Jan 15, 2016
Messier 107
Messier 107, also designated NGC 6171, is a globular star cluster located about 21,000 light years away towards the constellation Ophiuchus. It is only about 80 light years across, but contains thousands of stars.
Globular clusters are some of the oldest objects in the Milky Way, forming during the initial development of the galaxy. More than 150 have formed and now orbit the disk of our galaxy. The stars of Messier 107 formed over 10 billion years ago from the same cloud of interstellar gas.
Image from NASA, information from ESO.