venatici, noted for spiral arms of unknown origin.