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Double Cluster

Open star cluster · Open clusters in the constellation Perseus

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Double Cluster
Picture: Genuson, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

About Double Cluster

Double Cluster is about 7,435 light-years from the Sun, so the light we see from it left about 7,435 years ago.

It is 32,641 light-years from the centre of the Milky Way.

The map lists it as an open star cluster and shows it among the stars around the Sun, drawn on the plane of the Milky Way.

Key numbers

Distance7,435 light-years (2,280 pc)
Distance from the Galactic centre32,641 light-years
Galactic coordinatesl = 134.64°, b = -3.73°
Member stars (Gaia)403
Age18 million years
Mass (observed)2,402 solar masses
Half-member radius9.7 light-years

Data: Hunt & Reffert 2024.

Where it is

Its place in the universe, from the inside out: Perseus Arm › Milky Way › Local Group › Virgo Supercluster › Laniakea Supercluster › Observable universe.

Zoom out to see it in context: Local Arm, a view about 12,000 light-years across.

From Wikipedia

The Double Cluster, also known as Caldwell 14, consists of the open clusters NGC 869 and NGC 884, which are close together in the constellation Perseus. Both visible to the naked eye, NGC 869 and NGC 884 lie at a distance of about 7,500 light-years (2,300 pc) in the Perseus Arm of the Milky Way galaxy.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Double Cluster, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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