NGC 1513
Open cluster in the constellation Perseus
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NGC 1513 is an open cluster of stars in the northern constellation of Perseus, positioned 2° SSE of the faint star Lambda Persei. The same telescope field contains the clusters NGC 1528 and NGC 1545.[2] NGC 1513 was discovered in 1790 by the German-British astronomer William Herschel.[3] The brightest component star is of magnitude 11, so a medium-sized amateur telescope is needed to observe 20-30 members. With a 12 in (30 cm) aperture telescope, most of the member stars can be resolved.[7] This cluster is located at a distance of 4,824 light-years from the Sun, but is drawing closer with a radial velocity of −14.7 km/s.[1]
| NGC 1513 | |
|---|---|
Annotated DSS image of NGC 1513 | |
| Observation data (J2000 epoch) | |
| Right ascension | 04h 09m 52.80s[1] |
| Declination | +49° 30′ 14.4″[1] |
| Distance | 4,824 ly (1,479.0 pc)[1] |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 8.4[2][3] |
| Apparent dimensions (V) | 12.7′[4] |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Radius | 65 ± 10 ly[5] (tidal) |
| Estimated age | 363 Myr[1] |
| Other designations | C 0406+493[6] |
| Associations | |
| Constellation | Perseus |
This cluster has a rating of II2m in the Trumpler Catalogue, indicating it is moderately rich in stars with little central concentration.[8] It is partially obscured by dust from the Persei dark cloud complex.[2] NGC 1513 is 363 million years old and at least 433 stars in the field are members with a minimum 50% probability. The cluster has a core radius of 4.83 ± 0.55 ly (1.48 ± 0.17 pc) and a tidal radius of 65 ± 10 ly (20 ± 3 pc).[5] It has a metallicity of [M/H] = −0.10±0.10 dex, indicating a lower abundance of elements more massive than helium compared to the Sun.[9]