 | A request that this article title be changed toh Perseih Persei isunder discussion. Pleasedo not move this article until the discussion is closed. |
| NGC 869 | |
|---|---|
 The Double Cluster, NGC 869 (right) andNGC 884 (left) with north to the top | |
| Observation data (J2000epoch) | |
| Right ascension | 02h 19.1m[1] |
| Declination | +57° 09′[1] |
| Distance | 7,460ly[2] (2.3kpc[2]) |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 3.7[1] |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Radius | 33.15 ly |
| Estimated age | 14 Myr[2] |
| Other designations | Caldwell 14,Cr 24,[1]Mel 13,[1] h Per,[1] h Persei[1] |
| Associations | |
| Constellation | Perseus |
| See also:Open cluster,List of open clusters | |
NGC 869 (also known ash Persei) is anopen cluster located around 7,460light years away in the constellation ofPerseus.[2] The cluster is around 14 million years old.[2] It is the west component of theDouble Cluster withNGC 884.
NGC 869 and 884 are often designated h and χ (chi) Persei, respectively. Some confusion surrounds what Bayer intended by these designations. It is sometimes claimed that Bayer did not resolve the pair into two patches of nebulosity, and that χ refers to the Double Cluster and h to a nearby star.[3] Bayer'sUranometria chart for Perseus does not show them as nebulous objects, but his chart for Cassiopeia does, and they are described asNebulosa Duplex in Schiller'sCoelum Stellatum Christianum, which was assembled with Bayer's help.[4] The clusters are both located in thePerseus OB1 association, a few hundred light years apart from each other. The clusters were first recorded byHipparchus, thus have been known since antiquity.
The Double Cluster is often photographed and observed with small telescopes. The clusters are visible with the unaided eye between the constellations ofPerseus andCassiopeia as a brighter patch in the winterMilky Way. In small telescopes, the cluster appears as an assemblage of bright stars located in a rich star field. Dominated by bright blue stars, the cluster also hosts a few orange stars.
Media related toNGC 869 at Wikimedia Commons
