What to photograph in February

The Beehive Cluster, also known as Praesepe, is one of the nearest open clusters, visible to the naked eye as a hazy patch in Cancer.

M48 is a large, bright open cluster in Hydra.

M67 is one of the oldest known open clusters, around four billion years old, which is why it has survived when most open clusters have drifted apart.

Bode's Galaxy is a bright spiral galaxy in Ursa Major, and it pairs naturally with the Cigar Galaxy, M82, about a degree away.

The Hamburger Galaxy is the third member of the Leo Triplet, an edge-on spiral with a thick dust lane that splits the disc like the patty in a burger.

NGC 2903 is a large, bright barred spiral in Leo, often overlooked because it sits near the better-known Leo galaxies.

The Cigar Galaxy is a starburst galaxy: it is forming stars many times faster than the Milky Way, and the burst blows red hydrogen out of its disc in two long plumes.

M65 is a tilted spiral galaxy in Leo that forms the Leo Triplet with M66 and NGC 3628.

M66 is the brightest of the Leo Triplet, a spiral galaxy with a distorted outline that shows signs of gravitational interaction with its neighbors.

The Surfboard Galaxy is an almost edge-on spiral in Ursa Major with a mottled, dusty disc.

M95 is a barred spiral galaxy in Leo with a prominent ring around its bar.

M96 is the brightest spiral galaxy in the Leo I group, with a bright core and slightly lopsided arms.

M105 is a round elliptical galaxy in Leo, in the same group as M95 and M96.

The Owl Nebula is a faint planetary nebula in Ursa Major with two dark patches that look like the eyes of an owl.