M107

Credits: Keith Turnecliff, Nerja, Spain

M107 is one of approximately 150 globular star clusters found around the disk of the Milky Way galaxy. These spherical collections each contain hundreds of thousands of extremely old stars and are among the oldest objects in the Milky Way. The origin of globular clusters and their impact on galactic evolution remain somewhat unclear, so astronomers continue to study them through pictures such as this one, obtained by Hubble using visible and infrared observations.
Discovered in 1782 by Pierre Méchain, a French astronomer and colleague of Charles Messier, M107 was the last Messier object to be found. M104 through M109 were all discovered by Méchain and were considered “Méchain objects” until 1947, when they were added to the Messier catalog.
M107 is located 20,000 light-years from Earth in the constellation Ophiuchus.

Facts about M107 by Keith Turnecliff

It has an apparent magnitude of 8.9 and can be spotted through a small telescope most easily during July.