WONDERS AT THE HEART OF THE GALAXY
Susan Wolven

As the night sky wheels its way into autumn the Milky Way once again rides high in the sky as the constellations of summer slowly begin to make way for those of fall and winter. Scattered between two of these fall constellations, Sagittarius, the Archer and Scutum, the Shield, is a collection of breathtakingly beautiful star clusters and nebulae, many which can be seen with binoculars or a low-power, wide-field telescope. From Earth’s location near the edge of the galaxy we are actually looking towards the galactic center 26,000 light-years away when we look in the direction of Sagittarius. This is why these clusters and nebulae appear close together when in reality they are light-years apart.

To locate these celestial wonders first find Scutum, the Shield. (A daily sky chart is available at www.heavens-above.com.) Scutum is a relatively modern constellation introduced in 1687 and named after King John III Sobieski of Poland. The fifth-smallest constellation in the sky, it contains The Scutum Starcloud, a collection of tiny stellar jewels best viewed through binoculars. Within this starcloud is one of the finest open clusters (a group of up to several thousands of stars that were born together and reside in close proximity to one another) in the heavens, M11. M11 is also called the Wild Duck Cluster since its brightest stars resemble the V-shape of wild ducks in flight.

Below Scutum lies Sagittarius, an ancient constellation whose origins can be traced back to the centaurs of Greek mythology and to the celestial horsemen of ancient India. The constellation’s main star pattern is called the Teapot. Looking like a brilliant plume of steam issuing from the Teapot’s spout is the Large Sagittarius Starcloud. In and around this magnificent starcloud is where the nebulae can be found.

These well-known deep sky objects were cataloged back in the 1700s by French comet hunter Charles Messier and carry the “M” designation.

The Omega Nebula (M17) is 4,890 light-years away and over 57 light-years across. Also known as the Horseshoe or Swan Nebula, it can be found right below and to the right of Scutum’s shield.
The Trifid Nebula (M20) is 5,000 light-years away and 29 light-years across. This red and blue nebula appears to be divided by dark lanes into three sections, thus giving it the name Trifid.
The Lagoon Nebula (M8) is a visually unique nebula because it is nested within a cluster of stars. It is 5,200 light-years away and 136 light-years across.

Near the handle of the Teapot is the globular cluster M22, a large, bright and visually stunning cluster. Over 10,100 light-years away and 96 light-years across it is located in the thickest part of the Milky Way, an area saturated with stars, clusters and nebulae.

For optimal viewing of these amazing Messier Objects choose a night when there is a New Moon so the lunar light won’t obscure these distant gems.

Home