Messier 7

Messier 7 or NGC 6475 is an open cluster in the constellation of Scorpius. It lies within a very dense field of stars in the Milkyway. What looks like sand on a coast is all single stars, yellow coloured due to the extinction of dust within our Milkyway. Messier 7 was first recorded by the ancient astronomer Ptolemy. Charles Messier gave it the number seven in his catalog. Some other star clusters as well as dark clouds can be seen in the image. Top right of M7 is the open cluster NGC 6453. A little southeast to M7 is a faint open cluster, registered as Trumpler 30. There is a small dark cloud south of M7, its called Barnard 287.