Daily Image
19-09-2007
Near and Far
| Submitter: | Albert van Duin |
| Description: | This image was made on July 22, 2007 in Beilen when Comet C/2006 VZ13(LINEAR) was passing near globular cluster Messier 3. This apparent proximity is just a chance alignment. The distance from the comet to the Earth at that moment was about 103,000,000 km. The cluster on the other hand is at a distance of about 33,900 light-year (a light-year is about 9,500,000,000,000 km). The comet has trailed during the 20 minute exposure due to the fast movement of the comet. Messier 3 (also known as M3 or NGC 5272) is a globular cluster in the constellation Canes Venatici. It was discovered by Charles Messier in 1764, and resolved into stars by William Herschel around 1784. This cluster is one of the largest and brightest, and is made up of around 500,000 stars. It is located at a distance of about 33,900 light-years away from Earth. M3 has an apparent magnitude of 6.2, making it visible to the naked eye under dark conditions. From a moderately-sized telescope, the cluster is fully defined. (Source: Wikipedia) The comets green color indicates its coma contains the poisonous gas cyanogen and diatomic carbon. More images of this and other comets can be found at http://www.astropix.nl |
| Copyright: | Albert van Duin |
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