Messier 73
Sign in to saveAsterism of four stars in the constellation Aquarius
AI overview
Messier 73 is a group of four stars in the constellation Aquarius that appear close together in the sky. It's an asterism—a recognizable pattern of stars that isn't a true star cluster—and has been of historical interest to astronomers cataloging notable celestial objects.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Key facts
- Right ascension
- 20 58 54
- Declination
- −12 ° 38 ′
- Distance
- Mean distance star approx. 1685 ly (approx. 516.6 pc )
- Apparent dimensions v
- 2.8′
- Radius
- ly
- Estimated age
- million yrs
- Other designations
- M 73, NGC 6994, Cr 426
- Constellation
- Aquarius
via Wikipedia infobox
Article
Messier 73 (M73, also known as NGC 6994) is an asterism of four stars in the constellation Aquarius which was long thought to be a small open cluster. It lies several arcminutes east of globular cluster M72. According to Gaia EDR3, the stars are 1030±9, 1249±10, 2170±22, and 2290±24 light-years from the Sun, with the second being a binary star.
History