Messier 38 (M38)

Common Name: Starfish Cluster

Also Known as: NGC 1912, Collinder 67

Object Type: Open Cluster

Constellation: Auriga

Distance from Earth: 4,200 light years

Apparent Magnitude: 7.4

Coordinates: RA 05H 28M 42S DEC 35 deg 51 min 18 sec

Actual Size: 50 light years in diameter

Apparent Dimensions: 21 arc-minutes

Discovered by: Messier 38 was first discovered by the Italian astronomer Giovanni Battista Hodierna before 1654, at the same time that he discovered the nearby clusters Messier 36 and Messier 37. Guillaume Le Gentil found the clusters M36 and M38 independently in 1749.
Charles Messier included M38 in his catalogue on September 25, 1764. In the first edition of the catalogue.

Description: M38 is one of 3 open clusters in Auriga, the other 2 being M36 and M37.
Messier 38 occupies an area of 21 arc minutes in apparent size and has a linear radius of 25 light years. The estimated age of the cluster is 220 million years.
The brightest star in M38 is a yellow giant with the stellar classification G0 and a visual magnitude of 7.9.
With an absolute magnitude of -1.5, the star is 900 times more luminous than the Sun. Messier 38 is classified as Trumpler type II,2,r, which means that it is a detached cluster with little central concentration (II), that its stars have a moderate range in brightness (2), and that the cluster is richly populated, with more than 100 confirmed members.
M38 contains at least 100 stars and is about 220 million years old. M38 contains a yellow giant star that is about 900 times as massive as our Sun.
There is another open cluster (NGC 1907) nearby which may have undergone a close encounter with M38.

Click Below Image(s) for Full Size:

Messier 38 appears quite large in 10×50 binoculars and binoculars with larger magnification resolve some of the cluster’s stars.
4-inch telescopes show many of the cluster’s stars, mainly concentrated toward the central region and forming an irregular pattern that has been compared to the Greek letter Pi, an irregular arrow and an oblique cross.

The best way to observe M38 is in a small or medium sized telescope at low magnification and the best time is during the winter months (December-February).

Platesolve

M38 Open Cluster

Imaging Details
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