Messier 107 - A Loose Globular Cluster in Ophiuchus
Updated: Jun 8
Messier 107 is a globular cluster in the constellation Ophiuchus. It is the last globular cluster entered in Messier's catalog of deep-sky objects.
We imaged M107 for just one hour before packing up our equipment. More time would have helped in making our image cleaner and more impressive, but one hour from a Bortle 4 or better is usually just enough to get a beautiful image for most globular clusters.
Object Designation: M107
Constellation: Ophiuchus
Object Type: Globular Cluster
Distance: 20,900 light-years away
Magnitude: 8.6
Discovered in: 1782
The image on the left shows how sparse the stars are even near the core of the cluster. It was taken by the Hubble Space Telescope in 2008.
This image, and the studies made by NASA, tell us that M107 is a very loose globular cluster. It is also one of the oldest globular clusters known at 13.95 billion years old!
There are about 100,000 stars in Messier 107.
Below is our image of M107! You can tell that it is not perfectly clean, and there is room for improvement, but we are still pleased with this result knowing it was only one hour of total integration time.
Our image of Messier 107
GEAR USED:
Camera: QHY600C
Telescope: Stellarvue SVX130
Mount: Astro-Physics Mach1
Guiding: ZWO ASI 290MM Mini
Accessories: Moonlite Nitecrawler focuser / Pegasus Astro Ultimate Powerbox
Power: Jackery Lithium Battery
Processing: PixInsight
ACQUISITION DETAILS:
Total Exposure Time: 1 hour
Exposure Time per frame: 1 minute
Filters: ZWO IR Cut Filter
Gain: 56
How to find Messier 107?
Messier 107 is located in the constellation Ophiuchus, very close to Scorpius. It is not too difficult to find thanks to its proximity to the bright orange star Antares.
M107 does not rise high in the sky for northern observers and does not stay visible for long either. Visually, the cluster is difficult to spot with binoculars but not impossible. It is better experienced through a large telescope.
How to Process Messier 107
Messier 107 is like any other globular cluster: Simple to process. It is just a big ball of stars, and there aren't any tricky parts to it. Go through your usual processing workflow and make sure to not blow out the core of the object. This cluster in particular is actually slightly easier to process than most because of how loose it is.
Do you have a hard time processing images? Find out how we process our images by purchasing our processing workflow guide HERE.
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Final Thoughts
Messier 107 is a typical globular cluster like the thousands of others you will find in the sky. The good thing is that it is the last one in Messier's Catalog, so if you were capturing each Messier object from the beginning and were getting tired of clusters, pop some champagne after this one 😅🍾
Have you captured M107? Attach your image in the comments and let us know your acquisition details!
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