M11, The Wild Duck Cluster
Sketch and Details by Paul Mettam
TYPE: Open Cluster
CONSTELLATION: Scutum
MAGNITUDE: 6.3
DISTANCE: ~6000 light years
AGE: ~ 250 million years
OBSERVER: Paul Mettam
LOCATION: Derbyshire, England
DATE: 14th September 2009
TIME: 21:00 UT
TELESCOPE: 12″ Newtonian f5 x120
MEDIUM: Graphite pencil, inverted
NOTES.
Despite the advances in astro-imaging I have yet to see an image of this cluster that can surpass the view through the eyepiece.
Sketching such a rich and dense cluster is a real challenge so in my drawing I have only located the brighter stars. The cluster stars are randomly placed to try and indicate the main star groupings. The main body of the cluster is (about 10′ x 10′ in area) lies around and to the west of a magnitude 8 (foreground?) star and consists of magnitude 11 to12 stars in distinct groups. Curiously, when viewed with a low power, wide field eyepiece I seemed to suspect a haze of unresolved stars around the main group about 30′ in diameter; is this just my imagination?
Paul,
This is very interesting view. The autumn begins so the Wild Duck fly south. 😉
Good work!
Marek
Paul you have captured the shape and the appearance of the cluster very well & don’t you just love that golden eye 🙂
Dale
Paul,
I agree with Marek and Dale, your sketch is excellent. That haze of unresolved stars at low power is likely real with the cluster containing nearly 3000 stars.
Frank 🙂
Paul,
Nice sketch.
Thanks,
Tom