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Messier 68, usually called M68, is one of the 29 globular clusters that are included in Messier’s Catalog. Its magnitude is +9.7 and stretches 11 arcmin in diameter. This cluster contains about 100,000 stars (average mass 2.2 solar masses) and approaching us at a speed of 110 km/s. Messier discovered it in 1780 and described it, quite wrongly, as “nebula with no stars”. William Herschel resolved it in individual stars. Close to M68, on the lower center left, lies a spiral galaxy, ESO 506-29, which is receding from us at 1% of the light speed.
Additional Information
Object
Name(s): Messier 68, M68, NGC 4590
Type: Globular Cluster
RA: 12h 39m 27.3s
Dec: -26º 44’ 32.1”
Constellation: Hydra
Size (arcmin): 11 arcmin
Magnitude: +9.7
Distance: 34,000 ly
Image
Date: 2019-06-23 to 2019-07-03
Location: iTelescope.net, SSO near Coonabarabran, NSW Australia
Size (arcmin): 31×32 arcmin
Telescope: 20” f/6.8 Reflector
Camera: SBIG STX16803 (4096x4096pix)
Guiding: Astrodon MonsterMOAG off-axis guider
Total exposure: 4.5 hours (L: 90 min; RGB: 3 h)
Processing: CCDStack, Photoshop CC 2020