M7 (NGC 6475, Ptolemy's Cluster)
Constellation: Sco
Object Type: Open Cluster
RA: 17h 53m 46s
Dec: -34° 46' 59"
Magnitude: 3.0
Recommended minimum aperture: 50mm
Charts for 50mm Binocular (5° aperture circle). Click on a chart to print it.
Location:
This cluster, which is visible to the naked eye as a fuzzy patch against the background Milky Way, is just over 4½ ° E of λ Sco (Shaula), the scorpion's sting; to the mediæval Arabs it was known as the Scorpion's venom.
What You Should See:
M7 is a very large, bright cluster, about 2½ times the diameter of the Moon, in which binoculars of any size will reveal individual stars, about 9 of which are visible in 10×50 binoculars from a reasonably dark site, up to a dozen if the site is very dark. Greater magnification reveals more stars, about 80 of which are 10th magnitude or brighter. This fine cluster derives its common name from the observation of it by Ptolemy of Alexandria in the 1st Century AD.
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