Caldwell 56
C56
📋 A written introduction is coming — for now this page shows official values only.
Object
- Type (NASA)
- Planetary Nebula
- Distance from Earth
- 1,600 light-years
- Apparent magnitude
- 8 mag
- NASA description
- The gas and dust of this planetary nebula are the remains of a dying star, which has left behind a white dwarf at the nebula's center.
Source:NASA Hubble (Messier/Caldwell catalogs) · checked 2026-11-02 ↗
Related
Constellation
In everyday life
- Light from this object takes about 1,600 years to reach Earth — the light you see tonight left around AD 426 (official distance ÷ speed of light).
- At magnitude 8 it is fainter than the naked-eye limit (about 6) — you need binoculars or a telescope.
- It lies in Cetus — find the constellation first to know where to look.