Celestial hemisphere:  Southern  ·  Constellation: Hydra (Hya)  ·  Contains:  HD68334  ·  HD68335  ·  HD68426  ·  HD68427  ·  HD68465  ·  HD68527  ·  HD68585  ·  HD68617  ·  HD68646  ·  HD68669  ·  HD68685  ·  HD68728  ·  HD68729  ·  HD68750  ·  HD68777  ·  HD68778  ·  HD68779  ·  HD68794  ·  HD68795  ·  HD68815  ·  HD68816  ·  HD68853  ·  HD68878  ·  HD68879  ·  HD68880  ·  HD68992  ·  HD68993  ·  HD69035  ·  HD69075  ·  HD69098  ·  And 4 more.
Open Cluster Messier 48 in the Constellation Hydra, Tom Wildoner
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Open Cluster Messier 48 in the Constellation Hydra

Open Cluster Messier 48 in the Constellation Hydra, Tom Wildoner
Powered byPixInsight

Open Cluster Messier 48 in the Constellation Hydra

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Description

Messier 48 or M48, also known as NGC 2548, is an open cluster of stars in the equatorial constellation of Hydra. It sits near Hydra's westernmost limit with Monoceros, about 18° 34′ to the east and slightly south of Hydra's brightest star, Alphard. This grouping was discovered by Charles Messier in 1771, but there is no cluster precisely where Messier indicated; he made an error, as he did with M47. The value that he gave for the right ascension matches, however, his declination is off by five degrees. Robert Burnham states, “Generally triangular in outline, the cluster is dominated by a central chain-like grouping of ten or so 10th and 11th magnitude stars.”

Observation data (J2000 epoch)
Constellation: Hydra
Right ascension: 08h 13m 43.0s
Declination: −05° 45′ 00″
Distance: 2,500 ly (770 pc)
Apparent magnitude (V): 5.8
Apparent dimensions (V): 30′

Tech Specs: Sky-Watcher Esprit 120ED Telescope,  ZWO AS2600mc-Pro running at -10C, Celestron CGEM-DX mount, 85 x 60 second guided exposures, darks from the library and flats at the end of imaging, focused with a ZWO EAF, controlled with a ZWO ASIAir Pro. Processed using PixInsight and DSS. Image Date: February 15, 2023. Location: The Dark Side Observatory (W59), Weatherly, PA, USA (Bortle Class 4).

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Open Cluster Messier 48 in the Constellation Hydra, Tom Wildoner

In these public groups

Messier Objects