Cosmic Scale
NGC 7662
Planetary nebula · About 5,400 light-years
How big is NGC 7662?
NGC 7662 is about 0.78 light-years across.
See NGC 7662 in 3D, at true scale
NGC 7662 is a shell of gas around a dying star in Andromeda. Through a small telescope it looks like a pale blue ball, which gave it the name Blue Snowball. Hubble shows two nested shells and small red knots of gas racing outwards.
At a glance
| Diameter | 0.78 light-years |
|---|---|
| Diameter compared with Earth | 5.8 × 10⁸ × Earth |
| Distance | About 5,400 light-years |
| Size | About 0.8 light-years across |
| Age | About 3,000 years |
| Nickname | The Blue Snowball |
Good to know
- Its central star is about 17 times hotter than the Sun's surface.
- Small red knots near its edge are blobs of gas flying out faster than the rest.
- Its shells started expanding only about 3,000 years ago.
- Next smaller: IC 4593 · 0.54 light-years
- Next larger: Ring Nebula · 0.90 light-years