Planetary Nebula Abell 80 — a fading stellar remnant in Lacerta

About the Object

Abell 80 (PK 102-05.1) is a faint, highly evolved planetary nebula in the constellation Lacerta, at a distance of about 5,700 light-years from Earth. Discovered by George Abell on the photographic plates of the Palomar Observatory Sky Survey, it belongs to the class of large, low-surface-brightness planetary nebulae whose expanding shells have become increasingly tenuous with age.

Observation Notes

With an apparent diameter of roughly 2–3 arcminutes and an extremely low surface brightness, Abell 80 is a challenging target that easily disappears into the surrounding fairly densely populated star field. In fact, this is one of a very few cases, where I had a bit stronger hand on star reduction.

Data were taken on 2026 August 6,7,8, and 14

Technical Details

View the full-resolution image together with complete acquisition and processing details on AstroBin.