The Sky Today on Saturday, June 7: The Dumbbell Nebula

There’s a short dark window of about an hour after the Moon sets and before twilight begins to brighten the sky this morning. Use it to track down one of the most famous planetary nebulae in the sky: M27, the Dumbbell Nebula. Shining at magnitude 7.4 and stretching some 8’ by 6’, this was the first planetary nebula ever discovered. Its common name is derived from its distinctly elongated, bi-lobed shape, which to visual observers appears narrower in the center and rounder at each end (like a dumbbell or bow tie). Deeper astrophotos, however, show that the nebula has a spherical shell in addition to its brighter, bow tie-shaped component. 

You can spot M27 with either binoculars or a telescope. Start by looking south around 3:30 A.M. local daylight time, where Aquila the Eagle flies high in the sky, anchored by its brightest star, Altair. From Altair, slide your gaze nearly 11° north to land on magnitude 3.5 Gamma (γ) Sagittae. From this star, it’s a short 3.2° jaunt further northward again to find the Dumbbell. Astronomy contributing editor Phil Harrington recommends that if you’re using a telescope, employ a low-power eyepiece to first find the Dumbbell, then drop in a higher-powered eyepiece to explore its detail. Additionally, observers with larger scopes (10 inches or more) can try for the nebula’s central white dwarf, which shines at 13th magnitude. 

Sunrise: 5:32 A.M.
Sunset: 8:27 P.M.
Moonrise: 5:24 P.M.
Moonset: 3:00 A.M.
Moon Phase: Waxing gibbous (88%)
*Times for sunrise, sunset, moonrise, and moonset are given in local time from 40° N 90° W. The Moon’s illumination is given at 12 P.M. local time from the same location.

For a look ahead at more upcoming sky events, check out our full Sky This Week column.