20h 53m 27.91s, −12° 32′ 13.4″Messier 72
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| Messier 72 | |
|---|---|
| Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:InfoboxImage/data' not found. M72 from Hubble Space Telescope; 3.44Template:Prime view | |
| Observation data (J2000 epoch) | |
| Class | IX[1] |
| Constellation | Aquarius |
| Right ascension | Template:RA[2] |
| Declination | Template:DEC[2] |
| Distance | 54.57 ± 1.17 kly (16.73 ± 0.36 kpc)[3] |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 9.3[4] |
| Apparent dimensions (V) | 6.6' |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Mass | 1.68×105[5] M☉ |
| Metallicity | [Fe/H] = –1.48 ± 0.03[3] dex |
| Estimated age | 9.5 Gyr[6] |
| Other designations | NGC 6981, GCl 118[7] |
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Messier 72 (also known as M72 or NGC 6981) is a globular cluster in the south west of the southern constellation of Aquarius.
Observational history
M72 was discovered by astronomer Pierre Méchain on August 29 1780. His countryman Charles Messier looked for it 36 days later, and included it in his catalog.[8] Both opted for the then-dominant of the competing terms for such objects, considering it a faint nebula rather than a cluster. With a larger instrument, astronomer John Herschel called it a bright "cluster of stars of a round figure". Astronomer Harlow Shapley noted a similarity to Messier 4 and 12.[9]
It is visible in a good night sky as a faint nebula in a telescope with a 6 cm (2.4 in) aperture.
Properties
Based upon a 2011 census of variable stars, the cluster is 54,500 light-years (16,700 pc) away from the Sun.[3] It has an estimated combined mass of 168,000 solar masses (M☉),[5] and is around 9.5 billion years old.[6] There are 43 identified variable stars in the cluster.[3]
See also
References and footnotes
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Shapley, Harlow; Sawyer, Helen B. (August 1927), "A Classification of Globular Clusters", Harvard College Observatory Bulletin, 849 (849): 11–14, Bibcode:1927BHarO.849...11S.
- ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Goldsbury, Ryan; et al. (December 2010), "The ACS Survey of Galactic Globular Clusters. X. New Determinations of Centers for 65 Clusters", The Astronomical Journal, 140 (6): 1830–1837, arXiv:1008.2755, Bibcode:2010AJ....140.1830G, doi:10.1088/0004-6256/140/6/1830, S2CID 119183070.
- ^ a b c d Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Figuera Jaimes, R.; et al. (October 2011), Henney, W. J.; Torres-Peimbert, S. (eds.), "XIII Latin American Regional IAU Meeting: (item) The Globular Cluster NGC 6981: Variable stars population, physical parameters and astrometry", Revista Mexicana de Astronomía y Astrofísica, Serie de Conferencias, vol. 40, pp. 235–236, Bibcode:2011RMxAC..40..235F.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Messier 72". SEDS Messier Catalog. Archived from the original on 1 July 2022. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
- ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Boyles, J.; et al. (November 2011), "Young Radio Pulsars in Galactic Globular Clusters", The Astrophysical Journal, 742 (1): 51, arXiv:1108.4402, Bibcode:2011ApJ...742...51B, doi:10.1088/0004-637X/742/1/51, S2CID 118649860.
- ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Sollima, A.; et al. (April 2008), "The correlation between blue straggler and binary fractions in the core of Galactic globular clusters", Astronomy and Astrophysics, 481 (3): 701–704, arXiv:0801.4511, Bibcode:2008A&A...481..701S, doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20079082, S2CID 3088769
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."NGC 6981". SIMBAD. Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg. Retrieved 2006-11-16.
{{cite web}}: Invalid|mode=Script error: No such module "Citation mode".(help) - ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Garfinkle, Robert A. (1997), Star-Hopping: Your Visa to Viewing the Universe, Cambridge University Press, p. 266, ISBN 978-0521598897
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Burnham, Robert (1978), Burnham's Celestial Handbook: An Observer's Guide to the Universe Beyond the Solar System, Dover Books on Astronomy Series, vol. 1 (2nd ed.), Courier Dover Publications, pp. 188–189, ISBN 978-0486235677
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External links
- Messier 72, SEDS Messier pages
- Messier 72, Galactic Globular Clusters Database page
- Messier 72, LRGB CCD image based on two hours total exposure
- M-72 Information
- Template:WikiSky
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