This is a list of protoplanetary nebulae. These objects represent the final stage before a planetary nebula. During this stage, the red giant star begins to slowly expel its outermost layers of material. A protoplanetary nebula usually glows with the light from its parent star. This stage is usually brief, typically lasting no more than a few thousand years.
List
| Image | Name | NGC | Other designation | Date discovered | Distance (ly) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
) | Boomerang Nebula | Centaurus Bipolar Nebula | About 5,000 | ||
) | Calabash Nebula | OH231.8+4.2 | About 4,200 | ||
) | Egg Nebula | CRL 2688 | 1996 | About 3,000 | |
) | Frosty Leo Nebula | IRAS 09371+1212 | About 3,000 | ||
) | Red Rectangle Nebula | HD 44179 | 1973 | 2,300 ± 300 | |
) | Gomez's Hamburger | IRAS 18059-3211 | 1985 | 6500 | |
) | Cotton Candy Nebula | IRAS 17150-3224 | |||
) | Water lily nebula | IRAS 16594-4656 | |||
) | IRAS 22036+5306 | About 6,500 | |||
) | Westbrook Nebula | IRAS 04395+3601 | |||
) | IRAS 13208-6020 | ||||
) | IRAS 20068+4051 | ||||
) | LL Pegasi | IRAS 23166+1655 | |||
) | M1-92 | IRAS 19343+2926 | About 8000 | ||
) | IRAS 19024+0044 | 11 000 | |||
) | IRAS 17163-3907 | 13 000 | |||
) | Minkowski's Butterfly | M2-9 | 2 100 | ||
) | Robert 22 | AFGL 4104 |