SBIG ST-4000XCM
6x600sec
Darks/Flats/Bias Applied
Imager Temp -20C
APM/TMB 130/780
Field Flattener
40% Crop

M2 (NGC 7089) is about 37,500 light-years away from Earth. At 175 light-years in diameter, it is one of the larger globular clusters known. The cluster is rich, compact (Class II - the next most dense classification), and significantly elliptical. It is 13 billion years old - about the same as that of globular clusters M3 and M5 - and one of the older globulars associated with the Milky Way Galaxy.

M2 contains about 150,000 stars, including 21 known variable stars. Its brightest stars are red and yellow giants.

September 18, 2009