Snake Nebula
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Dark nebula | Lists of nebulae |
|---|---|
| Observation data (Epoch J2000.0) |
|
| Type | Dark |
| Right ascension | 17h 23m 30s |
| Declination | -23° 38′ |
| Distance | 650 |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | - |
| Apparent dimensions (V) | 4 arcmins |
| Constellation | Ophiuchus |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Radius | a few lys |
| Absolute magnitude (V) | - |
| Notable features | - |
| Other designations | Barnard 72 |
| edit | |
The Snake Nebula (also known as Barnard 72) is a dark nebula in the Ophiuchus constellation. It is a small but readily apparent S-shaped dust lane that snakes out in front of the Milky Way star clouds from the north-north-west edge of the bowl of the Pipe Nebula. Its thickness runs between 2′ and 3′ and runs around 6′ in the north-west / south-east orientation. A good view in a 4" to 6" telescope requires clear dark skies.
It is part of the much larger Dark Horse Nebula.
To the right side of the Snake Nebula is found Barnard 68. Below it are found Barnard 69, Barnard 70, and Barnard 74.
