Planetary nebula
A 20
Planetary nebula
A shell of gas thrown off by a dying Sun-like star, glowing in the ultraviolet light of the hot core at its centre. Within a few tens of thousands of years it will disperse and fade from view. The distance is a statistical estimate, uncertain by 30–50 %.
| Type | Planetary nebula |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Canis Minor |
| Distance | 1,820 pc (5.9 thousand ly) · estimated |
| Diameter | 1.9 ly |
| Central star | V 16.6 · O(H) |
| PN G name | PN G214.9+07.8 |
| Source | Strasbourg–ESO PN Catalogue |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 7h 22m 57.8s |
| Declination (J2000) | +1° 45′ 37″ |
In the sky
Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 88° S. It stands highest at midnight in January, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 5,936 years ago. At that time the first farming villages were being founded; there was no writing yet. At the speed of Voyager 1, the fastest craft leaving the Solar System (16.9 km per second), the trip would take 105 million years.