Crab Nebula
RA 5h 36m · Dec +22° 14′
5′

The shredded remnant of a supernova witnessed in 1054 AD by Chinese and Arab astronomers. A pulsar at its heart spins 30 times per second, energising the surrounding filaments of ionised gas. One of the best-studied objects in the sky, and a striking target for narrowband imaging.

Supernova remnant

Crab Nebula

M 1 · Taurus
These photons are ~6,500 years old
⧉ 5 versions of this capture — pick one to see its image and log
Date
20/03/2026
Location
52.7618° N, 2.3776° W
Integration
28m (166 × 10s)
Software
ZWO Seestar app
Notes
·
Total effort
1h 56m over 1 night
Moon
🌒Waxing crescent, 4% lit
Plate solve
Centre RA
5h 36m 24.5s
Centre Dec
+22° 13′ 45″
Field
42.7′ × 76.0′
Pixel scale
1.19″/px
Orientation
-136.9° E of N
Hemisphere
Northern
Also in this frame

Catalogued objects inside the plate-solved field, nearest the centre first. Highlighted names have their own photo here.

Where to find it

Finder chart
+21°40′+21°50′+22°+22°10′+22°20′+22°30′+22°40′+22°50′5h34m5h35m5h35m5h36m5h37m5h37m5h38m5h39mM 1NE42.7′ x 76.0′5′

Star field and catalogued objects inside the plate-solved field, oriented to the solve. Fully offline, from the bundled star and deep-sky catalogues.

Interactive sky chart centred on 5 36 24.5 +22 13 45. Drag to pan, scroll to zoom, click a star or object to identify it. Zoom in to the plate-solved field for the DSS survey photo; zoom out for constellation figures and neighbouring catalogue objects. Fully self-hosted: the star and deep-sky catalogues and the survey image are all served from this site, so nothing external loads. Imagery: DSS2 colour (STScI / POSS-II). Constellation figures © Dominic Ford (GPLv3).

Captured from · Telford, UK
52.7618° N, 2.3776° W · view on OpenStreetMap ↗ · Place data © GeoNames (CC BY)

Frequently asked questions

What kind of object is M 1?
M 1 is a supernova remnant.
Which constellation is M 1 in?
M 1 lies in the constellation Taurus.
How far away is M 1?
The light in this image left M 1 roughly ~6,500 years ago, so that is how far back in time you are seeing it.
What are the coordinates of M 1?
M 1 sits at right ascension 05h 36m 24s and declination +22° 13′ 45″ (J2000).
When is the best time to photograph M 1?
M 1 rides highest in the evening sky around December, reaching about 59° above the horizon from around 53°N.
What equipment was used to photograph M 1?
This image of M 1 was captured with ZWO Seestar S50 and ZWO Seestar S50 Camera.
How much exposure time went into this image?
This image of M 1 represents 28m (166 × 10s) + 22m (135 x 10s) of total integration time.

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