Caldwell 108
Star cluster in Musca · 18,900 light-years
🔭 Explore Caldwell 108 in the 3D map →View Caldwell 108 images →| Type | Star cluster |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Musca |
| Right ascension | 12h 25m 45s |
| Declination | −72° 40′ |
| Object distance | 18,900 light-years |
| Apparent magnitude | 9.8 |
| Apparent size | 12′ (arc-minutes) |
| Approx. true diameter | 66 light-years across |
| Also known as | C108 · NGC 4372 |
Caldwell 108 is a star cluster (NGC 4372) in Musca — a family of stars bound by gravity. It appears as number 108 in the Caldwell catalogue, Sir Patrick Moore's 1995 list of 109 bright deep-sky objects for amateur astronomers. It spans roughly 12 arc-minutes on the sky. At about magnitude 9.8, it shows up in a small backyard telescope.
Although it appears about 12′ wide on the sky, its real span is roughly 66 light-years — the difference is a measure of how far away it lies.
Observing Caldwell 108
Caldwell 108 lies in the constellation Musca and is best placed in the evening sky around March. Its maximum altitude above the horizon depends on your latitude. It sits far enough south to be circumpolar from mid-southern latitudes, and never rises for most of the northern hemisphere. A small backyard telescope will show it; binoculars may hint at it under dark skies.
See Caldwell 108 in Universe Finder
Open the interactive 3D map to fly to Caldwell 108 and see it in context among the real stars around it. Launch the 3D view →
Sources
- Position, magnitude and angular size from the OpenNGC catalogue (Mattia Verga).
- Object identity cross-referenced with SIMBAD (CDS, Strasbourg).
- Image credits and the original observation source are linked with each photograph.
Related objects
- Pleiades — star cluster
- Hercules Cluster — star cluster
- Small Sgr Star Cloud — star cluster
- Messier 25 — star cluster
- Messier 103 — star cluster