From the 2Mass Image Gallery
The Milky Way globular star cluster Messier M12 is in this near-IR image. Globular cluster stars look very homogeneous with very little in the way of color or population gradients, particularly in the central regions. The near-IR light is dominated by the old red giants and asymptotic giant branch stars in the cluster.
The images are three-band composites constructed from 2MASS Atlas Images. They are infrared images and therefore must be mapped into false colors: J light (1.2 µm) into blue, H light (1.6 µm) in green, and Ks light (2.2 µm) into red. The Atlas Images are produced in the 2MASS Production Processing System. North is up and east is to the left.The text is based on accompanying on-line materials.
Last Modified On: Sunday, December 17, 2000