M47 (NGC 2423) Pup open cluster Difficulty
level 1NGC 2423 Pup open cluster Difficulty level 3
Date of observation: 1998/12/28 01:30
Observing site: Makinoto
Transparency/seeing/sky darkness: 2/3/4
Instruments: 32cm Dobsonia with WF32 at 50x
Width of field: 1.3‹
This pair of objects consists of a bright, dynamic open cluster and a highly concentrated mid-size open cluster. M47 is always paired with M46, but NGC 2423 is closer to M47. With the 32cm telescope the eyepiece field was not large enough to contain both M46 and M47, but NGC 2423 could be observed together with M47.
Binoculars present a fine sight with M46,M47ANGC 2423Aand Mel71 in the same field of view.
M47: It contains scattered bright stars. The number of stars is rather small, but it is an interesting cluster with stars of various brightness sprinkled. A bright star near the center seems to be a double. A line of stars looks running toward NGC 2423.
NGC 2423: This cluster is less interesting than M47, but quite large and bright. Many stars are involved and finely resolved. It is stretched east-west. The densely packed area looks arch-shaped.