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Messier 56

Globular cluster in the constellation Lyra

Globular cluster in the constellation Lyra

FieldValue
nameMessier 56
image[[File:Messier 56 Hubble WikiSky.jpg250px]]
captionMessier 56 by Hubble Space Telescope. 3.6′ view
epochJ2000
classX
constellationLyra
ra
dec
dist_ly32.9 kly
appmag_v8.3
size_v8.8'
mass_msol
radius_ly42 ly
metal_fe–2.00
age13.70 Gyr
namesM56, NGC 6779, GCl 110, C 1914+300

| | name = Messier 56 Messier 56 (also known as M56 or NGC 6779) is a globular cluster in the constellation Lyra. It was discovered by Charles Messier in 1779. It is angularly found about midway between Albireo (Beta (β) Cygni) and Sulafat (Gamma (γ) Lyrae). In a good night sky it is tricky to find with large (50–80 mm) binoculars, appearing as a slightly fuzzy star. The cluster can be resolved using a telescope with an aperture of 8 in or larger.

M56 is about 32,900 light-years away from Earth and measures roughly 84 light-years across, containing 230,000 solar masses (). It is about 31 – from the Galactic Center and 4.8 kly above the galactic plane. This cluster has an estimated age of 13.70 billion years and is following a retrograde orbit through the Milky Way. The properties of this cluster suggest that it may have been acquired during the merger of a dwarf galaxy, of which Omega Centauri forms the surviving nucleus. For Messier 56, the abundance of elements other than hydrogen and helium, what astronomers term the metallicity, has a very low value of [Fe/H] = –2.00 dex which is of the abundance in the Sun.

The brightest stars in M56 are of 13th magnitude, while it contains only about a dozen known variable stars, such as V6 (RV Tauri star; period: 90 days) or V1 (Cepheid: 1.510 days); other variable stars are V2 (irregular) and V3 (semiregular). In 2000, a diffuse X-ray emission was tentatively identified coming from the vicinity of the cluster. This is most likely interstellar medium that has been heated by the passage of the cluster through the galactic halo. The relative velocity of the cluster is about 177 km s−1, which is sufficient to heat the medium in its wake to a temperature of 940,000 K.

M56 is part of the Gaia Sausage, the hypothesised remains of a merged dwarf galaxy.

References and footnotes

References

  1. "Messier 56".
  2. From [[trigonometry]]: radius = {{nowrap|distance × sin( diameter_angle / 2 )}} = {{nowrap|32,900 × sin(8.8′/2)}} = 42.1 ly.
  3. (2018). "The Sausage Globular Clusters". The Astrophysical Journal.
  4. (December 2010). "The ACS Survey of Galactic Globular Clusters. X. New Determinations of Centers for 65 Clusters". The Astronomical Journal.
  5. (May 2010). "Accreted versus in situ Milky Way globular clusters". [[Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society]].
  6. (2007). "Illustrated guide to astronomical wonders". [[O'Reilly Media, Inc.]].
  7. (2004). "Astronomy of the Milky Way: Observer's guide to the northern sky". Springer.
  8. (June 2008). "CURiuos Variables Experiment (CURVE): Variable Stars in the Metal-Poor Globular Cluster M56". Acta Astronomica.
  9. (April 2006). "Globular cluster system and Milky Way properties revisited". Astronomy and Astrophysics.
  10. (2000). "Near Infrared Photometry of Galactic Globular Clusters M56 and M15. Extending the Red Giant Branch vs. Metallicity Calibration Towards Metal Poor Systems".
  11. (July 2000). "A possible detection of diffuse extended X-ray emission in the environment of the globular cluster NGC 6779". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.
  12. (August 1927). "A Classification of Globular Clusters". Harvard College Observatory Bulletin.
  13. "M 56".
  14. (November 2011). "Young Radio Pulsars in Galactic Globular Clusters". The Astrophysical Journal.
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globular-clusters lyra messier-objects ngc-objects gaia-enceladus astronomical-objects-discovered-in-1779 discoveries-by-charles-messier
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