The Double Cluster, also known as Caldwell 14, is one of the most prominent and captivating open star cluster pairings in the night sky. Located in the constellation Perseus, these clusters are relatively young, with an estimated age of around 12.8 million years. What makes them particularly fascinating is that they are not physically associated with each other, despite their apparent proximity in the night sky. NGC 869, the northern cluster, is about 6,800 light-years away from Earth, while NGC 884, the southern cluster, is approximately 7,500 light-years away. This intriguing separation highlights the optical illusion of their proximity and adds a layer of complexity to their celestial beauty.

This is Part of the Double Cluster imaged during the moon phase so not the best conditions. I may make this a mosaic and capture the other half to complete it. Processing wise I have not really done much just stretched it and a bit of noise reduction and that's it a nice easy one.

Captured by David Wills at PixelSkies, Spain www.pixelskiesastro.com

Red 25x300Secs

Green 34x300Secs
Blue 48x300Secs
8 hours 55 mins in total.

Equipment used:
Telescope: Tec 140 F7
Camera: Xpress Trius SX-694 Mono Cooled to -10C
Image Scale: 0.95
Guiding: OAG
Filters: Astronomik RGB
Mount: iOptron CEM60 "Standard" GOTO Centre Balanced Equatorial Mount
Image Acquisition: Voyager
Observatory control: Lunatico Dragonfly
Stacking and Calibrating: Pixinsight
Processing: Pixinsight 1.8

Copyright: David Wills