C74 — Eight-Burst Nebula
Planetary Nebula in Vela
About
NGC 3132, a planetary nebula in Vela about 2,000 light-years away, a shell shed by a dying star. Seen from the south it is called the Eight-Burst or Southern Ring Nebula. Webb included it among its first science images in July 2022.
Imaging tips
- Barely an arcminute across, so it is too small to frame: use a long focal length and a fine pixel scale.
- It is bright for its size at 19.3 mag/arcsec², so short stacks work: one amateur gathered about an hour from a light-polluted site using a light-pollution filter.
- A planetary nebula is an emission object, so Hα and OIII narrowband data suit it.
- A 10th-magnitude star sits in the nebula beside the faint central white dwarf. Best in February and March, but it never rises from 50°N.
Facts
- Size
- 2′
- Magnitude
- 9.2
- Coordinates
- RA 10h 7.0m, Dec −40° 26′
- Framing, APS-C
- longer than 4000 mm
- Framing, full frame
- longer than 4000 mm
- Best months
- Feb, Mar
- Peak altitude
- never rises from 50°N, 15° from 35°N