Planetary nebula
K 3- 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 | Serpens |
| Distance | 3,630 pc (11.8 thousand ly) · estimated |
| Diameter | 0.7 ly |
| PN G name | PN G032.7+05.6 |
| Source | Strasbourg–ESO PN Catalogue |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 18h 31m 00.5s |
| Declination (J2000) | +2° 25′ 36″ |
In the sky
Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 88° S. 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 12 thousand 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 210 million years.