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Sky-Tonight.com / Nebulae and Deep-Sky Objects / M55

M55 Position and Visibility Tonight

M55

Where is M55 right now?

M55 is located in the constellation Sagittarius. It is currently below the horizon and is not visible from your location.
Twilight begins at 18:57 local time. At that moment, M55 will be 16° above the horizon toward the south-east.

M55 visibility on 2026-08-18

M55 Visible from sunset until early morning

M55 rise and set timetable

TimeElevation
Moonrise, 21% illuminated 09:49-78°
M55 rise16:51
Sunset17:559°
Civil sunset18:2412°
Twilight start18:5716°
Astronomical observing session begins19:3219°
Moonset20:2621°
M55 transit21:0122°
M55 set01:11
Astronomical observing session ends02:51-17°

Track M55 Position Throughout the Night

← 18 August 2026 →

Elevation (degrees)
Time
Altitude
Azimuth
Shift the map to change the time and observe M55 changing position in the night sky.

M55 - Globular Cluster

M55 is a globular cluster located in the constellation Sagittarius. It was discovered by Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in 1752 and later cataloged by Charles Messier in 1778. The cluster contains a rich population of old stars.

M55 spans about 100 light-years across and contains around 100,000 stars. The cluster is approximately 17,600 light-years away from Earth and has an apparent magnitude of 6.3, making it visible with binoculars or a small telescope.

M55 — Image Gallery

DSS Blue

M55 — blue-filter image
Blue images highlight younger, hotter stars that emit strongly at blue wavelengths.

DSS Red

M55 — red-filter image
Red images reveal older, cooler stars and emission nebulae glowing strongly in hydrogen-alpha light.

DSS Near-Infrared

M55 — near-infrared image
Near-infrared images penetrate dust that obscures visible light and reveal hidden structures.

DSS Composite Image

M55 — composite color image
DSS color images combine blue, red and often near-infrared exposures into a composite view.

The images come from the Digitized Sky Survey 2 (DSS2), produced at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) under contract with NASA, using data from UK Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), European Southern Observatory (ESO), National Geographic Society-Palomar Observatory Sky Survey (POSS II).

Special thanks to National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO), Royal Observatory, Edinburgh, California Institute of Technology for their significant contributions.

Finder Chart for M55

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Object nameM55
Field of view
Limiting magnitude
M55 coordinates19.6665, -30.96208
Center coordinates19.6665, -30.96208

M55 Passage Through Night

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Current position of M55

Time09:37
Latitude37.3541
Longitude-121.955
Elevation-80°
Azimuth50°
Here you can see the current position of M55 on the map, as well as its positions for rise and set. This tool lets you track its movement throughout the night with accurate, up-to-date information.

Annual motion of M55


M55 will remain visible until December 21, when it moves too close to the Sun and temporarily disappears from the night sky. Time
DateTue, 18 August 2026
Twilight start19:28
Twilight end02:44
Twilight duration7h 17m
Rise16:47
Set01:07
Elevation at transit22°
Transit time20:57
Equatorial coordinatesRA: 19h 39m 59s", Dec: -30° 57' 43s
Magnitude6
ConstellationSagittarius
The graph illustrates the annual visibility pattern of M55, including its daily appearances and transit times. The vertical axis shows the hours of the day and the horizontal axis spans the year. The reddish area marks when the object is above the horizon, while the white line marks its daily transit.
You can also view detailed visibility information in a table with exact rise, transit, and set times for each date.

Astrometric and Physical Parameters of M55

Coordinates and Visibility

Right Ascension19.6665°
Declination-30.96208°
Magnitude6.49
ConstellationSagittarius
Elevation-80.5°
Azimuth50.5°

Data Credits

The deep-sky information on this page comes from the OpenNGC project developed by Matteo Verga. OpenNGC provides detailed catalog data for nebulae, galaxies, clusters and other deep-sky objects.

For details or contributions, visit the official repository: OpenNGC GitHub.