The moon does not rise until 12:26 a.m. tomorrow morning, giving us a dark evening sky tonight. Look directly north at 7:30 p.m. to see Perseus the hero who rescued Andromeda the maiden from Cetus the sea monster (whale). North of Perseus is Cassiopeia the queen of Ethiopia and the mother of Andromeda.
While Perseus and Cassiopeia are bright constellations with much to see in their main portions, there is a wonderful sight halfway between Perseus and Cassiopeia, the double cluster.
Two bright star clusters lie close to each other and are visible to the naked eye even in moderate light pollution.
These clusters are technically in Perseus and are often listed by their New General Catalogue (NGC) designations: NGC 869 (to the west) and NGC 884 (to the east). The double cluster is gorgeous in binoculars or a small telescope. It is a must-see object and should become a familiar friend.
The clusters are thought to lie 7,600 light years away and seem to be traveling in space together.
The New General Catalogue of Nebulae and Clusters of Stars is an extensive listing of non-stellar objects compiled by John Louis Emil Dreyer (1852-1926) in 1888. It is still one of the most popular catalogs of deep-sky objects for both amateur and professional astronomers. Deep sky objects is a term for star clusters, galaxies and nebulae that are not individual stars or solar system bodies.
