NGC 6535

Globular Cluster NGC 6535, class XII, in Serpens Cauda

[NGC 6535, M. Germano]
Right Ascension 18 : 03.8 (h:m)
Declination -00 : 18 (deg:m)
Distance 22.2 (kly)
Visual Brightness 10.6 (mag)
Apparent Dimension 3.6 (arc min)

Discovered by William Herschel in 1780.

Globular cluster NGC 6535 was discovered by William Herschel on August 24, 1780 with his 6.2-inch reflector (7-ft. FL), as one of his early objects found before he started his systematical survey for nebulae and clusters. iOn this occasion, he just noticed the object but did not catalog 1t. It happens that he never returned to this object later, and it was also missed by his son John Herschel, so it was found independently by John Russell Hind on April 26, 1852.

According to modern measurements, globular cluster NGC 6535 is at a distance of about 22,200 light-years from us and 12,700 light-years from the Galactic Center. Its mass has be determined at 20,000 solar masses, its half-mass radius as 11.1 light-years, and its age at 12.7 billion years. It orbits the Galactic Center in about 50 million years on an excentric orbit between about 3,100 and 14,700 light-years. The 2 variable stars (of RR Lyrae type) found in the field of NGC 6535 to 2015 are both thought to be non-member field stars.

The image in this page was obtained by Martin Germano with an 8" f/5 Newtonian reflector and ST-8XME self-guided CCD camera and Red filter, exposed 200 minutes.

.. more to come ..

  • Marco Castellani's data for NGC 6535
  • Christine Clement's Catalog of Variable Stars in NGC 6535
  • Holger Baumgardt's Fundamental Data for NGC 6535
  • SIMBAD Data of NGC 6535
  • Publications on NGC 6535 (NASA ADS)
  • Observing Reports for NGC 6535 (IAAC Netastrocatalog)
  • NGC Online data for NGC 6535

  • Wikipedia page for NGC 6535

    Hartmut Frommert
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    Last Modification: July 26, 2026