Celestial hemisphere:  Southern  ·  Constellation: Vela (Vel)  ·  Contains:  NGC 3201
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NGC 3201, Gary Imm
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NGC 3201

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NGC 3201, Gary Imm
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NGC 3201

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Description

This object is a globular cluster located 17,000 light years away in the southern constellation of Vela. This is one of the few globular clusters where I am able to resolve stars throughout the cluster, including those in the core.

This cluster is most famous for its direction of motion, going against the direction of rotation of most other objects in our Milky Way galaxy. Because of this, it is approaching us faster than any other known cluster. It's Caldwell 79 designation indicates that it lies far south in the skies, at a declination of -46 degrees with a transit of 13 degrees above my horizon.

To me, the core of the cluster looks distinctly like an arrowhead pointing to the right. The cluster itself is not spherical but has an odd shape, something that the astronomer William Herschel called "irregularly " round.

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