... Close to the Great Bear (Ursa Major) and surrounded by the stars of the Hunting Dogs (Canes Venatici), this celestial nebula was discovered in 1781 by the metric French astronomer Pierre Mechain and later added to the catalog of his friend and colleague Charles Messier as M106. ... A Crescent Nebula Star Field . ... Looking like an emerging space cocoon, the Crescent Nebula, visible on the right, was created by the brightest star in its center. ... The Egg Nebula in Polarized Light . ...