The Orion Nebula (Messier 42) is a massive stellar nursery located roughly 1,350 to 1,500 light-years from Earth. It is the closest large region of star birth to our solar system and shines brightly enough to be seen with the naked eye as a fuzzy patch in the sword of the Orion constellation.

Bode’s Galaxy (Messier 81, center) and the Cigar Galaxy (Messier 82), a famous pair of interacting neighboring galaxies located about 12 million light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major. Discovered by Johann Elert Bode in 1774.