Celestial hemisphere:  Southern  ·  Constellation: Sagittarius (Sgr)  ·  Contains:  M 55  ·  NGC 6809
M55 - A Globular Cluster in Sagittarius, Fernando
M55 - A Globular Cluster in Sagittarius
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M55 - A Globular Cluster in Sagittarius

M55 - A Globular Cluster in Sagittarius, Fernando
M55 - A Globular Cluster in Sagittarius
Powered byPixInsight

M55 - A Globular Cluster in Sagittarius

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Description

M55 has a mass of 100,000 to 200,000 Suns and a diameter of about 100 light years. The cluster orbits the perifery of the Milky Way with a period of 100 million years, always staying 25,000 light years of the galaxy center, but swinging some thousands of light years, in a path that is highly inclined to the disk of our galaxy.

It contains 65 identified blue stragglers, which are stars which stay on the main sequence (the normal, hydrogen-burning phase of a star's lifetime) longer than they are expected to.

M55 is metal poor, being less than 10% of the average metallicity of the globular clusters in the Milky Way.

Some additional data:

AGE: 10-14 billion years

DISTANCE: 18,000 light years

APPARENT SIZE: 19'

MAGNITUDE: 6.3

IMAGE:

Telescope: Skywatcher Esprit 120mm f/7

Camera: ASI 1600MC cooled

Auto Guiding: ASI OAG and a QSY 5II

Mount: Neq-6 PRO

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M55 - A Globular Cluster in Sagittarius, Fernando