NGC 1342 -- Open Cluster in Perseus
NGC 1342 -- The Stingray Cluster
I think that the tail-end of the Stingray is the double-star to the far-left center of the drawing
and the body of the Stingray is the cluster itself – but I am guessing. But this cluster really
does not need a fancy name; it is an enjoyable view that easily stands on its own. I can
easily see why NGC 1342 made the Herschel 400 list and Stephen O’Meara’s list (Secret
Deep 11). It deserves nothing less.
Through my 6-inch refractor from my suburban backyard, I can only resolve a couple dozen
of the cluster’s stars at best. The remainder of the fainter stars that make up the cluster
appears as a background haze that one might, at first, mistake for a nebula. This cluster is
far removed from the Milky Way which passes well east and north of the cluster. This, I
believe, adds to the attractiveness of the cluster since it easily dominates the space around
it; appearing like a concentrated sprinkle of small diamonds on top of a bed of diamond
dust.
and the body of the Stingray is the cluster itself – but I am guessing. But this cluster really
does not need a fancy name; it is an enjoyable view that easily stands on its own. I can
easily see why NGC 1342 made the Herschel 400 list and Stephen O’Meara’s list (Secret
Deep 11). It deserves nothing less.
Through my 6-inch refractor from my suburban backyard, I can only resolve a couple dozen
of the cluster’s stars at best. The remainder of the fainter stars that make up the cluster
appears as a background haze that one might, at first, mistake for a nebula. This cluster is
far removed from the Milky Way which passes well east and north of the cluster. This, I
believe, adds to the attractiveness of the cluster since it easily dominates the space around
it; appearing like a concentrated sprinkle of small diamonds on top of a bed of diamond
dust.