Open Star Clusters
These groups may contain only a few stars or as many as a thousand.
They are gravitationally bound, gradually losing members through the ages.
The sun was once a member of an open cluster but has lost all its companions.

Wide-angle starfields are also included on this page.

Learn more about open clusters here:
http://www.seds.org/messier/open.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_cluster

Click on an image to enlarge.
Click on a constellation name to view a star chart (courtesy Starry Night Software).
If you download and process a raw file please send me your results. As soon as possible I will post your image.

Jump to:

NGC 752
NGC 869 / NGC 884
NGC 2423
NGC 2244
NGC 2264
NGC 6892 Coathanger
NGC 6939
NGC 7789
           
Target
Raw Image
Processed Image
Exposure Data
Lens/Telescope & Camera Used
Download Raw Stack
Perseus and Cassiopeia.

1 frame,
208 seconds

28mm
f/6.7
ISO 400

Sigma 28-80 zoom lens
Canon 10D

C41, Hyades in Taurus.

1 frame,
242 seconds

80mm
f/5.6
ISO 400
Sigma 28-80 zoom lens
Canon 10D
M6 in Scorpius.
1600 LY distant.
Size: 25 arc min
Mag: 4.2

30 frames,
30 seconds each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 800
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
  
M7 in Scorpius.
800 LY distant.
Size: 80 arc min
Mag: 3.3

32 frames,
30 seconds each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 800
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
  
M11, The Wild Duck cluster in Scutum.
6000 LY distant.
Size: 14 arc min
Mag: 6.3
Aprox. 2900 stars.

1 frame,
30 seconds.

500mm
f/5
ISO 1600
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
  
M18 with M17 in Sagittarius.
4900 LY distant.
Size: 9 arc min
Mag: 7.5

72 frames,
30 seconds each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 800
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
  
M21 with M20 in Sagittarius.
4250 LY distant.
Size: 13 arc min
Mag: 6.5

59 frames,
30 seconds each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 800
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
  
M23 in Sagittarius.
2150 LY distant.
Size: 27 arc min
Mag: 6.9

27 frames,
30 seconds each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 800
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
  
M24 star cloud in Sagittarius.
10,000 LY distant.
Size: 90 arc min
Mag: 4.6

45 frames,
30 seconds each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 800
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
  
A wider view of the same area.

21 frames,
2 minutes each.

200mm
f/5
ISO 1600
Tamron 70-300mm zoom lens.
Canon 400D (XTi)
 
M25 in Sagittarius.
2000 LY distant.
Size: 32 arc min
Mag: 4.6

11 frames,
30 seconds each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 800
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
  
M29 in Cygnus.
4000 LY distant.
Size: 7 arc min
Mag: 7.1

6 frames,
60 seconds each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 800

Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 10D

Dark frames applied.

Click to download archived ZIP
The image above, cropped and enlarged.
M34 in Perseus.
1400 LY distant.
Size: 35 arc min
Mag: 5.5

8 frames,
30 seconds each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 800
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
  
M35 and NGC 2158
in Gemini.
2800 LY distant.
Size: 28 arc min
Mag: 5.3
NGC 2158 is over 1 billion years old.

6 frames,
3 minutes each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 1600
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 10D

 
M37 in Auriga.
4400 LY distant.
Size: 24 arc min
Mag: 6.2

6 frames,
2 minutes each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 400
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 10D

 
M36, M38 and
NGC 1907 in Auriga.
4100 LY Distant.
Size: 12 arc min
Mag: 6.1

6 frames,
3 minutes each.

200mm
f/5.6
ISO 200
Canon 55-200 mm zoom lens.
Canon 10D
M39 in Cygnus.
4400 LY distant.
Size: 24 arc min
Mag: 6.2

12 frames,
30 seconds
each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 800
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
  
M40 in Ursa Major.
Not a true cluster, a double star.
510 LY distant.
Mag: 8.4

1 frame,
20 seconds.

500mm
f/5
ISO 800

Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 10D

 
M44, the Beehive cluster in Cancer.
577 LY distant.
Size: 1.5 degrees
Mag: 3.7

5 frames,
3 minutes each.

