Celestial hemisphere:  Northern  ·  Constellation: Lyra (Lyr)  ·  Contains:  The star δ1Lyr  ·  The star δ2Lyr
Stephenson 1 and delta Lyrae, BrettWaller
Stephenson 1 and delta Lyrae
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Stephenson 1 and delta Lyrae

Stephenson 1 and delta Lyrae, BrettWaller
Stephenson 1 and delta Lyrae
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Stephenson 1 and delta Lyrae

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Description

Delta Lyrae is a visual double and spectacular color-contrast pair of stars, one of which is also a member of the open cluster Stephenson 1, first identified by Gordon Grant, and described after his death by Charles B. Stephenson in 1959. The brightest of the two stars is delta-2 Lyrae, an orange, magnitude 4.5, M4 giant star which contrasts sharply with its companion, cluster member delta-1 Lyrae, a bluish white, magnitude 5.5, B3 main sequence star. The remainder of the 20 or so members of Steph 1 are scattered between the two deltas, but mostly concentrated to the west of delta-2 Lyrae. Steph 1 is often referred to as the " delta Lyrae cluster, and also carries the designations Lund 370 and OCL-137.

Steph 1 is a Trumpler Type IV 3 p open cluster spanning an angular diameter of 20' with an integrated visual magnitude of 3.8, and is located approximately 1,080 light years away. In contrast, the orange orphan delta-2 Lyrae is much closer, only 900 light years from Earth. The cluster is an easy binocular target, and spectacular under low power in a rich-field telescope.

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Stephenson 1 and delta Lyrae, BrettWaller