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NGC 2346

NGC 2346
NGC 2346, in contrast to the first two young objects, is a so-called "planetary nebula," which is ejected from Sun-like stars which are near the ends of their lives. NGC 2346 is remarkable because its central star is known to be actually a very close pair of stars, orbiting each other every 16 days. It is believed that the binary star was originally more widely separated. However, when one component of the binary evolved, expanded in size, and became a red-giant star, it literally swallowed its companion star. The companion star then spiralled downwards inside the red giant, and in the process spewed out gas into a ring around the binary system. Later on, when the hot core of the red giant was exposed, it developed a faster stellar wind, which emerged perpendicularly to the ring and inflated two huge "bubbles." This two-stage process is believed to have resulted in the butterfly-like shape of the nebula. NGC 2346 lies about 2,000 light-years away from us, and is about one-third of a light-year in size.

About the Object

  • R.A. Position
    R.A. PositionRight ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position.
    07h 9m 22.52s
  • Dec. Position
    Dec. PositionDeclination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position.
    00° 48' 23.59"
  • Constellation
    ConstellationOne of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears.
    Monoceros
  • Distance
    DistanceThe physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs.
    3,900 light-years (1,200 pc)
  • Dimensions
    DimensionsThe physical size of the object or the apparent angle it subtends on the sky.
    The image is 2.8 arcminutes on the vertical side.

About the Data

  • Data Description
    Data DescriptionProposal: A description of the observations, their scientific justification, and the links to the data available in the science archive.
    Science Team: The astronomers who planned the observations and analyzed the data. "PI" refers to the Principal Investigator.
    Principal Astronomers: M.Stiavelli and I. Heyer (STScI) and collaborators
  • Instrument
    InstrumentThe science instrument used to produce the data.
    HST>WFPC2
  • Exposure Dates
    Exposure DatesThe date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time.
    March 6, 1997, Exposure Time: 24 minutes
  • Filters
    FiltersThe camera filters that were used in the science observations.
    F502N [O III], F656N (H-alpha), and F658N [N II]
  • Object Name
    Object NameA name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.
    NGC 2346
  • Object Description
    Object DescriptionThe type of astronomical object.
    Planetary Nebula in the Milky Way Galaxy
  • Release Date
    October 7, 1999
  • Science Release
    Hubble Heritage Project’s First Anniversary
    Read the release
  • Credit
    NASA and The Hubble Heritage Team (AURA/STScI).

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NGC 2346
Color Info
Color InfoA brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented.

Blue: F502N [O III] Green: F656N (H-alpha) Red: F658N [N II]

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Details

Last Updated
Mar 28, 2025
Contact
Media

Claire Andreoli
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov

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