Messier 5 (the Rose Cluster) The M5 globular cluster in the constellation Serpens (NGC 5904) might be the oldest globular cluster in our galaxy, somewhere around 13 billion years old, with the Milky Way itself almost as old as the universe at 13.61 billion years, forming just a few hundred million years after the Big Bang.
M5 is about 27,000 light years away in the galactic halo, and is one of the largest clusters, with a diameter of about 165 light years. It's apparent visual magnitude is 5.6, visible to the naked eye from dark sky sites.
Can you imagine what it would be like living on a planet around one of these stars in the core? A sky riddled with colorful dazzling suns!
To the left is the variable double star, 5 Serpentis. 5 Serpentis is a wide binary star system in Serpens Caput, the western section of the equatorial constellation of Serpens. It is faintly visible to the naked eye with an apparent visual magnitude of 5.10.
OTA: William Optics FLT132 Triplet Refractor
Mount: iOptron CEM70
Camera: ZWO ASI2400MC Pro (full frame)
Gain: 100
Cooling Temperature: -10 degrees celsius
Auto-guiding: ZWO ASI174MM Mini and ZWO OAG-L
Auto-focusing: ZWO EAF
Control: ZWO ASIAIR Pro
Calibrated in Astro Pixel Processor with flats, darks and dark flats. Processed in Pixinsight.
Imaged from Flagstaff, Arizona in class 2 Bortle skies.
https://NAZObservatory.com 
Comments