Astronomy Picture of the Day

NGC 869 & NGC 884: A Double Open Cluster


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#80914 by @ 12.10.2005 00:00 - nach oben -
NGC 869 & NGC 884: A Double Open Cluster


Explanation:
Most star clusters are singularly impressive.

Open clusters NGC 869 and NGC 884,
however, are doubly impressive.

Also known as "h and chi Persei", this unusual
double cluster, shown above, is bright enough to be seen from a
dark location without even
binoculars.

Although their discovery surely predates
written history, the Greek astronomer
Hipparchus notably cataloged the "double

cluster".

The clusters are over 7,000 light years distant toward the
constellation of
Perseus, but are separated by only hundreds of light years.





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