A snapshot of the Jewel Box cluster with the ESO VLT

The FORS1 instrument on the ESO Very Large Telescope (VLT) at ESO's Paranal Observatory was used to take this exquisitely sharp close up view of the colourful Jewel Box cluster, NGC 4755. The telescopes huge mirror allowed very short exposure times: just 2.6 seconds through a blue filter, 1.3 seconds through a yellow/green filter and 1.3 seconds through a red filter. The field of view spans about seven arcminutes.