M4, NGC6121

[M4] M4, NGC6121

Downloadable versions (see NOAO Conditions of Use):
200 x 200 9 kb color JPEG(on this page)
400 x 400 38 kb color JPEG
1900 x 1900 584 kb color JPEG
1900 x 1900 3.5 Mb 8-bit color TIFF
1900 x 1900 10.5 Mb 24-bit color TIFF

M4, a globular cluster in the constellation Scorpius, is about 7000 light-years away from us, which makes it a good candidate for being our nearest globular cluster. M4 shows an unusual central bar structure, and would be much brighter if not for considerable intervening interstellar dust, which also accounts for its slightly brown-ish color. This picture was created from observations with the T2KA CCD camera at the Kitt Peak National Observatory's 0.9-meter telescope in March of 1995.

Minimum credit line: NOAO/AURA/NSF (for details see Conditions of Use)

Return to: stars page.
NOAO is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), Inc. under cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation

Comments by e-mail to images@noao.edu