William Herschel discovered NGC 6979 = H II-206, along with NGC 6960, on 7 Sep 1784 (sweep 259) and noted "F, S, crookedly elongated, r[esolvable]". Dreyer mentions in Scientific Papers that this section of the Veil nebula was not found at Birr Castle on three occasions although on one observation "extremeley faint" nebulosity was noted.

RNGC and Uranometria 2000 use the NGC position, though this points to extremely low surface brightness filaments. Harold Corwin's position matches the northeast section of a fairly faint 20'x4' filament situated northeast of the north end of Pickering's Triangular Wisp.

400/500mm - 17.5" (9/7/91): very faint, fairly large, elongated ~NNW-SSE, detached patch in the Veil Nebula. The SSE portion of this patch (identified in the RNGC as NGC 6974) is smaller and has several faint stars superimposed. The northern part (NGC 6979) is larger and wider but less well-defined and has some brighter stars superimposed. This patch is located NE of the northern end of the huge triangular wedge ("Pickering's Wedge") that forms the north central section of the Veil.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb