Date: May 24, 2007

Object: Lagoon Nebula; M8

Description: M8 lies in 5,000 light-years away in the constellation Sagittarius. This cloud of gas, dust, and young stars covers twice the area of the full moon but can only be observed on clear, dark nights as it has an overall magnitude of only 6.0.

Photo Credit: Rick Bearce

Location: City of Rocks State Park, New Mexico

Telescope: 9.25" Schmidt-Cassegrain OTA and a Vixen 102SS ED f6.5

Camera: Canon EOS Digitial Rebel XT