Celestial hemisphere:  Northern  ·  Constellation: Coma Berenices (Com)  ·  Contains:  M 53  ·  NGC 5024  ·  NGC 5053
Two Globulars for the Price of One, 



    
        

            Scott Davis
Two Globulars for the Price of One
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Two Globulars for the Price of One

Acquisition details

Dates:
April 10, 2015
Frames:
One-Shot Color: 23×150(57′ 30″) ISO1600
Integration:
57′ 30″
Darks:
7
Flats:
40
Flat darks:
40
Bias:
40
Avg. Moon age:
20.45 days
Avg. Moon phase:
67.64%
Bortle Dark-Sky Scale:
3.00

Basic astrometry details

Astrometry.net job: 598976

RA center: 13h14m34s.1

DEC center: +17°5757

Pixel scale: 2.164 arcsec/pixel

Orientation: -3.865 degrees

Field radius: 1.084 degrees

Resolution: 620x414

File size: 108.4 KB

Locations: Ahwahnee Hills Observatory, Ahwahnee, California, United States

Description

Sometimes having a wider field of view, such as the one afforded to me by my Explore Scientific ED102 Refractor, has its advantages. This is one of those cases: not only was I able to capture two globular clusters in the same field of view, but the two objects are also very different from each other.

Messier 53, also catalogued as NGC 5024, is at the left side of this image. It is one of the more outlying globular clusters, residing at a distance of approximately 58,000 light years from Earth and approximately 60,000 light years from the Galactic Center.

On the right side of this image is a much more loosely bound globular cluster, NGC 5053, which lies approximately 53,500 light years from Earth.

Finally, we have the galaxy PGC 46161, which is just down and to the left of NGC 5053.

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Two Globulars for the Price of One, 



    
        

            Scott Davis