Rosette Nebula

Object Type: Emission Nebula
Scope: Orion APO 80mm; Exposure 360 minutes.

The Rosette Nebula (Caldwell 49) is a large, circular emission nebula (H II region) at one end of a giant molecular cloud in Monoceros, about 5,000 light-years away. The open cluster NGC 2244 at its center was formed from the nebula's own gas, and radiation and winds from those hot young stars have cleared and shaped the central cavity, giving the nebula its flower-like, rose appearance. The cluster is easy in binoculars, but the nebula's red glow only shows in photographs.