In theory, a planetary nebula is basically the shells of a dying star that are pushed into space by the radiation of the star's nucleus, the white dwarf, and excited to emit light by the ionising radiation. In truth, however, this simple physical process makes planetary nebulae the most diverse class of cosmic nebulae in terms of shapes and colours.
StDr 164, the candidate of such a planetary nebula, is no exception. Like a jewel in the blackness of space, surrounded by dark molecular clouds, this nebula shines around a tiny white dwarf that is just barely able to ionise the gas surrounding it.
The extremely faint probable planetary nebula in the constellation Vulpecula was discovered by our team (Marcel Drechsler and Xavier Strottner) as early as 2019, but could not be sufficiently substantiated with data and photos until 2022. Based on the first test photos, it quickly became clear that this object is a relatively rare form of the ear-shaped PN (candidate, a spectrum is still pending).
Once again we were able to win over our friends Peter Goodhew and Sven Eklund as photographers, and both once more provided excellent data showing StDr 164 in wonderful detail.
Discoverers: Marcel Drechsler, Xavier Strottner
Acquiring the data: Sven Eklund and Peter Goodhew
Processing of the raw data: Sven Eklund and Peter Goodhew
Image processing: Marcel Drechsler
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Identifiers: Strottner-Drechsler164, StDr 164, PN-G: 063.2-02.6
Coordinates: 20:01:13.70 +25:19:34.93 (J2000)
Size: 3.1 arc min
Constellation: Vulpecula
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