An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics

An immense emission nebula about 40° across lying toward the southern constellations → Vela and → Puppis. It contains the → Vela pulsar and the → Vela supernova remnant, and seems to be created by an outburst of ionizing radiation that accompanied a → supernova explosion.

See also: Named after its discoverer, the Australian astronomer Colin Stanley Gum (1924-1960); → nebula.