The Lagoon Nebula is a giant interstellar cloud in the constellation Sagittarius. It is classified as an emission nebula and as an H II region. The Lagoon Nebula was discovered by Giovanni Hodierna before 1654 and is one of only two star-forming nebulae faintly visible to the eye from mid-northern latitudes.

Distance to Earth: 4,077 light years

Radius: 55 × 20 ly

Coordinates: RA 18h 3m 37s | Dec -24° 23′ 12″

Constellation: Sagittarius

Apparent dimensions (V): 90 × 40 arcmins

Did you know: The Lagoon Nebula has a significant number of Bok globules, which are collapsing dark protostellar clouds, consisting of interstellar material, about 10,000 AU (astronomical units) in diameter.