Planetary nebulae represent a brief, yet illuminating, phase in the evolution of low- to intermediate-mass stars. These glowing shells of ionised gas are shed in the late stages of stellar development ...

A way of estimating more accurate distances to the thousands of so-called planetary nebulae dispersed across our galaxy has been announced. The announcement was made by a team of three astronomers ...

NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope has unveiled a mesmerizing image of NGC 6369, a planetary nebula known as the “Little Ghost Nebula.” Located about 2,000 to 5,000 light-years from Earth, this glowing ...

The Dumbbell Nebula (M27), discovered in 1764, is the first planetary nebula identified and is notable for its brightness and distinctive shape. Its appearance, described variously as a dumbbell, ...

Oh what a beautiful cosmic web we weave! This little cosmic creepy crawler is the Red Spider planetary nebula (formal designation NGC 6537). It can be found about 4,000 light-years away in the ...

The Butterfly Nebula is changing, and astronomers are puzzled as to why these changes are occurring. Observations of this planetary nebula show dramatic changes in the butterfly’s ‘wings’ in just 11 ...

In the cold dark of the constellation Ophiuchus, a faint, wraithlike shell of gas is quietly advertising the fate that awaits ...

A team of scientists in Australia and the United States, led by Associate Professor Miroslav Filipovic from the University of Western Sydney, have discovered a new class of object which they call ...

Planetary nebulae are the remnants of stars roughly one-to-eight times the size of the sun surrounded by hot gas lit up by ultraviolet radiation. Kastner hopes that through a comprehensive campaign of ...

(Please attempt/guess/answer the poll before reading the 'spoilered' calculations.) A question I've pondered, on occasion, is how much "mass" is in a 'planetary nebula' (the kind of nebula which ...