Messier 78 (M78, NGC 2068) is a beautiful blue reflection nebula in the constellation Orion. It is the brightest diffuse reflection nebula in a group of nebulae that includes NGC 2064, NGC 2067, and NGC 2071.

This reflection nebula in Orion was discovered by Charles Messier’s colleague Pierre Méchain 1780 and is part of 110 Messier Catalogue objects in the night sky. This nebula is best observed between December – March when Orion rises highest into the sky.

To view the M78 reflection nebula through a telescope, I recommend using a Dobsonian Telescope with an aperture of at least 8 inches. Even with a large aperture telescope, a moonless sky well away from city light pollution is a must.

The appearance of M78 is said to resemble that of a comet, as one side of the nebula flares away into the night sky. The M78 reflection nebula in Orion has captivated me since the first time I saw it, and it is one of my favorite deep-sky objects in the night sky.

The M78 Reflection Nebula in Orion.

The image above was captured using a monochrome astronomy camera, and a wide-field apochromatic refractor telescope. The image includes 3 hours of total exposure time using LRGB filters from a Bortle Scale Class 3 location.

While the total integrated exposure time was low compared to other images of M78 found online, the combination of good data and quality gear allowed me to process a version of this project I am happy with.

If you plan on taking a picture of this nebula like the one above, be sure to review my list of the best astrophotography telescopes available. A quality equatorial telescope mount and precise tracking are needed to produce an image with this level of detail.

Equipment Used for the Photo Above

Camera: ZWO ASI2600MM Pro
Filters: Chroma LRGB (36mm)
Telescope: Starfield GEAR 115 Triplet APO
Mount: ZWO AM5 Strainwave Drive Mount
Camera Control: ZWO ASIAIR Plus

Related Article: ASIAIR AIR Plus Review

Messier 78 in Orion

The nebula is lit by a stellar nursery of young stars illuminating the area with scattered blue light. M78 is classified as a reflection nebula because the dust particles are reflecting starlight from the intensely hot, young stars beneath it.

VISTA, the infrared survey telescope at ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile, captured an exquisite portrait of this star-forming region in 2016. This version of the image reveals streams of dark dust and red jets emerging from stars that are in the star formation process.

This nebula is often referred to as the ‘Casper the Friendly Ghost Nebula’, and is labeled as such in the Stellarium planetarium software. The general area that M78 is in (above Orion’s Belt) is rather easy to find, but its visual magnitude of 8.3 means it is quite dim and difficult to identify visually.

Messier 78 is located northwest of Alnitak in Orion’s Belt.

Messier 78 Details

Constellation: Orion
Object Type: Reflection Nebula
Visual Magnitude: 8.3
Dimensions: 8 x 6 (arc min)
Cataloged: Messier 78, M78, NGC 2068
Common Name: ‘Casper the Friendly Ghost Nebula’
Distance from Earth: 1,600 Light Years

Location in the Night Sky

This relatively small reflection nebula is easy to overlook because of its proximity to much larger, brighter, and more noteworthy nebulous regions such as the Orion Nebula. M78 lies within the constellation Orion, north of Alnitak, and the famous Horsehead Nebula.

It will appear as a small hazy patch through a telescope, as long as you are viewing this nebula in a sky free of moonlight and light pollution. If you can find the Orion Nebula – head upwards to the 3 stars of Orion’s Belt. Then, travel northwest of the leftmost star until you reach Messier 78.

“Many stargazers see M78 as a frosty-white featureless blob. But look closer, remain patient, and you’ll see more. The whole structure is distended, fanning towards the southeast like the head and tail of a small comet.” – One-Minute Astronomer

A wide field photo of the Orion Constellation may show the faint glow of M78 just to the right of Barnard’s Loop, an emission nebula in the form of a large arc centered approximately on the Orion Nebula. From our vantage point on Earth, the loop extends about 600 arcminutes and is easy to spot in a long-exposure photo of Orion.

Astrophotography Tips

The two most important factors in producing a pleasing astrophotography image of M78 are total exposure time and dark skies. The nature of this nebula requires that you leave the light-polluted city behind and head somewhere dark.

A light pollution filter (I recommend the Optolong L-Pro) may help for this project, but it will challenging from a city sky. Even from my backyard (Bortle 6), a detailed photo of this nebula is out of my reach. M78 is not an easy target.

My early attempts at this object were sad smudges of light in a starry sky. The dusty details that block out starlight and produce the beautiful blue glow from behind only emerged after about 2-3 hours of exposure time.

My first attempt at capturing this reflection nebula took place in 2014. I used a stock Canon EOS Rebel XSi (450D) and an 80mm refractor telescope to produce the image shown below. It was taken from a relatively dark sky site (Bortle 4), during the new moon phase.

An early attempt at the M78 Reflection Nebula in Orion with a DSLR camera and telescope.

A telescope with a focal length of 500mm or more is recommended for this object. My latest version of the image was taken using a telescope with a focal length of 650mm, and that seemed to be just right.

I find that it is critical to take proper calibration frames (such as dark frames, and flat frames) when photographing broadband targets like reflection nebulae. Narrowband imaging is a little more forgiving.

The camera and telescope used for my original M78 image from 2014.

Image Processing

The process of photographing a faint reflection nebula involves capturing several tracked sub-exposures and combining them using image stacking software. One of the best options available is DeepSkyStacker, a free, open-source tool that produces reliable results.

For my latest image of M78, the image includes 4 sets of images taken through LRGB filters. Using a monochrome astronomy camera (ZWO ASI2600MM Pro), I took 120-second exposure shots through each filter with the help of an electronic filter wheel.

In total, I collected 3 hours of integrated exposure time. You can see the individual stacks of sub-exposures through each filter below. The greyscale images are mapped to color channels to complete a beautiful full-color image.

The individual LRGB channels of my Messier 78 image.

Along with the standard image processing steps such as curves, star minimizing, and color enhancements, I used some new AI-powered tools that were introduced in 2022. The use of Russell Crowman’s BlurXTerminator helped to create a much more dynamic-looking image and was applied to each color channel individually.

I hope that my image of Messier 78 has inspired you to photograph it yourself. If you would like to stay up to date with my latest astrophotography images, you can follow me on X or Facebook.

Image Details:

Sky Quality: Bortle 3, NELM 6.8
LGRB Filters: 22 x 120-seconds each
Autoguiding: Yes, with Dithering via ASIAIR Plus
Total Exposure: 2 Hours, 56 Minutes
Integration: DeepSKyStacker
Processing: PixInsight, Adobe Photoshop

Trevor Jones is a deep-sky astrophotographer and a valued member of the RASC. His passion is to inspire others to start their astrophotography journey on his YouTube Channel, so they can appreciate the night sky as much as he does. His images have been featured in astronomy books, and online publications including the NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD).