M27, Luca Gamberini

M27

M27, Luca Gamberini

M27

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Description

The Dumbbell Nebula (also known as M 27 and NGC 6853) is a famous and brilliant planetary nebula visible in the constellation of the Volpetta.
The nebula is about 1360 light years from Earth, is of apparent magnitude 7.4, has an apparent diameter of about 8 arcominutes and an estimated age of 9800 years; its shape resembles that of a prolate spheroid and is seen along the perspective line of the equatorial plane. In 1992 it was determined that the rate of expansion on the plane of the sky of this nebula is not higher than 2.3 'per century: as a consequence, a maximum age limit of 14,600 years can be determined. In 1970, however, the real expansion rate was calculated, equal to 31 km / s. Since the major axis has a radius of 1.01 light years, the kinematic age of the nebula would be 9800 years.

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M27, Luca Gamberini