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Planetary nebula luminosity function
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<p>Planetary nebula luminosity function (PNLF) is a secondary <a href="/facts/Standard_candle/Xae3hVvK">distance indicator</a> used in <a href="/facts/Astronomy/0ArJVM1p">astronomy</a>. It makes use of the <a href="/facts/O_III/IxbzL5xV">[O III]</a> λ5007 <a href="/facts/Forbidden_line/UeungKv0">forbidden line</a> found in all <a href="/facts/Planetary_nebula/5Vy84cPq">planetary nebula</a> (PNe) which are members of the old stellar populations (<a href="/facts/Population_II/8ur1qDRK">Population II</a>). It can be used to determine distances to both <a href="/facts/Spiral_galaxy/hRT2dtxJ">spiral</a> and <a href="/facts/Elliptical_galaxy/1PUchrj1">elliptical</a> galaxies despite their completely different <a href="/facts/Stellar_populations/8ur1qDRK">stellar populations</a> and is part of the <a href="/facts/Extragalactic_Distance_Scale/Xae3hVvK">Extragalactic Distance Scale</a>. </p>