M 2 Deep sky · Globular cluster in Aquarius · M 2 · NGC 7089
M 2
A rich globular cluster in Aquarius that Charles Messier took for a nebula without stars — it took William Herschel’s larger mirror to resolve it.
Save the chart (SVG) Tactile chart (A4 SVG)
- Type
- Globular cluster
- Designations
- M 2 · NGC 7089
- Constellation
- Aquarius
- Apparent magnitude
- 6.3
- Apparent size
- 16′
- Position (J2000)
- RA 21h 33m · Dec −00° 49′
The full Moon, about 31′ across, is 1.9 times as wide. The Sun passes 13° from it around mid February, and for about 15 days of the year it sits within 15° of the Sun, lost in its glare.
When to see it
On the night of Thu 12 Aug 2027, when it is highest around midnight, on each city’s own clock:
| From | Rises | Highest | Sets |
|---|---|---|---|
| London GMT+1 | 19:15 | 01:10 · 38° | 07:06 |
| New York EDT | 19:08 | 01:05 · 49° | 07:01 |
| Singapore GMT+8 | 19:16 | 01:15 · 88° | 07:14 |
| Sydney GMT+10 | 18:05 | 00:06 · 57° | 06:07 |
Common questions
- Can I see it from 50° north?
- Yes. It rises and sets, and at its highest it stands 39° up in the south.
- Can I see it from 35° south?
- Yes. It rises and sets, and at its highest it stands 56° up in the north.
- When is the best time of year to see it?
- Around mid August, when it stands opposite the Sun and is highest at midnight. It comes round about two hours earlier each month, so by mid November it is highest in the early evening, and in mid May not until the hours before dawn.
- How bright is it?
- Magnitude 6.3 in total, but that light is spread over 16′ of sky: on average 20.9 magnitudes per square arcsecond. Against a dark country sky that average stands out; a city’s glow drowns all but its brightest parts.
- Naked eye, binoculars or telescope?
- The naked eye, from a dark country sky, which shows stars to about magnitude 7.0; from a city, binoculars.
Look for
It lies north of Sadalsuud, on an empty stretch of autumn sky. Binoculars show a fuzzy star; a small telescope, a bright, grainy ball.
Look for
From 50° north it climbs to 39°; from 35° north it climbs to 54°; from the equator it climbs to 89°; from 35° south it climbs to 56°.
Look for
Magnitude 6.3 against the faintest star each can show: the eye under a city sky, 4.5 (1.8 short); the eye under a dark country sky, 7.0 (0.7 to spare); 50 mm binoculars under that dark sky, 11.0 (4.7 to spare); a 100 mm telescope there, 12.5 (6.2 to spare). Those limits are for a point of light; its light is spread over its whole size, so it needs some of that margin in hand. Through 7×50 binoculars, whose field is about 7.1° across, it spans 4% of the field’s width; through a 100 mm telescope at 50×, a field about 1° across, it spans 27% of the field’s width.