Deep in the Southern sky, right next to the Small Magellanic Cloud and just 18° from the South Celestial Pole, lies this magnificent globular cluster.
With millions of stars, 47-Tucanae is the second largest globular cluster in the sky after Omega Centauri. Its brightest stars are around 11th magnitude but despite this, the overall magnitude of about +4 makes it a fairly easy object to spot as a fuzzy object in a dark sky – provided you are situated south of latitude 18 North!
The Northern Hemisphere has its attractions, such as M31, which is so low here in Sydney. However, we are well situated here in the South to see the two brightest globular clusters – 47 Tucanae, Omega Centauri – and both Magellanic Clouds.
This 51 minute image was shot from my home in surburbia .
Daylight saving arrived today, meaning observing sessions will be cut short.
They will at least be warmer than the field trips we’ve experienced over the winter months, where the minimum dropped to between zero and -5° C.
Object Details:
Designation: 47-Tucanae, NGC 104, Caldwell 106.
Constellation: Tucana.
Visual magnitude: +3.95
Apparent size: 50′
Diameter: 213 light years.
Distance: 15,000 light years.
Altitude during exposure: 48° above southern horizon.
Also in image: NGC 121, a more distant globular cluster (left, bottom ). Astrometry.net
Technical stuff:
Image: Exposure: 35 x 88 sec = 51 min. |
Processing: Image acquisition: SharpCap. |
Gear:
Telescope: | SkyWatcher Esprit | Type: | 120ED triplet refractor |
Focal: | 840 mm F/7 | Mount: | SkyWatcher EQ6-R Pro |
Camera: | ZWO ASI 071 MC Pro | Type: | CMOS 28.4mm 16 Mpx |
Optical aids: | Flattener: Y; filter: LP | Guiding: | Yes |
Polar aligning: | QHYCCD PoleMaster | Polar Error: | 60” |
Geek Log:
[ZWO ASI071MC Pro] |
Cooler=On |
Image © Roger Powell
Great post 😁
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Thanks very much!
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What a nice shot. Sky viewing has been sparse here in the central US. For Sept, we had over 7” of rain. Normal is about 2-3”. October has started wet and cloudy, too. I was taken aback by the daylight savings time change. Ours ends early Nov.
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Thanks, Jim. I hope you get some clear skies before winter sets in.
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What a beauty! You have nothing to be jealous about the NH.
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Hernán – thanks. That’s probably true – it is what it is.
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This is one of my favourite objects and when visible is a top favourite with visitors to my Observatory-love your picture
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Thanks, Donna. Yes, a great object for astronomers and visitors alike.
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Great image. Looks like a still from a Cosmos-esque television program.
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Ah yes… Carl Sagan’s “Spaceship of the Imagination”, resembling a floating dandelion seed.
How we miss that man!
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