Planetary nebula
NGC 2392
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.
| Type | Planetary nebula |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Gemini |
| Distance | 550 pc (1.8 thousand ly) |
| Diameter | 0.2 ly |
| Central star | V 10.5 · O6 f |
| Expansion speed | 53 km/s |
| PN G name | PN G197.8+17.3 |
| Source | Strasbourg–ESO PN Catalogue |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 7h 29m 10.7s |
| Declination (J2000) | +20° 54′ 37″ |
In the sky
Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 69° S. North of latitude 69° N it never sets. 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 around the year 232. At the speed of Voyager 1, the fastest craft leaving the Solar System (16.9 km per second), the trip would take 32 million years.