NGC6543 · Cat's Eye Nebula

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Credit J.P. Harrington and K.J. Borkowski (University of Maryland), and NASA · Public domain

Chinese name	猫眼星云
Type	Planetary nebula
Constellation	Dra
RA	17h58m
Dec	+66°
Apparent magnitude	8.1ᵐ
Hemisphere	Northern
Best season	Summer
Difficulty	Moderate
Focal length	长焦 1500mm+

About

About 3,300 light-years away in Draco, the Cat's Eye Nebula is a planetary nebula ejected by a dying star, famous for its extremely intricate structure. Its bright blue-green core has a cat's-eye shape ringed by concentric shells and jets. Bright but small, it reveals fine core detail at long focal length, while deep exposure shows a huge faint outer halo, a popular summer planetary.