ORION'S DEEP-SPACE TREASURES

The mighty Hunter has a horde of little-known treasures for you to track down and enjoy

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As the year draws to a close, nights are often sparkling clear and still, and everyone enjoys setting up their telescope on the frosty grass and gazing in awe and wonder at the green and-grey billows and swirls of the Orion Nebula. But Orion has much more to offer than just that 1,400-light-year-distant stellar nursery. In and around the Hunter there are more subtle, more challenging wonders to hunt down.

This month we will help you point your telescope towards objects famous and obscure. Most observers have heard of the Horsehead Nebula, but few have actually seen it – we’ll help you track it down. We also have a beautiful double star and a nebula that is as puzzling as it is pretty.