< Messier Index
Messier 70

M70 from w:Hubble Space Telescope; 3.32 view
Credit: w:NASA/w:STScI/w:WikiSky
Observation data (w:J2000 epoch)
Class V
Constellation Sagittarius
Right ascension 18h 43m 12.64s[1]
Declination -32° 17 30.8[1]
Distance 29.3 kly[citation needed] (9 kpc)
Apparent magnitude (V) +9.06[1]
Apparent dimensions (V) 8.0
Physical characteristics
Mass kg ( M)
Radius 34 ly[2]
Other designations M70, NGC 6681, GCl 101[1]

Messier 70 (also known as M70 or NGC 6681) is a w:globular cluster in the w:constellation Sagittarius. It was discovered by w:Charles Messier in w:1780.

M70 is at a distance of about 29,300 w:light years away from w:Earth and close to the w:Galactic Center. It is roughly the same size and w:luminosity as its neighbour in space, w:Globular Cluster M69. Only 2 w:variable stars are known within this cluster.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "SIMBAD Astronomical Database". Results for NGC 6681. http://simbad.u-strasbg.fr/Simbad. Retrieved 2006-11-17.
  2. distance × sin( diameter_angle / 2 ) = 34 ly. radius
This article is issued from Wikibooks. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.