Open Cluster NGC 654

NGC 654
NGC 654: Open Cluster NGC 654 with reflection nebula vdB 6 and dark nebulae LDN 1332, LDN 1334, LDN 1337. Section of DSS2 [147]

History

The open cluster NGC 654 was discovered by William Herschel on 3 November 1787 and listed as VII 46. He noted: «A small cluster of pretty large stars, pretty rich.» [464] John Herschel described listed the cluster as h 145 and noted on 5 October 1829: "A fine rich cluster; stars 11...14m; 3' dia; irreg fig; place that of the most compressed part; one star 6.7 mag, south-following the center, is ruddy.» [466]

In 1962 Beverly T. Lynds published her «Catalogue of Dark Nebulae» that she found on photo plates of the «National Geographic Palomar Observatory Sky Atlas». She identified a dark elongated cloud north of the cluster and assigned the designations LDN 1332, LDN 1334 and LDN 1337 to the densest patches. [473]

In 1966 the Canadian astronomer Sidney van den Bergh identified the reflection nebula vdB 6 around star BD +61°315. [255]

Physical Properties

Revised+Historic NGC/IC Version 22/9, © 2022 Dr. Wolfgang Steinicke [277]
Designation NGC 654
Type OCL (II3m)
Right Ascension (J2000.0) 01h 43m 59.4s
Declination (J2000.0) +61° 52' 58"
Diameter 6 arcmin
Visual magnitude 6.5 mag
Metric Distance 2.041 kpc
Dreyer Description Cl, iF, Ri, one * 6·7, st 11…14
Identification, Remarks WH VII 46; h 145; GC 387; OCL 330

Finder Chart

The open cluster NGC 654 is located in the constellation Cassiopeia, roughly 1° north of NGC 663. It is on 20 October in opposition to the Sun. From Switzerland they can best be seen in the months July to January.

Finder Chart Open Cluster NGC 654
Open Cluster NGC 654 in constellation Cassiopeia. Charts created using SkySafari 6 Pro and STScI Digitized Sky Survey. Limiting magnitudes: Constellation chart ~6.5 mag, DSS2 close-ups ~20 mag. [149, 160]

Objects Within a Radius of 10°

References