M 107

Globular Cluster M107 (NGC 6171), class X,

in Ophiuchus

Right Ascension	16 : 32.5 (h:m)
Declination	-13 : 03 (deg:m)
Distance	19.6 (kly)
Visual Brightness	7.9 (mag)
Apparent Dimension	10.0 (arc min)

additional object found by

Pierre Mechain in April, 1782. Herewith, it is probably the Messier object

which was the latest to be discovered. Eventually, Helen Sawyer Hogg added

it to the Messier list in 1747.

William Herschel, who had

independently discovered it, listed this object as H VI.40.

M107 apparently contains some dark obscured regions, which is unusual for

globular clusters. The star distribution is called “very open” by Kenneth

Glyn Jones, who points out that this cluster “enables the interstellar

regions to be examined more easily, and globular clusters are important

`laboratories’ in which to study the process by which galaxies evolve.”

Visually, M107 is about 3 minutes of arc across, while in photos it extends

over a region more than 3 times this diameter (about 10′). As its distance

is about 20,000 light years, this corresponds to roughly 60 light years.

M107 is approaching us at 147 km/sec, contains about 25 known variables,

and as a globular cluster, is of intermediate metalicity.

• More images of M107

  
  

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  Hartmut Frommert

  ([email protected])

  Christine Kronberg

  ([email protected])

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  Last Modification: 20 Nov 1997, 22:10 MET