M11 or M26?

[inkpen]

Hi all, following advice in the latest Sky at Night magazine I thought I'd look up M11. After a few minutes fumbling with my 20x90 bins I found what looked like a nebula. It was smudge of white light like a faint Orion. Since I expected M11 to appear as a good identifiable cluster I assumed it was M26 (not recalling what M26 was). So I hunted for M11 with no joy.

So, now I'm assuming that what I saw was M111.

So, just for peace of mind. If I saw a bright nebulous looking smudge in the right place just down from Beta Scuti am I likely to have seen M11 or M26?

If it stays clear on Sunday (I'm away on Saturday) I'll get the scope out which will probably confirm it.

[BinocularSky]

Given that M11 is brighter and larger than M26, it is more likely that you saw it. In your binocular (which, IIRC has a FoV o around 2.5* - 3*), M11 should fit in the same field as b-Sct; M26 should not.

So, now I'm assuming that what I saw was M111.

There is no M111 -- the catalogue stops at M110.