The Ring Nebula (M 57)
Planetary Nebula
aka NGC 6720, PNG 063.1+13.9, PK 063+13.1, ARO 9
Integrated Visual Magnitude: 9.7
Apparent Diameter: 1.3'
Mean Surface Brightness: 18.8 mag/arc-sec2
Distance: 2600 ly
 Minimum requirements to view: any telescope under suburban skies

The Ring Nebula is one of the most famous objects in the sky and perhaps the most spectacular example of a planetary nebula.  It is bright, relatively large and most important of all, easy to find midway between two bright stars in Lyra.
Above--the view in a 90mm ETX at 50x with a Meade Super Wide Angle 24.5mm eyepiece.  The field of view (circle) is 79'.  The two bright stars are Sulafat (Gamma, 14 Lyr) and Sheliak (Beta, 10 Lyr).  Note how the position of M57 midway between these stars makes it very easy to find.
The Ring is visible in a 3-inch telescope as an elongated hazy spot.  A 6-inch scope will reveal the famous smoke ring structure.  Many observers describe M57 as having a slight greenish tint.  Users of larger telescopes should