This is approximately true-color picture of open cluster M18 in the constellation Sagittarius. This wide-spread open cluster is poor in stars, with fewer than a couple of dozen members. About 5000 light years away, it is quite young, only around 30 million years old.
This image was created from images taken in June 1996 using BVR colors, at the
Burrell Schmidt telescope of Case Western Reserve University's Warner and
Swasey Observatory, located on Kitt Peak, near Tucson, Arizona. The image was
made during the Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program
operated at the Kitt Peak National Observatory. Image size 22.0 arc minutes.
Credit: Hillary Mathis, REU program/NOAO/AURA/NSF
Color image of open cluster M18. Captured from Usenet. Also in Patrick Murphy's collection.
IR image of open star cluster Messier 18, taken with the 2MASS IR telescopes. This is a false-color IR image coding different IR wavelength bands into colors, with coolest/longest red and "hottest" or warmest/shortest blue.
Last Modification: November 20, 2002