NGC 5662

NGC 5662
Observation data (J2000 epoch)
Right ascension14h 35m 37s[1]
Declination−56° 37′ 06″[1]
Distance2,170 ly (666 pc[2])
Apparent magnitude (V)5.5 [1]
Apparent dimensions (V)12'
Physical characteristics
Mass348[3] M☉
Estimated age93 million years[2]
Other designationsMelotte 127, Colinder 284, vdBH 162
Associations
ConstellationCentaurus
See also: Open cluster, List of open clusters

NGC 5662 is an open cluster in the constellation Centaurus. It was discovered by Nicolas Louis de Lacaille on May 17, 1752 from South Africa.[4] James Dunlop observed it on July 10, 1826 from Parramatta, Australia and added it to his catalog as No. 342.[5]

It is a rich cluster (Trumpler class II3r), with 295 stars according to Haug (1978) and 280 according with Archinal, Hynes (2003).[5] One of its members, V Centauri, is a cepheid variable. Despite its large distance from the cluster centre, it has high likelihood of being a member of it.[6] The tidal radius of the cluster is 6.4 - 12.4 parsecs (21 - 40 light years) and represents the average outer limit of NGC 5662, beyond which a star is unlikely to remain gravitationally bound to the cluster core.[3]

  1. ^ a b c "NGC 5662". SIMBAD. Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg. Retrieved 2015-06-19.
  2. ^ a b WEBDA: NGC 5662
  3. ^ a b 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. ^ Jones, K. G. (March 1969). "The search for the nebulae - VI". Journal of the British Astronomical Association. 79: 213–222. Bibcode:1969JBAA...79..213J.
  5. ^ a b Kronberg, Christine; Frommert, Hartmut. "NGC 5662". messier.seds.org.
  6. ^ Anderson, Richard I.; Eyer, Laurent; Mowlavi, Nami (July 2013). "Cepheids in open clusters: an 8D all-sky census". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 434 (3): 2238–2261. arXiv:1212.5119. Bibcode:2013MNRAS.434.2238A. doi:10.1093/mnras/stt1160.