Celestial hemisphere:  Southern  ·  Constellation: Centaurus (Cen)  ·  Contains:  NGC 5139  ·  Omega Centauri
Omega Centauri - NGC5139, Engelbert Vollmer
Omega Centauri - NGC5139
Powered byPixInsight
Omega Centauri - NGC5139, Engelbert Vollmer
Omega Centauri - NGC5139
Powered byPixInsight

Equipment

Loading...

Acquisition details

Loading...

Description

For most observers, Omega Centauri is the most beautiful globular cluster of all. Around 10 million stars that, by cosmic standards, are crowded together in a diameter of only around 150 light years. But it is not only its size that distinguishes it from other globular clusters. It has different populations of stars that formed at different times. It could even be that Omega Centauri is something other than a globular cluster. Perhaps a remaining core of a small galaxy that was absorbed by our Milky Way a long time ago. Omega Centauri is the most luminous globular cluster with a magnitude of +3.9 and is visible to the naked eye at a distance of about 16,000 light years. It looks like a faint, fuzzy star, but its size and luminosity are impressive in any telescope. However, it is located far to the south of the celestial dome and is only visible south of 40 degrees north latitude.

Comments

Sky plot

Sky plot

Histogram

Omega Centauri - NGC5139, Engelbert Vollmer