M46,
M47 and ngc2423 - RGB - Open
Clusters in Puppis
M46 (lower left), M47 (lower right) and ngc2423 (faint, upper right) -
Open Clusters in Puppis
Moravian G4 camera w Astrodon Gen II filters
Astro-Physics AP155EDF Refractor w Robofocus
11/11/11 x 5 min for each of RGB
Paramount MX guided w ST-402 and Borg 60mm achromat
Image acquisition via CCD-Commander and TSX
Processing in PixInsight and PS CC 2021
Click on the image to have your browser resize it for your screen.
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From
SEDS.ORG:
Messier 46 (M46, NGC 2437) was the first object Charles Messier
discovered after he had published the first edition of his list
(M1-M45). He added this one to his catalog on February 19, 1771, three
days after presenting it to the academy, together with three more
Messier objects, M47, M48, and M49.
The cluster is very rich, with 150 stars of mag 10-13 and probably a
total population of over 500. The brightest of these stars are each
about 100 times more luminous than the Sun. This indicates an age of
about 300 million years. The members are scattered over an angular
diameter of about 27', corresponding to a linear extension of 30 light
years at the cluster's distance of 5,400 light years, and are receding
from us at 41.4 km/sec, according to Baade. As a special and
famous feature which is also obvious in this photograph, a planetary
nebula (NGC 2438, also FC 87) appears within the apparent borders of
M46. This object appears to lie near the northern fringes of the
cluster. However, this nebula is most probably not a true member but is
superimposed, or perhaps a passing "guest".
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Open cluster Messier 47 (M47, NGC 2422) is a coarse, bright cluster
which can be glimpsed with the naked eye under good conditions as a dim
nebulosity.
M47 was discovered before 1654 by Hodierna who described it as "a
Nebulosa between the two dogs"; this fact, however, remained secret
until 1984 when his book came to light. So Charles Messier discovered
this cluster independently on February 19, 1771, and described it as
cluster of stars brighter than those of apparently neighbored M46.
Caroline Herschel observed and identified M47 at least twice in early
1783. William Herschel also independently rediscovered it on February
4, 1785. Open cluster M47 is a coarse cluster of bright stars, and
contains about 50 stars in a region 12 light years in diameter.
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NGC2423 is
not much talked about. One can see that it is very faint.
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Captured March 2021
Lucknow, Ontario
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