M37 is the third, and most spectacular, in a series of three “open star clusters” bisecting the constellation Auriga (the “charioteer”). Open clusters are aggregations of a dozen or so stars up to a few thousand. There are an estimated 10,000 of these objects in our Milky Way galaxy. When located in a star rich region, it is difficult to identify member stars from foreground and background stars. You can appreciate how challenging this can be with a cursory look at the above image.
Open clusters are of scientific value because most if not all of the stars in the cluster were formed from the same cloud of hydrogen gas, meaning that they are the same age and distance from Earth. This assists astronomers in computing the distance to open clusters, and in understanding other physical characteristics, with considerable accuracy.
M37 is 1,500 light years away, has a population of about 500 stars, and is 25 arcminutes wide (close to the angular width of a full Moon). It is easily seen in binoculars, and is a dazzling sight in small, low-power telescopes.
Open Star Cluster M37
Date Taken:February 22, 2014
Location Taken:Sierra Remote Observatory, California
Conditions of Location: Equipment Used:Planewave 24" CDK telescope, FLI PL90999 camera
Processing Used:single 5-minute image processed in Maxim DL and Photoshop
Distance from Location:1,500 light years
Constellation:Auriga
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