PSA: I keep seeing people call the Orion Nebula a galaxy in comments

I was at a local star party in Flagstaff and heard three different people point to a photo and say 'look at that galaxy'. It's a nebula, a cloud of gas where stars are born, not a collection of billions of stars like a galaxy. Has anyone else noticed this mix-up getting more common?

3 comments

3 Comments

sarahbailey1mo ago

Guilty as charged, I called the Pleiades a galaxy once. Still cringe about it.

calebfisher1mo ago

My astronomy professor said this mix-up happens because both look like fuzzy patches in small telescopes.

morganhill1mo ago

I just started sketching what I saw.