| Messier 73 | |
|---|---|
 Asterism Messier 73 in Aquarius | |
| Observation data (J2000 epoch) | |
| Right ascension | 20h 58m 54s[1] [2] |
| Declination | −12° 38′[1][2] |
| Distance | Mean distance star approx. 1685 ly[3] (approx. 516.6 pc) |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 9.0[1][2] |
| Apparent dimensions (V) | 2.8′[2] |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Radius | ly |
| Estimated age | million yrs[citation needed] |
| Other designations | M 73, NGC 6994,[1][2] Cr 426 |
| Associations | |
| Constellation | Aquarius |
Messier 73 (M73, also known as NGC 6994) is an asterism of four stars in the constellation Aquarius which was long thought to be a small open cluster. It lies several arcminutes east of globular cluster M72. According to Gaia EDR3, the stars are 1030±9, 1249±10, 2170±22, and 2290±24 light-years from the Sun, with the second being a binary star.[4]
- ^ a b c d "M 73". SIMBAD. Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg. Retrieved 2006-12-21.
- ^ a b c d e "Messier 73". SEDS Messier pages. Retrieved 2010-02-28.
- ^ Brown, A. G. A.; et al. (Gaia collaboration) (2021). "Gaia Early Data Release 3: Summary of the contents and survey properties". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 649: A1. arXiv:2012.01533. Bibcode:2021A&A...649A...1G. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/202039657. S2CID 227254300. (Erratum: doi:10.1051/0004-6361/202039657e).
- ^ Brown, A. G. A.; et al. (Gaia collaboration) (2021). "Gaia Early Data Release 3: Summary of the contents and survey properties". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 649: A1. arXiv:2012.01533. Bibcode:2021A&A...649A...1G. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/202039657. S2CID 227254300. (Erratum: doi:10.1051/0004-6361/202039657e).