glenc
15-02-2008, 05:45 AM
In 1826 Niccolò Cacciatore discovered a globular cluster from Palermo, Sicily.
It was the only deep sky object he discovered.
He found it while looking for the magnitude 6 Comet Pons 1825IV, just above his southern horizon, shortly before dawn on 19/3/1826.
The globular cluster was only 5.5 degrees above his horizon when twilight started at 4:45 am and it was also just above a mountain.
Here is some info on Cacciatore. http://www.klima-luft.de/steinicke/ngcic/persons/cacciatore.htm
James Dunlop found the same object 3.5 months later from Parramatta in Sydney.
He described it as "A very bright round highly condensed nebula, about 3' diameter. I can resolve a considerable portion round the margin, but the compression is so great near the centre; that it would require a very high power, as well as light; to separate the stars; the stars are rather dusky."
Here is some data on this Globular cluster.
Names: Cacciatore 1, Dunlop 473, John Herschel 3726, NGC 6541
Globular cluster in CrA. mag 6.3, size 13.0', distance 23,500 lyrs, RA2000 18.134, dec -43.70
It is the 12th brightest GC in the sky after omega Cen, 47 Tuc, M 22, NGC 6752, M 4, M 5, NGC 6397, M 13, M 3, NGC 2808 and M 15.
To see the GC start from lambda Sco (the tail of Sco) and sweep 4 degrees across to iota1 Sco then continue 5 degrees along that line to Cacciatore 1. Here is an image by Steven one of our IIS members: http://users.westconnect.com.au/~sjastro/ngc6541c.html (http://users.westconnect.com.au/%7Esjastro/ngc6541c.html)
It was the only deep sky object he discovered.
He found it while looking for the magnitude 6 Comet Pons 1825IV, just above his southern horizon, shortly before dawn on 19/3/1826.
The globular cluster was only 5.5 degrees above his horizon when twilight started at 4:45 am and it was also just above a mountain.
Here is some info on Cacciatore. http://www.klima-luft.de/steinicke/ngcic/persons/cacciatore.htm
James Dunlop found the same object 3.5 months later from Parramatta in Sydney.
He described it as "A very bright round highly condensed nebula, about 3' diameter. I can resolve a considerable portion round the margin, but the compression is so great near the centre; that it would require a very high power, as well as light; to separate the stars; the stars are rather dusky."
Here is some data on this Globular cluster.
Names: Cacciatore 1, Dunlop 473, John Herschel 3726, NGC 6541
Globular cluster in CrA. mag 6.3, size 13.0', distance 23,500 lyrs, RA2000 18.134, dec -43.70
It is the 12th brightest GC in the sky after omega Cen, 47 Tuc, M 22, NGC 6752, M 4, M 5, NGC 6397, M 13, M 3, NGC 2808 and M 15.
To see the GC start from lambda Sco (the tail of Sco) and sweep 4 degrees across to iota1 Sco then continue 5 degrees along that line to Cacciatore 1. Here is an image by Steven one of our IIS members: http://users.westconnect.com.au/~sjastro/ngc6541c.html (http://users.westconnect.com.au/%7Esjastro/ngc6541c.html)