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> The Great Globular Cluster in Hercules M13

The Great Globular Cluster in Hercules M13

author: Nasa/Esa/Novapix

reference: a-agb62-05013

Image Size 300 DPI: 25 * 25 cm

This image, taken by the Advanced Camera for Surveys on the Hubble Space Telescope, shows the core of the great globular cluster Messier 13 and provides an extraordinarily clear view of the hundreds of thousands of stars in the cluster, one of the brightest and best known in the sky. Just 25 000 light-years away and about 145 light-years in diameter, Messier 13 has drawn the eye since its discovery by Edmund Halley, the noted British astronomer, in 1714. The cluster lies in the constellation of Hercules and is so bright that under the right conditions it is even visible to the unaided eye. Messier 13 was the target of a symbolic Arecibo radio telescope message that was sent in 1974, communicating humanity’s existence to possible extraterrestrial intelligences.

Keywords for this photo:

2010 - ASTRONOMY - GLOBULAR CLUSTER - HERCULES - HST - HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE - M13 - NGC 6205 - STAR - STAR CLUSTER -