Waid Observatory

Object: NGC 6709 - Open Cluster in Aquila

Date: August 3, 2021    -    Location: Davis Mountains west of Fort Davis, TX
Telescope: RC-10 inch   Camera: Apogee Alta F8300M   Mount: Paramount MX
Exposure:   LRGB Total Exposure = 120 min. (6x5 min. Bin 1 x 1 each)

Click on the image below to view at higher resolution.

 

NGC6709

 

NGC 6709 1

NGC 6709 is an open cluster located in the constellation Aquila approximately 3,500 light years from the Earth.  A Google search for the cluster indicates its classification is a Trumpler III,2,m which means it is well detached from background stars with little or no central concentration and consists of between 50 and 100 stars.  The actual brighter star count for the cluster puts the number of member stars at approximately 60.  The majority of the stars lie in the blue spectrum which indicates a young age of around 300 million years, however, at least one study has placed its age at 150 million years.  As a comparison, our Sun's age is about 4.5 billion years.

1http://bf-astro.com/ngc6709/ngc6709.htm

 
Copyright Donald P. Waid