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> Baade's Window, around NGC 6522

Baade's Window, around NGC 6522

author: A.Block/D.McCrady/ MLSC/Univ.of Az/Novapix

reference: a-agb65-22003

Image Size 300 DPI: 22 * 14 cm

The Galactic centre is obscured by dust clouds at visible wavelengths, but in the 1940s, Walter Baade, working at Mt Wilson in the USA, identified a region with a line of sight close to the Galactic centre. This direction has the minimum of obscuration and it was here, in the 'window' around the globular cluster NGC 6522 (right of the image) that he was able to determine the first reliable distance to the centre of the Galaxy. Modern measurements place it at about 25,000 light years away, slightly greater than Baade's result. Left is another globular cluster, NGC 6528. Image taken on june 1st 2008 with a 24-inch telescope.

Keywords for this photo:

2008 - ASTRONOMY - BAADE'S WINDOW - GALACTIC CENTER - GLOBULAR CLUSTER - NGC 6522 - NGC 6528 - SAGITTARIUS - STAR - STAR CLUSTER -