H-NGC2169 — 37 Cluster
Open Cluster in Orion
About
NGC 2169, the 37 Cluster, is a compact group of stars in Orion some 3,600 light-years from us. Its brightest stars trace the digits 3 and 7. Hodierna may have recorded it before 1654, and Herschel found it independently in 1784.
Imaging tips
- Framed at 3460–5770 mm on APS-C, which suits a cluster about 7′ across.
- At magnitude 5.9 and 18.8 mag/arcsec² it is bright, and one imager got a result using a modified DSLR on a 5-inch refractor: 3 × 5 minutes at ISO 800.
- To locate it, look about 53′ southwest of Xi Orionis, a magnitude 4.5 star.
- Best in December and January; it peaks near 54° from 50°N.
Facts
- Size
- 7′
- Magnitude
- 5.9
- Coordinates
- RA 6h 8.5m, Dec +13° 57′
- Framing, APS-C
- 3460–5770 mm
- Framing, full frame
- longer than 4000 mm
- Best months
- Jan, Dec
- Peak altitude
- 54° from 50°N, 69° from 35°N