Celestial hemisphere:  Southern  ·  Constellation: Cetus (Cet)  ·  Contains:  NGC 246  ·  NGC 255
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C56 / NGC246 Skull Nebula HOO & NGC255 Barred Spiral Galaxy, KiwiAstro
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C56 / NGC246 Skull Nebula HOO & NGC255 Barred Spiral Galaxy

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C56 / NGC246 Skull Nebula HOO & NGC255 Barred Spiral Galaxy, KiwiAstro
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C56 / NGC246 Skull Nebula HOO & NGC255 Barred Spiral Galaxy

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Description

The Skull Nebula, formally known as Caldwell 56 or NGC 246, is located roughly 1,600 light-years away in the constellation Cetus.   It is a planetary nebula that consists of a pair of closely bound stars orbited by a third outer star. The nebula is the dusty remnant of a stellar explosion, during which a sun-like star expelled its outer layers, leaving behind a glowing white dwarf central star. 

The composition of Ha and O3 make it look like a glowing skull against the backdrop of interstellar space.

The galaxy slightly visible in the left is NGC255 at a distance of 52 to 65 M LY and is a separate distinct galaxy and not part of our Milky Way.

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C56 / NGC246 Skull Nebula HOO & NGC255 Barred Spiral Galaxy, KiwiAstro

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Imaged with APT