Poor globular cluster M56 in Lyra is frequently overlooked because of its tiny little neighbor M57, the Ring Nebula, grabbing all the attention of observers. Few bother to shift their scope a short distance and gaze on this gem. That is a shame because most globulars are visible in portions of the sky rather devoid of stars and it is spectacular to see M56 shining amidst a field filled with countless colorful stars of the summer Milky Way. M56 appears small among Messier globulars, largely because it is farther than the commonly viewed globulars at 32,600 light-years from Earth.

Exposures: L:R:G:B=160:50:50:50 = 5 hours, 10 minutes total exposure at f/7.5.

This image was published in the April, 2021 and the August, 2024 issues of Astronomy magazine.

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