About this Object:
The Butterfly Cluster (cataloged as Messier 6 or M6, and as NGC 6405) is an open cluster of stars in the constellation of Scorpius. Its name derives from the vague resemblance of its shape to a butterfly.

The first astronomer to record the Butterfly Cluster's existence was Giovanni Battista Hodierna in 1654. However, Robert Burnham, Jr has proposed that the 1st century astronomer Ptolemy may have seen it with the naked eye while observing its neighbor the Ptolemy Cluster (M7). Charles Messier catalogued the cluster as M6 in 1764. It was not till the 20th century that star counts, distance, and other properties were measured.


About this Photo:
Date(s): June 8, 2011
Location: From my driveway in Georgetown, Texas
Telescope: Celestron C9.25 @ F6.5
Mount: CGEM
Guiding: Orion StarShoot AutoGuider / Taurus Tracker III
Camera: Canon 40D Modified
Filter: Astronomik CLS
Exposure: 7x120s @ ISO1600 (14 Minutes total)
Acquisition: ImagesPlus 3.75 Camera Control
Processing: ImagesPlus 3.75 – Darks,Flats,Bias
Post-processing: Adobe Photoshop CS3; Noel Carboni's Tools; Star Spikes Pro
Temperature(s): 75º F