Menu

NGC 5946 — Globular Cluster in Norma

Globular Cluster Good (46/100)
Magnitude 9.6m GlobularCluster Norma (Nor) Visible
Star Map
+ List + Plan Star Hop

Observe

1Properties

Magnitude 9.6
Angular Size 3.6′
glob. cl. , cB, pL, R, vglbM, rrr, st 16

Position & Identifiers

RA 15h 35m 30.0s
Dec -50° 40' 00.0"
Constellation Norma (Nor)
Catalog NGC 5946

2How easy to spot?

Sign in and configure your equipment and default location to see a personalized row.
Telescope Bortle 3 Bortle 4 Bortle 5
80mm refr. Medium+ Medium+ Medium
150mm Newt. Easy Easy Easy
C8 203mm Easy Easy Easy
Easy Medium Hard Very hard Impossible

Bortle 3 = rural · 4 = outer suburbs · 5 = suburbs

Medium on Seestar S50

3Visibility

Set a location in User Settings to see visibility data.

Best season Apr – Jun (peak: May)

4 Eyepiece View

Log in to set your own equipment
125x TFOV: 0.4° Lim. mag: 13.6
N E

NGC 5946 · 3.6′ diameter · N up, E left

5 Best Magnification

Explore

6 Classification Decoder

Nearby in the Sky

Other targets within a few degrees — pan your scope a little and keep exploring.

Visibility scores assume a 150 mm Newton at Bortle 4.

NGC 5927
Easy
Globular cluster — dense ball of ancient stars
Globular Cluster mag 8.3 1.2° Lupus
Zeta Lup
Easy
Easy double, sep 71.7″
Double Star mag 3.41 3.9° Lupus
NGC 5925
Easy
Open cluster
Open Cluster mag 8.0 4.1° Norma
S Nor
Medium
Pulsating variable, period 9.8d
Variable Star mag 6.49 9.6° Norma
Show on Map

Explore Nightbase

Related knowledge, tools, and stories — no observation planning required.

Harlow Shapley
Determined the size of the Milky Way and the Sun's off-center position
Biography
Norma
Mythology, bright stars, and deep-sky highlights.
Constellation
The Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram — Reading Stars Like a Map
The HR diagram turns the night sky into a physics map: every named star has a spot, every spot tells you mass, age, and fate. A guide for amateur observers.
Article
}