NGC 2362 – Open Cluster – Canis Major, Often called “The Tau Cluster”
LVAS Observer’s Challenge report:
https://rogerivester.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/march-2012-observers-challenge-ngc-2362.pdf
Open cluster, NGC 2362 is a beautiful and interesting cluster, which can be easily observed with the smallest of telescopes, even with a moderately light polluted sky. However, like all deep-sky objects, a reasonably dark sky is needed to fully appreciate.
The bright 4th magnitude star Tau, creates a glare that subdues many of the dimmer members of the cluster. I could count approximately 20 stars with a greater concentration of faint unresolved stars just west of Tau, creating a light glow. The cluster has a mostly irregular shape and is comprised primarily of bluish/white stars.
The above pencil sketch was made using a 102 mm refractor at 83x, from my moderately light polluted backyard in western North Carolina.
I used a blank 5 x 8 note card and inverted the colors using my printer. Roger Ivester
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