M24
Small Sagittarius Star Cloud
Propriétés
Position et Identifiants
Visibilité
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À propos de M24
Description
The Small Sagittarius Star Cloud is not a true deep-sky object but rather a dense patch of the Milky Way visible through a gap in the interstellar dust. It spans about 600 light-years in depth and contains millions of stars at a distance of roughly 10,000-16,000 light-years. Within this star cloud lies the small open cluster NGC 6603 and several dark nebulae.
Conseils d'Observation
Located in the heart of the Sagittarius Milky Way, about 3 degrees north of M18. One of the finest naked-eye Milky Way features — a bright, conspicuous patch about 2 degrees long. Binoculars provide a breathtaking view, revealing countless stars and dark dust lanes. A telescope at low power shows NGC 6603 as a compact knot within the cloud, along with dark nebulae like Barnard 92 and 93. Best observed from June through September.
Histoire
Cataloged by Charles Messier on June 20, 1764 as 'a large nebulosity in which there are many stars of different magnitudes.' It is unique among Messier objects as it is a star cloud rather than a defined cluster, nebula, or galaxy.
Faits Amusants
M24 is the largest Messier object in apparent size, spanning about 90 arcminutes. We are looking through a 'window' in the interstellar dust that allows us to see stars in the Sagittarius-Carina spiral arm far beyond the usual obscuring clouds. Without the dust gap, these distant stars would be invisible.
Photos de la Communauté (1)
Credit: Roberto Colombari. License: CC BY-SA 4.0. (Wikimedia Commons)
Skybred Feb 28, 2026