Celestial Objects
Messier 55
Star Clusters
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Messier 55, also known as M55 or NGC 6809, is a globular cluster of stars in the constellation Sagittarius, discovered by the French astronomer Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille in 1752 and added to Charles Messier's catalogue in 1778. It lies roughly 17,600 to 20,000 light-years from Earth and is comparatively loosely concentrated for a globular cluster, allowing its individual member stars to be resolved even in modest telescopes.
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