Planetary nebula
M 3- 3
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 | Monoceros |
| Distance | 2,820 pc (9.2 thousand ly) · estimated |
| Diameter | 0.5 ly |
| Expansion speed | 10 km/s |
| PN G name | PN G221.7+05.3 |
| Source | Strasbourg–ESO PN Catalogue |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 7h 26m 34.1s |
| Declination (J2000) | −5° 21′ 54″ |
In the sky
Visible from the whole Southern Hemisphere and north to latitude 85° N. It stands highest at midnight in January, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 9,198 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 163 million years.