Orange Nebula

A state in space

If humankind ever sends a spacefaring expedition to NGC 1499, call it Mission Burrito, because this cosmic cloud is better known as the California Nebula. Sadly, that mission is many years away if it's possible at all: The California Nebula is over a thousand light-years from Earth, meaning a visit would require a millennium of travel time even if you had a lightspeed vessel. So while the modern marvels of space photography allow us to see it zoomed out (where it recalls the shape of its namesake US state), NGC 1499 will have to wait a while for its close-up.