Planetary nebula
A 46
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 | Lyra |
| Distance | 2,420 pc (7.9 thousand ly) · estimated |
| Diameter | 2.4 ly |
| Central star | V 15.0 · O9 k |
| PN G name | PN G055.4+16.0 |
| Source | Strasbourg–ESO PN Catalogue |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 18h 31m 18.9s |
| Declination (J2000) | +26° 56′ 17″ |
In the sky
Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 63° S. North of latitude 63° N it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in June, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 7,893 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 140 million years.