Located approximately 15,000 light-years away in Canis Major. The central star (known as a Wolf-Rayet star) is an extremely hot giant thought to be in a brief, pre-supernova stage of evolution. It appears to be embedded in a region of hydrogen gas clouds; the bright star is causing the hydrogen to glow. The helmet is actually more like an interstellar bubble, blown when a fast wind from the bright, massive star near the bubble's center sweeps through a surrounding molecular cloud. The planetary nebula is about 30 light-years across. Imaged with Slooh using "diffuse nebula" setting.
