SBIG ST8300M, Astrodon filters: RGB E-Series GenII
LRGB Total 1:10 hours = L 40 min. [20x2 min.] + R,G,B 2x5 min. each
Boren-Simon 2.8-8 CF (Carbon Fiber) OTA - http://www.powernewts.com
AP GTO1200 mount, guided w/PHD and EQMOD
IC 2602
IC 2602 (Caldwell 102) (also known as the Theta Carinae Cluster or Southern Pleiades) is an open cluster in the constellation Carina. It was discovered by Abbe Lacaille in 1751 from South Africa. The cluster is at a distance of about 479 light-years away from Earth and can be seen with the naked eye. The Southern Pleiades (IC 2602) has an overall apparent magnitude of 1.9, which is 70% fainter than the Taurean Pleiades, and contains about 60 stars. Theta Carinae, the brightest star within the open cluster, is a third-magnitude star with an apparent magnitude of +2.74. All the other stars within the cluster are of the fifth magnitude and fainter. Like its northern counterpart in Taurus, the Southern Pleiades spans a sizeable area of sky, approximately 50 arcminutes, so it is best viewed with large binoculars or telescope with a wide-angle eyepiece. The cluster is thought to have the same age as the open cluster IC 2391, which has a lithium depletion boundary age of 50 million years old (ref. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IC_2602).
Lorenzin Melotte 101
Right on the southen boundary of this large cluster (inside the boundary according to some definitions of the diameter of IC 2602) is a fainter star cluster called Melotte 101. It is just 40 arcmin south of Teta Carinae, and its center is 15 arcmin and has a total magnitude of 8.0 made up from three dozen stars of around twelfth magnitude and two of tenth magnitude. At 6,800 light years, it is 14 times more distant than Caldwell 102 itself, and has an age of about 60 million light years and a diameter of roughly 25 light years. So if Caldwell 102 was removed to the distance of Melotte 101 it would only look 60% as wide as that cluster (ref. The Caldwell Objects and How to Observe Them By Martin Mobberley, pp. 210).
This image is 1024 x 772 pixels.
North is right, South is left
