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The Orion Nebula is one of the most studied and photographed objects in the night sky, and is among the most intensely studied celestial features by astronomers that have revealed a wealth of knowledge on how stars and planetary systems are formed from collapsing clouds of gas and dust.

The Orion Nebula is one of the most studied and photographed objects in the night sky, and is among the most intensely studied celestial features by astronomers that have revealed a wealth of knowledge on how stars and planetary systems are formed from collapsing clouds of gas and dust.

The nebula was probably known to ancient people as it is visible to the naked eye, the Maya had a folk tale which dealt with the region of the sky with Orion.<ref>Krupp, Edward C. “Igniting the Hearth.” Sky & Telescope (February 1999): 94.</ref> [[Ptolemy]] did include it in the ''Almagest'' (Great Book), [[Tycho Brahe]] also made note of the object in the late 16th century, and in 1603, [[Johann Bayer]] recorded it as '''Theta Orion''' in his ''Uranometria''. [[Galileo]] also looked towards the region the nebular is located and and detected several faint stars.  None of these astronomers though, realized there was a nebula.

The nebula was probably known to ancient people as it is visible to the naked eye, the Maya had a folk tale which dealt with the region of the sky with Orion.<ref>Krupp, Edward C. “Igniting the Hearth.” Sky & Telescope (February 1999): 94.</ref> [[Ptolemy]] did include it in the ''Almagest'' (Great Book), [[Tycho Brahe]] also made note of the object in the late 16th century, and in 1603, [[Johann Bayer]] recorded it as '''Theta Orion''' in his ''Uranometria''. [[Galileo]] also looked towards the region the nebular is located and detected several faint stars.  None of these astronomers though, realized there was a nebula.

The credit for discovering the nebula is given to '''Nicholas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc''' who in 1610 first recorded of a cloudy nebulosity in the [[Orion]] constellation.  [[Jesuit]] astronomer '''Johann Baptist Cysatus''' independently found the nebula in 1611 and published a note about it seven years later.<ref name="history">http://messier.obspm.fr/Mdes/dm042.html</ref>  It was independently rediscovered by [[Christiaan Huygens]] in 1656, who is often credited for its discovery.  The designation M42 was given to the nebula by [[Charles Messier]], who recorded it in the first edition of his catalog of deep sky objects in 1774 (completed in 1771).<ref name="history"/>  The nebula is also known as the first deep sky observation by [[William Herschel]] in 1774, using the new reflecting telescope he'd recently completed.<ref name="history"/>

The credit for discovering the nebula is given to '''Nicholas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc''' who in 1610 first recorded of a cloudy nebulosity in the [[Orion]] constellation.  [[Jesuit]] astronomer '''Johann Baptist Cysatus''' independently found the nebula in 1611 and published a note about it seven years later.<ref name="history">http://messier.obspm.fr/Mdes/dm042.html</ref>  It was independently rediscovered by [[Christiaan Huygens]] in 1656, who is often credited for its discovery.  The designation M42 was given to the nebula by [[Charles Messier]], who recorded it in the first edition of his catalog of deep sky objects in 1774 (completed in 1771).<ref name="history"/>  The nebula is also known as the first deep sky observation by [[William Herschel]] in 1774, using the new reflecting telescope he'd recently completed.<ref name="history"/>

[[Image:M42proplyds.jpg|thumb|left|Image of several proplyds within the Orion Nebula by Hubble]]

[[Image:M42proplyds.jpg|thumb|left|Image of several proplyds within the Orion Nebula by Hubble]]

The Nebula itself is actually part of a larger nebula structure known as the '''Orion Molecular Cloud Complex''' that actually extends throughout the Orion constellation, and also holds the the [[Horsehead Nebula]], [[Barnard's Loop]], [[M43]], [[M78]] and the [[Flame Nebula]].

The Nebula itself is actually part of a larger nebula structure known as the '''Orion Molecular Cloud Complex''' that actually extends throughout the Orion constellation, and also holds the [[Horsehead Nebula]], [[Barnard's Loop]], [[M43]], [[M78]] and the [[Flame Nebula]].

Various features in the Orion Nebula have been given their own names by observers over the years.  The dark nebular lane that separates M34 from the main nebula And extending into the brightest part is nicknamed the "Fish's Mouth".  The brighter regions located on both sides of this dark dust feature are known as the "wings". At the end of the "Fish's Mouth" is the open cluster of new stars called the "Trapezium cluster" (named after the original quartet of stars known there).  "The Sword" is the name of the wing extension in the southeast of the nebula, while the brighter area of nebula below the Trapezium is referred to as "The Thrust".  The large region in the west of the nebula is simply known as "The Sail".<ref>http://www.seds.org/messier/m/m042.html</ref>

Various features in the Orion Nebula have been given their own names by observers over the years.  The dark nebular lane that separates M34 from the main nebula And extending into the brightest part is nicknamed the "Fish's Mouth".  The brighter regions located on both sides of this dark dust feature are known as the "wings". At the end of the "Fish's Mouth" is the open cluster of new stars called the "Trapezium cluster" (named after the original quartet of stars known there).  "The Sword" is the name of the wing extension in the southeast of the nebula, while the brighter area of nebula below the Trapezium is referred to as "The Thrust".  The large region in the west of the nebula is simply known as "The Sail".<ref>http://www.seds.org/messier/m/m042.html</ref>