Planetary nebula
Hb 4
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 | Ophiuchus |
| Distance | 1,540 pc (5.0 thousand ly) · estimated |
| Diameter | 0.2 ly |
| Central star | V 17.0 · WC 4-5 |
| Expansion speed | 23 km/s |
| PN G name | PN G003.1+02.9 |
| Source | Strasbourg–ESO PN Catalogue |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 17h 41m 52.8s |
| Declination (J2000) | −24° 42′ 08″ |
In the sky
Visible from the whole Southern Hemisphere and north to latitude 65° N. South of latitude 65° S 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 5,023 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 89 million years.