NGC 6541
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globular cluster in the constellation Corona Australis
Key facts
- Class
- III
- Constellation
- Corona Australis
- Right ascension
- 18 08 02.36
- Declination
- –43 ° 42 ′ 53.6 ″
- Distance
- 24.8 ± 0.3 kly (7.6 ± 0.1 kpc )
- Apparent dimensions v
- 15′
- Mass
- 5.72 × 10 M ☉
- Metallicity
- [ Fe/H ] = –1.53 dex
- Estimated age
- 12.93 Gyr
- Other designations
- NGC 6541, Caldwell 78
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Part of
- Milky Way
- Constellation
- Corona Australis
- Distance from Earth
- 0.007
- Image
- Caldwell 78 (50291821361).jpg
Show 11 more facts
- catalog code
- 3FGL J1807.5-4343
- Commons category
- NGC 6541
- discoverer or inventor
- Niccolò Cacciatore
- time of discovery or invention
- 1826-03-19
- apparent magnitude
- 7.262
- right ascension
- 272.009833
- declination
- -43.714889
- epoch
- J2000.0
- radial velocity
- -153.8
- right ascension component of proper motion
- -3.24
- declination component of proper motion
- -1.74
Sources (1)
via Wikidata · CC0
~1 min read
Encyclopedic overview
NGC 6541 (also known as Caldwell 78) is a globular cluster of stars in the southern constellation of Corona Australis. The globular cluster was discovered by Niccolò Cacciatore at the Palermo Astronomical Observatory, Sicily, on March 19, 1826. It was independently found by James Dunlop on July 3, 1826. The cluster has an apparent visual magnitude of 6.3 and an angular diameter of 15′. It is visible with binoculars or a small telescope.
Located at a distance of 24.8 kly (7.6 kpc) from the Sun, it is orbiting within the central region of the Milky Way about 7.2 kly (2.2 kpc) from the Galactic Center. It is considered a metal-poor inner halo cluster, being the third most metal-poor globular cluster within 9.8 kly (3 kpc) of the center. The cluster has 5.72×10 times the mass of the Sun. It is estimated to be around 12.9 billion years old, and is believed to have undergone core collapse. A total of 94 blue straggler members have been identified, as well as three W Ursae Majoris and nine SX Phoenicis variables.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “NGC 6541” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.