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Explanation: This huge ball of stars predates our Sun. Long before humankind evolved, before dinosaurs roamed, and even before our Earth existed, ancient globs of stars condensed and orbited a young Milky Way Galaxy. Of the 200 or so globular clusters that survive today, M3 is one of the largest and brightest, easily visible in the Northern hemisphere with binoculars. M3 contains about half a million stars, most of which are old and red. Light takes about 100,000 years to reach us from M3, which spans about 150 light years. The above picture is a composite of blue and red images.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: M 3 - globular cluster
Publications with words: M 3 - globular cluster
See also:
- Millions of Stars in Omega Centauri
- APOD: 2023 February 20 Á NGC 1850: Not Found in the Milky Way
- APOD: 2023 January 30 Á Globular Star Cluster NGC 6355 from Hubble
- M13: The Great Globular Cluster in Hercules
- Globular Star Cluster 47 Tuc
- Comet Leonard Before Star Cluster M3
- Palomar 6: Globular Star Cluster