Cosmic Scale
IC 4593
Planetary nebula · About 7,500 light-years
How big is IC 4593?
IC 4593 is about 0.54 light-years across.
See IC 4593 in 3D, at true scale
IC 4593 is a cloud of gas puffed off by a dying star in Hercules. The star is still big and hot, on its way to becoming a white dwarf. Its light makes the gas glow pink and green.
At a glance
| Diameter | 0.54 light-years |
|---|---|
| Diameter compared with Earth | 4.0 × 10⁸ × Earth |
| Distance | About 7,500 light-years |
| Size | About 0.5 light-years across |
| Constellation | Hercules |
| Central star | HD 145649 |
Good to know
- It sits far above the flat disc of our galaxy, so little dust dims our view of it.
- Its central star is about seven times hotter than the Sun's surface.
- Small pink knots of gas stick out at its top and bottom, like tiny jets.
- Next smaller: Cat's Eye Nebula · 0.50 light-years
- Next larger: NGC 7662 · 0.78 light-years