Open star cluster · Sagittarius

Messier 18

M18 · NGC 6613

Above the horizon after darkHighest after dark 20:20 · southwest · 17°

Join the waitlistSkyMate is coming to iPhone

Where is Messier 18?

Times for LondonChange city

Look southwest, about 17° up at 20:20 in Sagittarius. It sinks lower through the evening and sets at 22:56.

From London tonight, Messier 18 is above the horizon after dark. It’s highest soon after dark, around 20:20, in the southwest at 17°.

At magnitude 6.9, with its light spread out, it needs binoculars and a dark sky.

This is position and timing only: clouds, haze and light pollution aren’t included.

Not visible

Too faint to see by eye.

A scatter of stars; often the best view.

Many separate stars. Use your lowest magnification.

What you’re likely to see, not what a space telescope photographs. General guidance from catalog brightness and size, not a forecast for tonight.

Messier 18 (M18) is a open star cluster in Sagittarius, with a total brightness of magnitude 6.9 and an apparent size of 6.0′.

Sources: OpenNGC (CC BY-SA 4.0); star chart: Wikidata (CC0). Positions computed for your place and time with astronomy-engine. Data & Licences