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H II region · Vela

Pencil Nebula

Deep skyNGC 2736

Scientific overview

Pencil Nebula is an H II region in the constellation Vela. It spans about 30 arcminutes of sky.

Location in the sky

Constellation
Vela
RA / Dec
9.0047h / -45.9481°
Hemisphere
Southern
Season
Spring

Precision measurements

Distances and velocities from SIMBAD · NGC 2736

Right ascension (ICRS)135.05 degSIMBAD · measured
Declination (ICRS)-45.95 degSIMBAD · measured
Full field-level provenance
  • Right ascension (ICRS): Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg (CDS) · SIMBAD · basic · ra · direct catalogue measurement · retrieved 2026-07-11
  • Declination (ICRS): Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg (CDS) · SIMBAD · basic · dec · direct catalogue measurement · retrieved 2026-07-11

Physical size is derived from the OpenNGC angular size and the catalogued distance (small-angle: size = angle × distance). This is a Galactic object: its Doppler shift is shown as a radial velocity, not a cosmological redshift. Fields a source did not provide are omitted, never invented.

Other objects in Vela

ObjectTypeMagSize (′)
omi Vel ClusterOpen cluster2.529.1
IC 2395Open cluster4.66
NGC 2547NGC 2547Open cluster4.77.8
NGC 3228NGC 3228Open cluster66.6
NGC 2669NGC 2669Open cluster6.18.4
NGC 2910NGC 2910Open cluster7.24.8
NGC 2645NGC 2645Open cluster7.326.6
IC 2488Open cluster7.47.2

Sources

The primary and reference sources this topic draws on.

  • OpenNGCOpenNGC (M. Verga) — NGC/IC, Messier, and Caldwell catalogue data

    Openly-licensed deep-sky catalogue: object types, positions, magnitudes, sizes, morphology, and cross-identifiers.