IC 4846, Planetarischer Nebel
IC 4846 is a planetary nebula in the constellation Aquila and therefore mainly observable in the summer months. It was discovered in
1901 by Williamina Fleming.
With a distance of 28,000 light years it is one of the most distant PNs observable with a telescope. This is also the reason why IC 4846
appears nearly stellar even with large optics. But the brightness is about 12.4mag, so the nebula can be seen with small telescopes
of 6-8" aperture as a star-like point.
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With my 20" Dobson IC 4846 was found quickly and could be identified with Filterblink without any problems. It forms a triangle with
two brighter stars. If you look a bit closer, you can see the greenish color of the planetary nebula. At low magnifications of 120x the planetary
nebula is absolutely stellar. Only at magnifications of 270x and more it appears in the eyepiece as a tiny nebula whose brightness increases
towards the center. Further details are not visible.
Nevertheless, it is a nice experience to observe a planetary nebula at a distance of almost 30,000 light years.
