A Consolidated Online Database of Galactic Planetary Nebulae

TL;DR

This paper introduces a comprehensive, interactive online database of Galactic Planetary Nebulae, consolidating recent discoveries and multi-wavelength data to facilitate research and study of these objects.

Contribution

It presents a new centralized, extensible database hosting diverse data on Galactic PNe, reflecting the latest classifications and observations, improving accessibility and research efficiency.

Findings

Database includes over 2850 PNe entries.

Contains multi-wavelength images, spectroscopy, and star data.

Expected public release in early 2012.

Abstract

Since the unifying Strasbourg-ESO Catalogue of Galactic Planetary Nebulae (SECGPN) a large number of new discoveries have been made thanks to improved surveys and discovery techniques. The increasingly heterogeneous published population of Galactic PNe, that we have determined totals < 2850 PNe, is becoming more difficult to study on the whole without a centralised repository. We introduce a consolidated and interactive online database with object classifications that reflect the latest multi-wavelength data and the most recent results. The extensible database, hosted by the Centre de Donnees astronomique de Strasbourg (CDS), will contain a wealth of observed data for large, well-defined samples of PNe including coordinates, multi-wavelength images, spectroscopy, line intensities, radial velocities and central star information. It is anticipated that the database will be publicly released early 2012.