101 Must-See Cosmic Objects: M4

Scorpius the Scorpion holds many of the sky’s finest deep-sky objects, including the spectacular globular cluster M4. This group of stars stands out for several reasons. First, at 7,200 light-years away, it is the closest globular cluster to our solar system. It’s also on the small side as globulars go, measuring about 75 light-years across. For comparison, the Hercules Cluster and the grandmaster of globulars, Omega Centauri, both span roughly 150 light-years in diameter.

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