FIUCASE
Messier 56 - Globular Cluster
Messier 56, a globular cluster within the Lyra constellation, was first discovered by Charles Messier on January 19, 1779. Messier identified his fifty sixth catalogued astronomical object as a “nebula without stars.” Unbeknownst to him it was a 13.7 billion-year-old Class X globular cluster of 80,000 stars. The classification X describes the concentration of stars, with X, or ten, denoting a cluster with a generally loose concentration. The cluster is approximately 32,900 light years away, with a diameter of 84 light years, and is moving towards Earth at 145 kilometers per second. M56 cannot be seen with the unaided eye due to its apparent magnitude of 8.3, but some outer stars can be seen with telescopes with aperture 250mm or larger. It is most discernable in the northern hemisphere from June to August. This image is the final result of four images, with red, green, blue, and luminance filters exposed for 20 seconds. They were taken by Dr. Webb on August 7th, 2015, with FIU’s Stocker AstroScience Center telescope, and were color combined by Gabriel Salazar.
Messier 56 - Globular Cluster
Messier 56, a globular cluster within the Lyra constellation, was first discovered by Charles Messier on January 19, 1779. Messier identified his fifty sixth catalogued astronomical object as a “nebula without stars.” Unbeknownst to him it was a 13.7 billion-year-old Class X globular cluster of 80,000 stars. The classification X describes the concentration of stars, with X, or ten, denoting a cluster with a generally loose concentration. The cluster is approximately 32,900 light years away, with a diameter of 84 light years, and is moving towards Earth at 145 kilometers per second. M56 cannot be seen with the unaided eye due to its apparent magnitude of 8.3, but some outer stars can be seen with telescopes with aperture 250mm or larger. It is most discernable in the northern hemisphere from June to August. This image is the final result of four images, with red, green, blue, and luminance filters exposed for 20 seconds. They were taken by Dr. Webb on August 7th, 2015, with FIU’s Stocker AstroScience Center telescope, and were color combined by Gabriel Salazar.