Key facts
- Class
- IV
- Constellation
- Ophiuchus
- Right ascension
- 17 01 12.60
- Declination
- –30 ° 06 ′ 44.5 ″
- Distance
- 21.5 ± 1.3 kly (6.6 ± 0.4 kpc )
- Apparent dimensions v
- 15 ′
- Absolute magnitude
- −9.18
- Mass
- 1.22 × 10 M ☉
- Radius
- 48 ly
- Tidal radius
- 59 ly.
- Metallicity
- [ Fe/H ] = –1.02 dex
- Estimated age
- 11.78 Gyr
- Other designations
- C 1658-300, GCl 51, M62, NGC 6266
via Wikipedia infobox
Article
Messier 62 or M62, also known as NGC 6266 or the Flickering Globular Cluster, is a globular cluster of stars located in the south of the constellation of Ophiuchus. The cluster was discovered on 7 June 1771 by Charles Messier, who listed it as the 62nd entry in his catalogue published eight years later.
M62 is about 21.5 kly from Earth and 5.5 kly from the Galactic Center. It is among the most massive and luminous globular clusters in the Milky Way: its estimated mass is 1.22×10 M☉, its integrated absolute magnitude in the V band is −9.18., and therefore the mass-to-light ratio is 2.05±0.04. It has a projected ellipticity of 0.01, meaning it is essentially spherical. The density profile of its member stars suggests it has not yet undergone core collapse. It has a core radius of 1.3 ly (0.39 pc), a half-mass radius of 9.6 ly (2.95 pc), and a half-light radius of 6.0 ly (1.83 pc). The stellar density at the core is 5.13 M☉ per cubic parsec. It has a tidal radius of 59 ly (18.0 pc).