Planetary nebula
M 1-71
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 | 1,660 pc (5.4 thousand ly) · estimated |
| Diameter | 0.1 ly |
| Central star | WC ? |
| Expansion speed | 17 km/s |
| PN G name | PN G055.5-00.5 |
| Source | Strasbourg–ESO PN Catalogue |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 19h 36m 26.6s |
| Declination (J2000) | +19° 42′ 30″ |
In the sky
Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 70° S. North of latitude 70° 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 5,414 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 96 million years.