NGC 3132
NGC 3132 is a bright and extensively studied planetary nebula in the constellation Vela. Its distance from Earth is estimated at about 613 pc. or 2,000 light-years.Images of NGC 3132 reveal two stars close together within the nebulosity, one of 10th magnitude, the other 16th. The central planetary nebula nucleus or white dwarf central star is the fainter of these two stars. This hot central star of about 100,000 K has now blown off its layers and is making the nebula fluoresce brightly from the emission of its intense ultraviolet radiation.
