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A large and bright open cluster of 6th to 10th magnitude stars
readily visible to the naked eye as a nebulous patch.
M6 contains many bright stars and in binoculars forms a lovely pair with nearby open cluster M7.
The stars in this cluster form an arrangement that suggests the outline of a butterfly
with open wings giving rise to its name - The Butterfly cluster.
The brightest star in this cluster is a 6th magnitude yellow-orange giant star.
M6 is of intermediate age for an open cluster - 100 million years old.
As seen from our vantage point, it lies closer to the center of the galaxy than any other Messier object.
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