The Helix Nebula (NGC 7293) is a bright, large planetary nebula located 650 light years from Earth in the constellation
Aquarius. It is one of the closest planetary nebulae to Earth, as well as one of the brightest. With an apparent magnitude of 7.6 and an apparent size of 25 arcminutes, the nebula is visible in binoculars and easily observed in small telescopes in good conditions. Its striking appearance has earned it the nickname the Eye of God Nebula.Planetary nebulae like the Helix are formed when stars that are not massive enough to go out as supernovae expel their outer envelopes at the end of their evolutionary cycles. The stars become white dwarfs – hot remnant stellar cores – that energize the ejected material. White dwarfs are very dense, typically packing a mass similar to that of the Sun into a volume comparable to that of the Earth. The intense ultraviolet radiation from these stars causes the ejected layers of gas to glow.
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