Scott Harrington is a 32-year-old amateur astronomer from northern Arkansas who lives under very dark and enviable skies. In 2008, at the age of 14, he got interested in astronomy and has since become an avid observer who’s unusually good at seeing faint objects using telescopes, binoculars, and the naked-eye. In 2023 he was awarded Lifetime Membership by the Astronomical League.

For him, sharing his observations to encourage others is paramount, which is why he enjoys writing online reports and unique pieces for the Reflector, Deep-Sky Observer, and Amateur Astronomy. His knack for research and writing recently made him the youngest Contributing Editor for Sky & Telescope magazine. And just this year he published his first peer-reviewed journal article titled “The Earliest Recorded Eruption of Luminous Blue Variables in Messier 33.”

Topic: Much Ado about Nebulae - A tour of the amazing variance in nebula types

The ancient Greeks called objects in the night sky that didn’t appear stellar néphos, meaning “mist” or “cloud.” The description, translated to “nebula” in Latin, eventually became a term after the invention of the telescope. But it was only in the last century and a half that we slowly realized most of what we’d cataloged as “nebulae” in our telescopes were actually galaxies like our own! Still, true nebulae are important to understand because they are what stars, solar systems, and we formed from…and there’s over a dozen different types that you can observe!