100mm
f/4.5
ISO 400
Canon 55-200mm zoom lens
Canon10D
M44 photographed with a Canon XTI. The star spikes were added during processing.

20 frames,
1 minute each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 200
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTI)

M45, the Pleiades in Taurus.
440 LY distant.
Size: 110 arc min
Mag: 1.6
There is another image of this cluster on the Nebula page.

20 frames,
exposures 2 to 8 minutes.

200mm
f/5.6
ISO 200 to 800

Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 10D

Dark frames applied.

Click to download archived ZIP
M46 in Puppis.
5400 LY distant.
Size: 27 arc min
Mag: 6

1 frame,
2 minutes.

500mm
f/5
ISO 400
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 10D

M46 and M47.

1 frame,
2 minutes.

500mm
f/5
ISO 400
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 10D

M47 and NGC 2423 in Puppis.
1600 LY distant.
Size: 30 arc min
Mag: 5.2

4 frames,
75 seconds each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 400
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 10D
  
M48 in Hydra.
1500 LY distant.
Size: 54 arc min
Mag: 5.5

3 frames,
106 seconds each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 400
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 10D
  
M50 in Monoceros .
3200 LY distant.
Size: 16 arc min.
Mag: 5.9

16 frames,
1 minute each.

500mm,
f/5
ISO 200
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
  
M52, the Scorpion cluster in Cassiopeia.
5000 LY distant.
Size: 13 arc min.
Mag: 7.3

24 frames,
30 seconds each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 400
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)

Dark frames applied.

Click to download archived ZIP
 
The same stack reprocessed.
     
M67 in Cancer.
2700 LY distant.
Size: 30 arc min.
Mag: 6.1

25 frames,
1 minute each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 200
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
  
M71 in Sagitta.
13000 LY distant.
Size: 7.2 arc min.
Mag: 8.2

16 frames,
30 seconds each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 1600
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
  
M73 in Aquarius.
2500 LY distant.
Size: 7.2 arc min.
Mag: 8.2

8 frames,
20 seconds each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 800
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
  
M103 in Cassiopeia.
8500 LY distant.
Size: 6 arc min.
Mag: 7.4

5 frames,
1 minute each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 800
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
  
NGC 457, The Owl Cluster in Cassiopeia.
1300 LY distant.
Size: 60 arc min
Mag: 5.7

16 frames,
30 seconds each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 800
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
  

NGC 752 in Andromeda.
1300 LY distant.
Size: 60 arc min
Mag: 5.7

Raw image unavailable.
 
Exposure information unavailable.
 
NGC 869 and
NGC 884, the Perseus Double Cluster.
7100 LY distant.
Size: 30 arc min.
Mag: 4.3

3 frames,
2 minutes each.

200mm
f/5.6
ISO 400

Canon 55-200 mm zoom lens.
Canon 10D
  

NGC 2264, The Chrstmas Tree Cluster in Monoceros.
2400 LY distant.
Size: 20 arc min
Mag: 3.9

10 frames,
3 minutes each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 1600
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 10D
Broadband LPR filter used.
NGC 2264 and NGC 2244 in Monoceros.
Raw image unavailable.
 
Exposure information
unavailable.
 
NGC 6892, the Coathanger Cluster in Sagitta.
400 LY distant.
Size: 1.8 degrees
Mag: 5.1

8 frames,
30 seconds
each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 800
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
  
NGC 6939 in Cepheus.
Size: 8 arc min
Mag: 7.8

160 frames of 60 seconds and 90 seconds.

500mm
f/5
ISO 1600

Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)

Raw stack available on Galaxy page, with NGC 6946.

NGC 7789 in Cassiopeia.
Size: 16 arc min.
Mag: 6.7

29 frames of 1 minute each.

500mm
f/5
ISO 1600
Celestron C102 refractor
Canon 400D (XTi)
Dark frames applied.
LPR filter used.
           
           

 

 

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Photos and text ©2008 Eric A. Jacob