C91 · open cluster

NGC 3532

RA11h 05m 47sDec−58° 46' 15"

Image: ESO/G. Beccari. CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Identity & coordinates

Identification

Primary designation: C91
All designations: C91 · NGC 3532
Object type: Open Cluster
Constellation: Car
Best viewing: Winter

Coordinates & physical

Right ascension (J2000): 11h 05m 47s
Declination (J2000): −58° 46' 15"
Apparent magnitude (V): —
Distance: —

III

Visibility tonight

The science

NGC 3532, also commonly known as the Pincushion Cluster, Football Cluster, the Black Arrow Cluster, or the Wishing Well Cluster, is an open cluster some 405 parsecs from Earth in the constellation Carina. Its population of approximately 150 stars of 7th magnitude or fainter includes seven red giants and seven white dwarfs. On 20 May 1990 it became the first target ever observed by the Hubble Space Telescope. A line from Beta Crucis through Delta Crucis passes somewhat to the north of NGC 3532. The cluster lies between the constellation Crux and the larger but fainter "False Cross" asterism. The 4th-magnitude Cepheid variable star x Carinae appears near the southeast fringes, but it lies between the Sun and the cluster and is not a member of the cluster.

Summary adapted from Wikipedia · CC-BY-SA-4.0