M50, NGC 2323

M50 is an open cluster in the constellation Monoceros. A modest-sized cluster of perhaps a couple of hundred stars, M50 is about 3000 light-years away and around 20 light-years across. More imaginative eyes have referred to it as 'heart-shaped'. This approximately true-color picture was created from twelve images taken in the BVR pass-bands at the Burrell Schmidt Telescope of Case Western Reserve University's Warner and Swasey Observatory. The Burrell Schmidt Telescope is located on Kitt Peak, near Tucson, Arizona. The images were taken in September 1997.