Celestial hemisphere:  Southern  ·  Constellation: Sagittarius (Sgr)  ·  Contains:  M 55  ·  NGC 6809
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M55 Globular Cluster, Dean Glace
M55 Globular Cluster
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M55 Globular Cluster

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M55 Globular Cluster, Dean Glace
M55 Globular Cluster
Powered byPixInsight

M55 Globular Cluster

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Description

Messier 55 (also known as M55 or NGC 6809) is a globular cluster in the south of the constellationSagittarius. It was discovered by Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in 1752 while observing from what today is South Africa. Starting in 1754, Charles Messier made several attempts to find this object from Paris but its low declination meant from there it rises daily very little above the horizon, hampering observation. He observed and catalogued it in 1778. The cluster can be seen with 50 mm binoculars; resolving individual stars needs a medium-sized telescope.It is about 17,600 light-years away from Earth. It contains about 269,000 solar masses (M☉). As with other Milky Way globular clusters, it has few elements other than hydrogen and helium compared to the Sun.

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M55 Globular Cluster, Dean Glace