IC 2488

Last updated
IC 2488
Observation data (J2000 epoch)
Constellation Vela
Right ascension  09h 27m 38s [1]
Declination −57° 00′ 00″ [1]
Distance 3,700 ly (1,134 pc [2] )
Apparent magnitude (V)7.4 [1]
Apparent dimensions (V)15'
Physical characteristics
Mass410 [3]   M☉
Estimated age280 million years [4]
Other designations Collinder 208, Melotte 97, vdBH 69
See also: Open cluster, List of open clusters

IC 2488 is an open cluster in the constellation Vela. It was discovered by Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille in 1752. It is located approximately 3,700 light years away from Earth.

Contents

Observation history

IC 2488 was discovered by Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille on January 25, 1752, during his trip to South Africa. He added it to his catalogue as Lacaille III.4. [5] The cluster was also observed by James Dunlop in 1826. He described it as "a faint cluster of [faint] stars of mixed magnitudes, with two or three stars pretty bright stars in it" and listed it as number 330 in his catalogue. He also noted that it could be 485 Argus, described by Bode. John Louis Emil Dreyer added it in 1908 in the Second Index Catalogue. For the catalogue, Dreyer used the coordinates obtained by Solon Bailey, who used photographic plates with the 24 inches Bruce telescope in Arequipa. [6]

Observation

IC 2488 lies 30 arcminutes west of N Velorum, a 3rd magnitude star located near the False Cross asterism. Stephen James O'Meara estimates the overall apparent magnitude of the cluster to be 6.0. The cluster is coarse. The cluster can be spotted with 7x50 binoculars and with a 4 inches telescope the cluster can be resolved in 30 stars in a northwest-southeast direction. The planetary nebula RCW 44 (also known as WRAY 17-31 or ESO 166-21) lies 51 arcminutes to northeast and is probably not related with the cluster. [6] The brightest members of the cluster are of 10th magnitude.

Characteristics

IC 2488 is an intermediate-richness, intermediate-brightness, detached cluster with Trumpler class II2m. [7] There are 372 probable member stars within the angular radius of the cluster and 115 within the central part of the cluster. [4] The tidal radius of the cluster is 9.0 - 11.6 parsecs (29 - 38 light years) and represents the average outer limit of IC 2488, beyond which a star is unlikely to remain gravitationally bound to the cluster core. [3] The core of the cluster is estimated to be 9.3 light years across. [4] Three blue stragglers have been detected in the cluster [8] and at least three red giants are indisputable members of the cluster, one of which being a spectroscopic binary star. [7]

Related Research Articles

NGC 3293 open cluster in Carina

NGC 3293 is an open cluster in the Carina constellation. It was discovered by Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille in 1751. It consists of more than 100 stars brighter than 14th magnitude in a 10 arc minute field, the brightest of which are blue supergiants of apparent magnitude 6.5 and 6.7. There is also a 7th magnitude pulsating red supergiant, V361 Carinae.

V4381 Sagittarii is a variable star in the constellation Sagittarius. A white supergiant of spectral type A2/A3Iab, it is an Alpha Cygni variable that varies between apparent photographic magnitudes 6.57 and 6.62. Its visual apparent magnitude is about 6.54.

NGC 6281 open cluster in Scorpius

NGC 6281 is an open cluster of stars in the constellation Scorpius. It was not included in the Messier or Caldwell catalogues of nebulous objects, but it is the brightest such cluster in the constellation to be left out of both. It is readily observed with the naked eye; it is located about 2° to the east of Mu Scorpii. James Dunlop described the cluster as a "curiously curved line of pretty bright stars, with many stars mixt". John Herschel then described the cluster as both "pretty bright" and "pretty rich".

NGC 2439 Open cluster in the constellation Puppis

NGC 2439 is a sparse open cluster of stars in the constellation Puppis. It has an apparent visual magnitude of 6.9, an angular size of 10 arcminutes, and is visible using a small telescope. This is a young cluster with age estimates in the range of 20–300 million years. It has a tidal radius of approximately 82 light years. No chemically peculiar stars have been found.

HD 61330 star

HD 61330 is a class B8IV star in the constellation Puppis. Its apparent magnitude is 4.53 and it is approximately 360 light years away based on parallax.

HD 56456 star

HD 56456 is a class B8.5V star in the constellation Puppis. Its apparent magnitude is 4.76 and it is approximately 377 light years away based on parallax.

BU Crucis star

BU Crucis is a variable star in the open cluster NGC 4755, which is also known as the Kappa Crucis Cluster or Jewel Box Cluster.

HD 57197 blue giant or bright giant star in the constellation Puppis

M Puppis is a blue giant or bright giant star in the constellation Puppis. Its apparent magnitude is 5.84, which means it is visible with the naked eye under optimal conditions. It is approximately 590 light years away based on parallax.

