Planetary nebula
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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 | Vulpecula |
| Distance | 5,730 pc (18.7 thousand ly) · estimated |
| Diameter | 1.7 ly |
| PN G name | PN G065.2-05.6 |
| Source | Strasbourg–ESO PN Catalogue |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 20h 17m 21.6s |
| Declination (J2000) | +25° 21′ 44″ |
In the sky
Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 65° S. North of latitude 65° N it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in July, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 19 thousand years ago. At that time Homo sapiens was spreading out of Africa; there was no farming yet. At the speed of Voyager 1, the fastest craft leaving the Solar System (16.9 km per second), the trip would take 332 million years.