Here is a lovely view of the Hercules cluster, from imaging taken by Nathan Wolthuis ’21, and his co-observers earlier this semester.
Nathan explains: “This is a 3 color image (B,r, & i) of the Hercules globular cluster (M13). Globular clusters are groups of stars tightly bound by their gravitational fields that orbit galactic cores. Globular cluster gravitational fields are quite dense, which results in the populations taking on a spherical shape. It should be noted that this globular cluster in particular has many ancient low mass stars, primarily reds and yellows especially in the center. This is further reinforced through the younger bluer (and more metallic) stars having a tendency to diffuse outwards, which can be seen in the image. This image was taken using a FLI Proline CCD and 16” telescope, with the B filter assigned as blue, r a s green, and i as red.”