NGC 2539 open cluster in Puppis

NGC 2539 is an open cluster in the constellation Puppis, located at the north edge of the constellation. It was discovered by William Herschel on January 31, 1785. It is a moderately rich cluster and with little central concentration, with Trumpler class II1m.

IC 2395

IC 2395 is an open cluster in the constellation Vela.

NGC 3228 open cluster in Vela

NGC 3228 is an open cluster in Vela. It was discovered by Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in 1751–1752, while he was in South Africa and catalogued it as Lac II.7. It is small but bright and can be observed easily with binoculars in sufficiently dark skies.

NGC 5281 open cluster in Centaurus

NGC 5281 is an open cluster in the constellation Centaurus. It was discovered by Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in 1751-1752 from South Africa, and catalogued it as Lacaille I.7. NGC 5281 is located three and a quarter degrees southwest of Beta Centauri. Under dark skies, it is bright enough to be spotted with naked eye, appearing as a 6th magnitude star.

NGC 5460 open cluster in Centaurus

NGC 5460 is an open cluster in the constellation Centaurus. It is a bright but loose cluster of intermediate age located approximately 2,300 light years away from Earth. It is located nearly 2 degrees east-southeast of Zeta Centauri.

NGC 4349 open cluster in Crux

NGC 4349 is an open cluster in the constellation Crux. It was discovered by James Dunlop in 1826. It is located approximately 7,000 light years away from Earth.

NGC 4103 open cluster in Crux

NGC 4103 is an open cluster in the constellation Crux. It was discovered by James Dunlop in 1826. It is located approximately 5,000 light years away from Earth, in the Carina-Sagittarius arm.

IC 2714 is an open cluster in the constellation Carina. It was discovered by James Dunlop in 1826. It is located approximately 4,000 light years away from Earth, in the Carina–Sagittarius Arm.

NGC 4815 is an open cluster in the constellation Musca. It was discovered by John Herschel in 1834. It is located approximately 10,000 light years away from Earth.

NGC 2527 open cluster in the constellation Puppis

NGC 2527 is an open cluster in the constellation Puppis. It was discovered by William Herschel on December 9, 1784. The cluster was also observed by John Herschel on January 7, 1831. He also observed it on February 5, 1837, identifying it as a different object, which was catalogued as NGC 2520. It is a poor cluster and with no central concentration, with Trumpler class III1p.

NGC 7160 open cluster in Cepheus

NGC 7160 is an open cluster in the constellation Cepheus. It was discovered by William Herschel on November 9, 1789. The cluster was also observed by John Herschel on October 7, 1829. It is a poor cluster and with little central concentration, with Trumpler class II3p. It is part of the stellar association Cepheus OB2, located one degree south-southwest of VV Cephei.

NGC 6910 Open cluster in the constellation Cygnus

NGC 6910 is an open cluster in the constellation Cygnus. It was discovered by William Herschel on October 17, 1786. The cluster was also observed by John Herschel on September 18, 1828. It is a poor cluster and with prominent central concentration, with Trumpler class I2p. NGC 6910 is the core cluster of the stellar association Cygnus OB9.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "IC 2488". SIMBAD . Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg . Retrieved 2015-06-19.
  2. ↑ WEBDA: IC 2488
  3. 1 2 Piskunov, A. E.; Schilbach, E.; Kharchenko, N. V.; Röser, S.; Scholz, R.-D. (6 November 2007). "Tidal radii and masses of open clusters". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 477 (1): 165–172. Bibcode:2008A&A...477..165P. doi: 10.1051/0004-6361:20078525 .
  4. 1 2 3 Kharchenko, N. V.; Piskunov, A. E.; Schilbach, E.; Röser, S.; Scholz, R.-D. (3 October 2013). "Global survey of star clusters in the Milky Way". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 558: A53. arXiv: 1308.5822 . Bibcode:2013A&A...558A..53K. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/201322302. S2CID   118548517.
  5. ↑ Kronberg, Christine; Frommert, Hartmut. "IC 2488". www.messier.seds.org.
  6. 1 2 O'Meara, Stephen James (2007). Deep-Sky Companions: Hidden Treasures. Cambridge University Press. pp. 251–254. ISBN   9781139463737.
  7. 1 2 Clariá, J. J.; Piatti, A. E.; Lapasset, E.; Mermilliod, J.-C. (7 February 2003). "Multicolour photometry and Coravel observations of stars in the southern open cluster IC 2488" (PDF). Astronomy & Astrophysics. 399 (2): 543–551. Bibcode:2003A&A...399..543C. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20021828.
  8. ↑ Ahumada, J. A.; Lapasset, E. (20 November 2006). "New catalogue of blue stragglers in open clusters". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 463 (2): 789–797. Bibcode:2007A&A...463..789A. doi: 10.1051/0004-6361:20054590 .
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.