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Credit & Copyright: Steve Crouch
Explanation:
Messier
4 can be found
west of bright red-giant star Antares,
alpha star of the constellation Scorpius.
M4 itself
is only just visible from dark sky locations,
even though the globular cluster of 100,000 stars or so
is a mere 5,500 light-years away.
Still, its proximity to prying telescopic eyes makes it a prime
target for astronomical explorations.
Recent studies have included Hubble observations of M4's pulsating
cepheid variable stars, cooling white dwarf stars, and
ancient, pulsar orbiting
exoplanet PSR
B1620-26 b.
This sharp image was captured with a
small telescope
on planet Earth.
At M4's estimated distance it spans about 50 light-years
across the core of the globular star cluster.
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NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: M 4 - globular cluster
Publications with words: M 4 - globular cluster
See also: