M4 = NGC6121 (16h 23.7m -26°24´, 5.9 mag)

This large globular cluster was discovered by de Cheseaux in 1746 and Messier observed it on May 8, 1764. It has very loose structure and contains an unusual band of bright stars across its centre. M4 is approximately 6,800 ly away and contains just 10,300 stars. It is clearly visible in binoculars just 1°15' W of Antares (a Scorpii - see finder chart below).

The above image was taken on June 3, 2002 from Harrowsmith , Ontario using Cookbook 245 LDC CCD camera on Celestron Ultima 8 f6.3 telescope. Seventeen white integrations (30 sec. each) as well as cyan, magenta and yellow-filtered integrations (5 x 30 sec. each) were processed with AIP4WIN and adjusted in Lab color space using Corel PhotoPaint 8.

North is to the right.

Map created in Guide 7.0 - 7°45' x 10°. North is up.

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© Jan Wisniewski