NGC 2242 is a planetary nebula in the constellation Auriga. It was discovered by Lewis A. Swift on November 24, 1886, and was thought to be a galaxy until a study published in 1987 showed it to be a planetary nebula. The nebula is located about 6,500 light-years away, and about 1,600 light-years above the galactic plane. The central star of the planetary nebula is an O-type star with a spectral type of O(H).
References
External links Media related to NGC 2242 at Wikimedia Commons "NGC 2242". SIMBAD. Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg. NED – NGC 2242 SEDS – NGC 2242 VizieR – NGC 2242