Open Cluster in Canis Major
This is a beautiful and distinctive open cluster, in large part because it includes the bright star Tau Canis Majoris, magnitude 4.4. Current evidence suggests that Tau is a true member of the cluster, not a foreground object. If so, it is a very large and brilliant star, a type O supergiant.
The cluster as a whole contains mostly young and hot blue-white stars. This is one of the youngest open clusters known, just a few million years old.
| Magnitude | 3.8 |
| Apparent Size | 5' |
| Distance (light yrs) | 4,800 |
| Right Ascension | 7:18.7 |
| Declination | - 24 57 |
Image details: Exposure times of 15 minutes each of luminance, red, green, and blue, taken with an SBIG STF-8300M imager and a 14" Meade LX850 telescope at f/5.5.
March 2021