Map of the Universe

NGC281

Star-forming region · Emission nebula in the constellation Cassiopeia

Open in the map →

About NGC281

NGC281 is about 9,188 light-years from the Sun, so the light we see from it left about 9,188 years ago.

It is 32,895 light-years from the centre of the Milky Way.

The map lists it as a star-forming region (star-forming region (maser)) and shows it among the stars around the Sun, drawn on the plane of the Milky Way.

A water or methanol maser in a massive star-forming region. Radio telescopes measured its parallax directly, which is how the Milky Way's spiral arms are mapped.

Key numbers

Distance9,188 light-years (2,817 pc)
Distance from the Galactic centre32,895 light-years
Galactic coordinatesl = 123.07°, b = -6.31°
Parallax0.355 mas (VLBI)
Spiral arm (Reid 2019)Perseus Arm

Data: Reid et al. 2019.

Where it is

Its place in the universe, from the inside out: Perseus Arm › Milky Way › Local Group › Virgo Supercluster › Laniakea Supercluster › Observable universe.

Zoom out to see it in context: Local Arm, a view about 12,000 light-years across.

From Wikipedia

NGC 281, IC 11 or Sh2-184 is a bright emission nebula and part of an H II region in the northern constellation of Cassiopeia and is part of the Milky Way's Perseus Spiral Arm. This 20×30 arcmin sized nebulosity is also associated with open cluster IC 1590, several Bok globules and the multiple star, B 1.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article NGC 281, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Nearby on the map