Box Nebula (NGC 6309)
Also known as Box Nebula · NGC 6309
Box Nebula (NGC 6309) is a planetary nebula in the constellation Ophiuchus, about 9,030 light-years from Earth.
Facts
| Type | Planetary nebula (spectral type O(He)) |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Ophiuchus |
| Position (J2000) | 17h 14m 04s, −12° 54′ |
| Distance | 9,030 light-years (its light set off about 9,030 years ago) |
| Brightness | magnitude 11.5 (smaller is brighter; the faintest stars the eye sees are about 6) |
| Size on the sky | 0.4′ × 0.3′ (the full Moon is about 31′) |
| Filter | OIII filter (Planetary nebulae and supernova remnants shine mostly in the green light of doubly ionised oxygen: an OIII filter passes it and darkens the sky around it.) |
| Studied in | 323 scientific papers (SIMBAD) |
When and how to see it
Box Nebula (NGC 6309) is highest in the sky at midnight in June. From India (about 20° N) it climbs to about 57° above the horizon; from 50° N, to about 27°. To see it you need a small telescope.
Heights are worked out for India and for 50° N. Set your location in Settings to see them for where you are.
For tonight's best time from your own town, the darkness and the Moon, open it on the map and see its "Tonight from your location" card.
More in Ophiuchus
- Kepler's Supernova
- M9 (NGC 6333)
- M10 (NGC 6254)
- M12 (NGC 6218)
- M14 (NGC 6402)
- M19 (NGC 6273)
- M62 (NGC 6266)
- M107 (NGC 6171)
Everything in Ophiuchus · All 88 constellations · All sky objects
Data: SIMBAD (CDS, Strasbourg; the site's weekly copy) · OpenNGC · Data sources & credits