1 min read
Hubble Space Telescope Image of Globular Cluster NGC 6397
About the Object
- R.A. PositionR.A. PositionRight ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position.17h 40m 41.35s
- Dec. PositionDec. PositionDeclination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position.-53° 40' 25.29"
- ConstellationConstellationOne of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears.Ara
- DistanceDistanceThe physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs.8,500 light-years (2.6 kiloparsecs)
About the Data
- Data DescriptionData DescriptionProposal: A description of the observations, their scientific justification, and the links to the data available in the science archive.
Science Team: The astronomers who planned the observations and analyzed the data. "PI" refers to the Principal Investigator.This image was created from HST data from proposal 10424: H. Richer (University of British Columbia), P. Guhathakurta (University of California, Santa Cruz), R.M. Rich (University of California, Los Angeles), J. Anderson (STScI), G. Fahlman (NRC Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics/National Research Council Canada, Saanich, British Columbia), B. Gibson (Swineburne University of Technology, Australia), B. Hansen (University of California, Los Angeles), J. Hurley (Swinburne University of Technology, Australia), J. Kalirai (University of California, Santa Cruz), I. King (University of Washington, Seattle), M. Shara (American Museum of Natural History), and P. Stetson (National Research Council/Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics, Canada). The science team comprises: H. Richer (University of British Columbia), I. King (University of Washington, Seattle), J. Anderson (STScI), J. Coffey (University of British Columbia, Vancouver), G. Fahlman (Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics/National Research Institute of Canada, British Columbia), J. Hurley (Swinburne University of Technology, Australia), and J. Kalirai (University of California, Santa Cruz). - InstrumentInstrumentThe science instrument used to produce the data.HST>ACS/WFC
- Exposure DatesExposure DatesThe date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time.March and April, 2005, Exposure Time: 4.7 days
- FiltersFiltersThe camera filters that were used in the science observations.F606W (V) and F814W (I)
- Object NameObject NameA name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.NGC 6397
- Object DescriptionObject DescriptionThe type of astronomical object.Globular Cluster
- Release DateDecember 4, 2007
- Science ReleaseHow White Dwarfs Get Their ‘Kicks’
- Credit
Color Info
Color InfoA brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented.
The HST image is a composites of many separate exposures made by the ACS instrument on the Hubble Space Telescope using several different filters. Three filters sample broad wavelength ranges, one isolates the light of hydrogen. The color results from assigning different hues (colors) to each monochromatic image. In this case, the assigned colors are: Orange: F814W (I) Cyan: F606W (V)
Compass and Scale
Compass and ScaleAn astronomical image with a scale that shows how large an object is on the sky, a compass that shows how the object is oriented on the sky, and the filters with which the image was made.
Related Images & Videos
Hubble Finds Young White Dwarfs on the Fast Track
These images show young and old white dwarf stars – the burned-out relics of normal stars – in the ancient globular star cluster NGC 6397. The image at left, taken by a ground-based telescope, shows the dense swarm of hundreds of thousands of stars that make up the globular...
Share
Details
Last Updated
Mar 28, 2025
Contact
Media
Claire Andreoli
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov
