Globular cluster · Aquarius
M72
Also known as: NGC 6981
mag 9.46′ across
About
M72 is a globular cluster of magnitude 9.4 in Aquarius, about 6′ across.
How to find it
- M72 is in the constellation Aquarius.
- Best evenings: around mid-September it is highest at about 9 pm (10 pm in summer time); a month earlier, two hours later.
- Where on Earth: it is seen well, at least 10° up, from south of 67° N.
When it rises and sets tonight, how high it climbs and how much the Moon gets in the way are worked out in your browser for your place.
What you will see
- EyesNot visible to the naked eye.
- Binoculars (10×50)Too faint for binoculars.
- Telescope (6–8 inch)A small round glow.
For a dark country sky with no Moon. From a city, faint galaxies and nebulae can disappear completely.
Facts
| Designations | M72, NGC 6981 |
|---|---|
| Type | Globular cluster |
| Magnitude | 9.4The smaller the number, the brighter. |
| Apparent size | 6′the full Moon is 31′ across |
| Surface brightness | ≈ 21.9 mag/arcsec²Estimate from the magnitude and size, per square arcsecond. |
| Constellation | Aquarius |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 20h 53m 27.9s |
| Declination (J2000) | −12° 32′ 14″ |
More in Aquarius
M2Globular clustermag 6.5
NGC 7293Helix NebulaPlanetary nebula · mag 7.3
NGC 7009Saturn NebulaPlanetary nebula · mag 8.0
M73Asterismmag 10.0
NGC 7252Atoms for Peace GalaxyGalaxy · mag 12.1Sources and credits
Catalog data: OpenNGC by Mattia Verga, CC BY-SA 4.0, and d3-celestial by Olaf Frohn, BSD 3-Clause. All data sources →