Celestial hemisphere:  Northern  ·  Constellation: Perseus (Per)  ·  Contains:  Little Dumbbell  ·  M 76  ·  NGC 650
Little Dumbell M76 , Pablo Lewin
Little Dumbell M76
Powered byPixInsight

Little Dumbell M76

Equipment

Loading...

Acquisition details

Loading...

Description

The Little Dumbbell Nebula, also known as Messier 76, NGC 650/651, the Barbell Nebula, or the Cork Nebula, is a planetary nebula in the constellation Perseus. It was discovered by Pierre Méchain in 1780 and included in Charles Messier's catalog of comet-like objects as number 76. It was first recognised as a planetary nebula in 1918 by the astronomer Heber Doust Curtis. However, there is some contention to this claim, as Isaac Roberts in 1891 did suggest that M76 might be similar to the Ring Nebula (M57), being instead as seen from the side view. The structure is now classed as a bipolar planetary nebula (BPNe).

Distance to M76 is currently estimated as 780 parsecs or 2,500 light years, making the average dimensions about 0.378 pc. (1.23 ly.) across.

Comments

Sky plot

Sky plot

Histogram

Little Dumbell M76 , Pablo Lewin