Object: Messier 13 (NGC 6025)Type: Globular Cluster
Distance: 23400 light years
Constellation: Hercules
Date: 17 July 2005
Equipment: SXV-H9, Vixen f5.6 refractor
Subframes: 20 x 60 seconds, 20 x 150 seconds, all averaged. Unguided, no darks or flats.
Mixing in the shorter subframes with the longer ones seemed to avoid the "burnt out" core I've seen in some images of this object. M13 really seems to benefit from the use of the digital development tool in AIP4Win, and gives nice tight star images in the main cluster itself.
I highlighted the 16th magnitude galaxy IC 4617 that also showed up on the image (click to enlarge).
Visually, I don't think the "great" M13 globular cluster packs the visual punch of M5 in Serpens, which I hope to get around to imaging one day, but through the 8 inch VC200L it's still one of the few objects that actually gets a "wow" out of my astro-apathetic and long-suffering wife.
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