M80

Messier 80 is a fine 8th magnitude globular cluster which lies at a distance of about 32,600 light years in Scorpio. Containing hundreds of thousands of stars, it is one of the densest globulars in our galaxy. The cluster contains large numbers of bright blue stars in its core, which indicates an exceptionally high stellar collision rate in the core, resulting in stars losing their cooler envelopes in close encounters with other cluster members. A nova was seen in M80 on May 21, 1860, which altered the appearance of the cluster for some days but it is uncertain whether or not the nova was actually a cluster member. A second, fainter, nova occurred in 1938.

Image taken July 27, 2009, with the ST-8 camera on the C-14 operating at F:11 - Exposure was 305 seconds.

Taken early September, 2006, with the 402 camera.