Christmas Tree and Cone Region

The Cone and Christmas Tree region are approximately 2700 light years from earth. When photons left this region on their way to earth, around 700 B.C., the Roman Empire had not yet begun. A ‘pre-Roman’ culture, the Etruscans, began to flourish in that part of Italy which is today known as Tuscany.

Object Data

The Cone Nebula and Christmas Tree region together form NGC2264, located in the northern part of the constellation Monoceros. It is an HII, star-forming region. In this photo, the Cone and Christmas Tree are located toward the lower right corner, surrounded by clouds of hydrogen gas and dust.

VIEW 75% HIGH RES VERSION

EXPOSURE DATA