SPACE is full of clouds of dust and gas called nebulae. Some are the aftermath of a supernova, when a giant star has gone through the explosive end of its life. Others, like the Orion Nebula, represent the opposite end of the stellar life cycle: they are cosmic nurseries in which stars are being born.
The Orion Nebula, or M42, is visible from most parts of the world from November to February, which is when the constellation of Orion (pictured) is in the night sky. To first locate this constellation, look for the three stars in a row that make up its well-known belt.
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These sit between the bright, red-coloured star Betelgeuse and the blue star Rigel, Orion鈥檚 brightest member. But do remember: their position in the sky changes depending on where you are.
Take a closer look at Orion鈥檚 belt and you will see a line of stars that appears to be falling down from it, known as Orion鈥檚 sword. The nebula can be found halfway down this 鈥渟word鈥�.
From the UK, the constellation rises at about 9 pm GMT at the moment, getting earlier as the days pass. It remains visible until dawn. If your skies are dark enough, and there is no moonlight, you can see the nebula with the naked eye. However, on a clear night, even a fairly standard pair of binoculars will give you a much more detailed view.
Nebulae like Orion form stars when gravity forces the material inside them together. To witness the next stage of stellar evolution, we can look for a star cluster, which is a group of young stars sitting close together.
One of the most recognisable of these clusters is the Pleiades. It can be seen with the naked eye. In fact, computer simulations have shown that this cluster probably started out looking like the Orion Nebula. The Pleiades can be found near Orion in the night sky, in the constellation of Taurus.
To locate it, just follow these steps. From Orion鈥檚 belt, draw an imaginary line from left to right in the northern hemisphere, or right to left in the southern hemisphere. Extending this with your eyes through Orion鈥檚 bow, you will see a bright star that is close to the line.
This is Aldebaran, which is the brightest star in Taurus. (Look in the wrong direction and you will just find Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky.) Once you have found Aldebaran, just keep going and you should spot a small cluster of five bright stars together. You have reached the Pleiades.
And don鈥檛 forget, you can easily confirm what you have identified using a stargazing app. Although five of the stars in the Pleiades cluster stand out clearly, it is possible to see up to 14 of them with the naked eye when you are watching the sky in areas with no light pollution.
Grab some binoculars and you will see a whole lot more, though you would be pushed to see all of the 3000 stars in the cluster.
What you need
Binoculars
A stargazing app, such as SkyView Lite
Stargazing at home appears every four weeks
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