NGC 1245

NGC 1245
Observation data (J2000 epoch)
Right ascension03h 14m 48s
Declination+47° 15′ 11″
Distance9,800 ly (3.0 kpc)
Apparent magnitude (V)8.4
Apparent dimensions (V)10′
Physical characteristics
Estimated age1.06 Gyr
Other designationsCr 38
Associations
ConstellationPerseus
See also: Open cluster, List of open clusters

NGC 1245, also known as the Patrick Starfish Cluster, is an open cluster of stars in the northern constellation of Perseus. It was discovered by William Herschel on 11 December 1786. It is located 3° southwest of alpha Persei and can be spotted with 10x50 binoculars. The cluster is nearly 1 billion years old. NGC 1245 has about 200 members the brightest of which are of 12th magnitude. The cluster shows evidence of mass segregation and it is possible that it has lost its lower mass members. Lying at a distance of 3kpc, the cluster is estimated to be 27 light years across.

References

  1. 1 2 "NGC 1245". SIMBAD. Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg. Retrieved 2015-06-19.
  2. 1 2 3 Finlay, Warren H. (2014). Concise Catalogue of Deep-Sky Objects. The Patrick Moore Practical Astronomy Series (2nd ed.). Springer Cham. p. 173. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-03170-5. ISBN 978-3-319-03169-9.
  3. ↑ "Patrick Starfish Cluster". Among Stars. 2026-03-21. Retrieved 2026-10-03.
  4. ↑ Stoyan, Ronald; Schurig, Stephan (2014). interstellarum Deep Sky Atlas. Erlangen: Cambridge University Press; Oculum-Verlag GmbH. ISBN 978-1-107-50338-0. OCLC 920437579.
  5. ↑ Stephen James O'Meara (2011). Deep-Sky Companions: The Secret Deep, vol. 4. Cambridge University Press. p. 52. ISBN 978-1-139-50007-4.
  6. ↑ Craig Crossen, Gerald Rhemann (2012). Sky Vistas: Astronomy for Binoculars and Richest-Field Telescopes. Springer Science & Business Media. p. 93. ISBN 9783709106266. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  7. 1 2 Subramaniam, A. (2003). "NGC 1245 - an intermediate age open cluster". Bulletin of the Astronomical Society of India. 31: 49–64. arXiv:astro-ph/0303319. Bibcode:2003BASI...31...49S.
  8. ↑ O'Meara, Steve (2007). Steve O'Meara's Herschel 400 observing guide. Cambridge: Cambridge university press. p. 327. ISBN 978-0521858939. Retrieved 18 March 2016.
  9. ↑ Lee, S. H.; Kang, Y.-W.; Ann, H. B. (11 September 2012). "Deep and wide photometry of the two open clusters NGC 1245 and NGC 2506: CCD observation and physical properties". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 425 (2): 1567–1575. arXiv:1208.1080. Bibcode:2012MNRAS.425.1567L. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2012.21593.x. S2CID 119268141.