About this Object:
Messier 56 (also known as M56 or NGC 6779) is a globular cluster in the constellation Lyra. M56 is at a distance of about 32,900 light-years from Earth and measures roughly 84 light-years across, with a combined mass some 230,000 times that of the Sun. This cluster has an estimated age of 13.70 billion years and is following a retrograde orbit through the Milky Way. The properties of this cluster suggest that it may have been acquired during the merger of a dwarf galaxy, of which Omega Centauri forms the surviving nucleus.

About this Photo:
Date(s): September 7, 2012
Location: From my driveway in Georgetown, Texas
Telescope: Celestron C9.25 @ F10
Mount: CGEM
Guiding: Orion StarShoot AutoGuider / Taurus Tracker III OAG
Camera: Canon 40D Modified
Filter: None
Exposure: 17 x 300s @ ISO1600 (85 Min total)
Acquisition: ImagesPlus 3.75 Camera Control
Processing: ImagesPlus 3.75 – Darks,Flats,Bias
Post-processing: Adobe Photoshop CS3; Gradient Exterminator; Noel Carboni's Tools;
Temperature(s): 75º F