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| M52, An open cluster - this image cropped and reduced from the original photo |
| M52 is one of the original discoveries of Charles Messier, who cataloged it on September 7, 1774 when the finest comet of that year drifted past it. It is located in a rich Milky Way field. It's a little tough with binoculars but a great sight with a 4" scope. It can be found quite easily, located on the opposite side and opposite corner of Cassiopeia (toward Cygnus the swan) from the great double cluster. Extend a line from the two bright stars of the "W" about 6 1/2 degrees and you'll find it. There are about 193 probable members of the group, concentrated in a 9 arc minute radius. The distance to this cluster is not well established; but a value of 5,000 light years would be reasonable. The uncertainty is mainly due to the high interstellar absorption of its light on its way to us, which is complicated to estimate. The cluster's widest diameter of 13.0 arc minutes corresponds to a spatial entent of 19 light years. Just half a degree SW of M52 is the beautiful often photographed Bubble Nebula, NGC 7635. |
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10"
F6.3 Schmidt Cassegrain Telescope, (1600mm F.L.) Canon
300D camera, placed at the scopes prime focus |