M27, the Dumbell Nebula

Photo credit: Randy and Betty Ivins and granddaughter Miranda.

M27, the Dumbbell Nebula, is a planetary nebula much like the Ring Nebula, M57. It's about 1200 light-years away, in the direction of the obscure constellation Vulpecula.

Follow up:

Just as we probably are seeing the Ring Nebula down the central axis of the cloud, so we're probably looking more or less toward the equator of the Dumbbell Nebula. The overall nebula looks like a slightly elongated sphere, but it's brightest along two opposing arcs of the sphere, giving it a rather double-headed (or "dumbbell") appearance.

The Dumbbell is actually bright enough to be seen with binoculars, though with a modest telescope it can truly shine. To find it, look for the three bright stars of the Summer Triangle, currently up in the East after sunset in this area. The northernmost of these stars will be Deneb, in the constellation Cygnus the Swan. The central part of this constellation forms the Northern Cross. The longer axis of the cross runs from Deneb to a central star, Sadr, to the fainter star Alberio (itself a nice double star). The "T" section runs from Sadr up to Celta Cygni and down to Eta Cygni. Now, imagine you're making a box with one corner at Sadr, another at Alberio, and the third at Eta Cygni (the arm of the cross closer to the horizon). M27 will be the fourth corner of that imaginary box.

Alternately, if you've already been able to find the Ring Nebula, start from there, draw a straight line through Alberio, and the line will lead to M27. Either way, you can find a nice map at Deepskyobserving.com.