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Cone Nebula [NGC 2264]Cone Nebula [NGC 2264]

— The Cone Nebula resides in the constellation of Monoceros. It was discovered by William Herschel in 1785. The nebula is located about 800 parsecs or 2,600 light-years away from the Earth. It is part of the nebulosity surrounding the Christmas Tree Cluster. The designation of NGC 2264 in the New General Catalogue refers to both objects and not the nebula alone.

Resembling a nightmarish beast rearing its head from a crimson sea, this celestial object is actually just a pillar of gas and dust. Called the Cone Nebula - so named because in ground-based images it has a conical shape - this monstrous pillar resides in a turbulent star-forming region. This picture, taken by the newly installed Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) aboard the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, shows the upper 2.5 light-years of the Cone, a height that equals 23 million roundtrips to the Moon. The entire pillar is seven light-years long... — full article

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Hyperion
— Hyperion is a moon of Saturn discovered by William Cranch Bond, George Phillips Bond and William Lassell in 1848. It is named after Hyperion, a Titan in Greek mythology. It has a low density indicating that it is composed largely of water ice with a small amount of rock. It is covered by at least a thin layer of dark material... — full article

Messier, Charles (1730-1817)
— French astronomer, born on 26 June 1730 in Badonvillier, Lorraine, France. He became interested in astronomy in younger years. Then he went to Paris, where he arrived on 2 October 1751 and was employed by Joseph-Nicolas Delisle, because of his fine hand-writing... — full article

Uranus
— Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun, named after the ancient Greek deity of the sky, the father of Kronos (Saturn) and grandfather of Zeus (Jupiter). Uranus was the first planet discovered in modern times by Sir William Herschel on 13 March 1781... — full article

Whirlpool Galaxy [M 51, Messier 51, NGC 5194]
— The graceful, winding arms of the majestic spiral galaxy M 51 (NGC 5194) appear like a grand spiral staircase sweeping through space. They are actually long lanes of stars and gas laced with dust... — full article