M79

From South Dublin Astronomical Society

M79
Type	Globular cluster
NGC	NGC 1094
Constellation	Lepus
Right Ascension	5h 24.5m
Declination	-24° 33'
Magnitude	8
Size	9 arc min.
Image:M79 messier image.jpg

Just below Orion is Lepus, the Hare, a constellation often overlooked because of the luminaries contained within the Hunter. You are missing out on some delights though. Place magnitude 2·8 Beta Leporis, or Nihal, at the top of your 5º binocular field and you’ll find one treat, the globular cluster M79, positioned towards the lower part. The cluster might be harder to see in lower power glasses but higher magnification instruments will reveal a hazy spot with a magnitude 5·3 star just a half degree to the southwest. H.A. Rey, in his classic book “The Stars: A New Way to See Them”, controversially redrew the join-the-dot system of constellation lines so that star patterns actually looked liked what they were supposed to represent. The style has its pros and cons but is ideal for the beginner to learn the constellations; Lepus, in Rey’s system, is so obviously like a crouched Hare.