Trifid Nebula

Also known as Messier 20

HII region

AI overview

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AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

In the Vinony graph

Within Vinony's link graph, Trifid Nebula is referenced by 759 other articles, and connects out to NGC 6334, New General Catalogue and Lagoon Nebula.

It sits within the topics Astronomical objects discovered in 1764, Carina–Sagittarius Arm and Discoveries by Charles Messier.

Its subject is documented across 60 Wikipedia language editions.

Wikidata facts

Instance of: astronomical radio source
Part of: Milky Way
Constellation: Sagittarius
Distance from Earth: 816
Image: Trifid.nebula.arp.750pix.jpg

Show 12 more facts

Commons category: Trifid Nebula
catalog code: [KPS2012] MWSC 2789
time of discovery or invention: 1764-06-05
discoverer or inventor: Charles Messier
apparent magnitude: 6.3
right ascension: 270.6750
declination: -22.9717
radial velocity: -5.0
epoch: J2000.0
right ascension component of proper motion: 2.63
declination component of proper motion: -1.01
different from: Lagoon Nebula

Sources (3)

via Wikidata · CC0

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Encyclopedic overview

The Trifid Nebula (catalogued as Messier 20 or M20 and as NGC 6514) is an H II region in the north-west of Sagittarius in a star-forming region in the Milky Way's Scutum–Centaurus Arm. It was discovered by Charles Messier on June 5, 1764. Its name means 'three-lobe'. The object is an unusual combination of an open cluster of stars, an emission nebula (the relatively dense, reddish-pink portion), a reflection nebula (the mainly NNE blue portion), and a dark nebula (the apparent 'gaps' in the former that cause the trifurcated appearance, also designated Barnard 85). Viewed through a small telescope, the Trifid Nebula is a bright and peculiar object, and is thus a perennial favorite of amateur astronomers.

The most massive star that has formed in this region is HD 164492A, an O7.5III star with a mass more than 20 times the mass of the Sun. This star is surrounded by a cluster of approximately 3100 young stars.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Trifid Nebula” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.