C58
Open Cluster in Canis Major
About
Canis Major holds this loose star cluster, NGC 2360, about 3,700 light-years away and roughly 2.2 billion years old. Caroline Herschel found it in 1783, but it was her brother William who put it into print in 1786, with her name attached.
Imaging tips
- Bright for a deep-sky target at 7.2 mag and 20.6 mag/arcsec², so a modest LRGB set is enough: one April 2025 image was taken from a city yard under a half Moon.
- Sources give its apparent size as 13–14′, larger than the catalogue's 9′, so frame with some room around the stars.
- A 5.5 mag star, HD 56405, sits near the western edge but is not a cluster member, so it adds a bright star to the field.
- Best around December and January; it peaks near 24° altitude from 50°N.
Facts
- Size
- 9′
- Magnitude
- 7.2
- Coordinates
- RA 7h 17.8m, Dec −15° 38′
- Framing, APS-C
- 2690–4490 mm
- Framing, full frame
- longer than 4000 mm
- Best months
- Jan, Dec
- Peak altitude
- 24° from 50°N, 39° from 35°N