c63-1 — Hubble · Caldwell 63 · NASA, NOAO, ESA, the Hubble Helix Nebula Team, M. Meixner (STScI), and T.A. Rector (NRAO)

Helix Nebula

Nebula in Aquarius · 655 light-years

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Type	Nebula
Constellation	Aquarius
Right ascension	22h 29m 39s
Declination	−20° 50′
Object distance	655 light-years
Apparent magnitude	7.3
Apparent size	16.3′ (arc-minutes)
Approx. true diameter	3.1 light-years across
Also known as	C63 · NGC 7293

Caldwell 63, popularly known as the Helix Nebula, is a nebula (NGC 7293) in Aquarius — a luminous cloud of interstellar gas and dust. It appears as number 63 in the Caldwell catalogue, Sir Patrick Moore's 1995 list of 109 bright deep-sky objects for amateur astronomers. It spans roughly 16.3 arc-minutes on the sky. At about magnitude 7.3, it is a rewarding binocular and small-telescope target.

Although it appears about 16.3′ wide on the sky, its real span is roughly 3.1 light-years — the difference is a measure of how far away it lies.

Observing Helix Nebula

Helix Nebula lies in the constellation Aquarius and is best placed in the evening sky around August. Its maximum altitude above the horizon depends on your latitude. It is best placed for observers in the southern hemisphere, and sits low for those far north. It is a comfortable target for binoculars and small telescopes. Note that the listed magnitude is spread across the whole object — diffuse galaxies and nebulae are often harder to see than the number alone suggests, so dark, moonless skies help a great deal.

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Sources

Position, magnitude and angular size from the OpenNGC catalogue (Mattia Verga).
Object identity cross-referenced with SIMBAD (CDS, Strasbourg).
Image credits and the original observation source are linked with each photograph.

Related objects

Orion Nebula — nebula
Ring Nebula — nebula
Eagle Nebula — nebula
Carina Nebula — nebula
Lagoon Nebula — nebula