Close Open Clusters In Auriga

[cloudsweeper]

4.25am, Thursday – clear, not too cold (not frosty, anyway), so I put the 10” Dob into action in Auriga, dense with stars in the Milky Way.

Having concentrated on doubles and planets for a while (apart from the Double Cluster, which I view frequently), I decided to turn to clusters.

M38, the Starfish Open Cluster was a treat of about 100 stars – large, dense, bright overall.  Going from x42 to x73 (17.5mm Morpheus) it looked marvellous, nearly filling the FOV.  At x159, it did fill it – a fine spectacle.

M36, the Pinwheel Open Cluster, about 2deg away was also a delight – bright and dense, though smaller than M38.  About 60 stars.

Also in the vicinity, a new one for me was open cluster NGC 1907, in the same FOV as M38.  Smaller again, fainter, with fewer stars (about 30), and a prominent pair.  It looked somewhat misty, which I believe is due to its close stars rather than any conspicuous nebulosity.  More stars were resolved at x127, 159.

After 1.5 hours, I returned to bed, very cold but very pleased with what I had seen.

Doug.

 

[wookie1965]

Brilliant I was looking at them through binoculars had a bad fall Saturday so not been able to carry my kit at all. 

Those clusters are lovely in a scope at low power. 

[Epick Crom]

Good job observing those beautiful open clusters Doug. As I'm in the Southern Hemisphere there are a few you mentioned there that I haven't seen yet. Clear skies!

[Epick Crom]

17 hours ago, wookie1965 said:

Brilliant I was looking at them through binoculars had a bad fall Saturday so not been able to carry my kit at all. 

Those clusters are lovely in a scope at low power.

@wookie1965 hope you recover soon from your fall🙏. Keep looking up figuratively and literally!

[Stu]

3 hours ago, Epick Crom said:

Keep looking up figuratively and literally!

…..unless crossing a road or approaching stairs! Paul is not the luckiest chap on the forum! Take care Paul 👍👍

[Stu]

Great report @cloudsweeper! I love the Auriga clusters, each so different and fascinating to observe. I often think of M35 in Gemini as one of the same group, it’s not far away, much bigger.

[cloudsweeper]

2 minutes ago, Stu said:

Great report @cloudsweeper! I love the Auriga clusters, each so different and fascinating to observe. I often think of M35 in Gemini as one of the same group, it’s not far away, much bigger.

Thanks Stu.  Yes it was good to be out at a different time and see other targets.  Those clusters look good in the Dob, and the stars are really sharp across most of the field.   (And after all these years, I reckon you can call me Doug now!  😉.)

Doug.

[Stu]

Just now, cloudsweeper said:

And after all these years, I reckon you can call me Doug now

Tee hee! 🤣 I would do, but was tagging you so you knew I had replied.

Great report Doug 😀👍

[Captain Scarlet]

Very nice Doug. Those clusters do seem to the the objet-du-jour! So lovely. And I think I’ve seen it now but I must remember to specifically look for ngc 1907 as you suggested I should a few weeks ago.

And I’ve realized that I might’ve inadvertently stolen your reporting style for my own reports, vis-à-vis coloured highlighting of the objects.

Magnus

[cloudsweeper]

3 minutes ago, Captain Magenta said:

Very nice Doug. Those clusters do seem to the the objet-du-jour! So lovely. And I think I’ve seen it now but I must remember to specifically look for ngc 1907 as you suggested I should a few weeks ago.

And I’ve realized that I might’ve inadvertently stolen your reporting style for my own reports, vis-à-vis coloured highlighting of the objects.

Magnus

Thanks Magnus.  Always nice to revisit favourites (and take in a few new ones) - especially after focusing on doubles for a while!

Flattered that you're emulating my "style", BTW!  😉.

Doug.

[cloudsweeper]

7 hours ago, Epick Crom said:

Good job observing those beautiful open clusters Doug. As I'm in the Southern Hemisphere there are a few you mentioned there that I haven't seen yet. Clear skies!

Thanks Joe.  I'll do you a swap with them for 47 Tucanae and Omega Centauri.  😉

Doug.

Edited December 3, 2021 by cloudsweeper