About Little Gem
Little Gem is a common nebula. It sits in the constellation Sgr and shines at apparent magnitude 11.2.
Clouds of gas and dust light-years across, where new stars are forged.
Common nebula 16 EP
Little Gem
RA 267.3127° · Dec -20.0095° · openngc
Score breakdown
· 2 badgesCommon 24 pts → Uncommon
- Nebula +8
- Has a proper name +8
Total score 16
8 more points to reach Uncommon.
Badges
- Nebula · +8
- Has a proper name · +8
Trivia
How we found it
- Named. Notable enough to have earned a proper name, not just a catalogue number.
Cosmic context
- Stellar nursery. Clouds of gas and dust light-years across, where new stars are forged.
Properties
- constellation
- Sgr
- dso type
- PN
- mag
- 11.2
- name
- Little Gem
- named
- yes
How to see it
Look for Little Gem in the constellation Sgr. At apparent magnitude 11.2, a small backyard telescope will bring it into view.
Like any astronomical target, Little Gem is best seen from a dark site away from city lights, and when it is above the horizon depends on your latitude and the time of year. The visibility panel above works out tonight's viewing window for your saved location.
Why Little Gem is a common nebula
Little Gem scores 16 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the common tier. Another 8 points would lift it into a rarer tier.
That score comes from 2 science badges — Nebula and Has a proper name — each earned for a real, measurable property of the object. Rarity on Spacedle is never random: the more remarkable an object's astrophysics, the more badges it collects, the higher it scores, and the rarer it ranks.