NGC 5662 is an open cluster in the constellation Centaurus. It was discovered by Nicolas Louis de Lacaille on May 17, 1752 from South Africa.[4] James Dunlop observed it on July 10, 1826 from Parramatta, Australia and added it to his catalog as No. 342.[5]

NGC 5662
Observation data (J2000 epoch)
Right ascension14h 35m 37s[1]
Declination−56° 37′ 06″[1]
Distance2,170 ly (666 pc[2])
Apparent magnitude (V)5.5 [1]
Apparent dimensions (V)12'
Physical characteristics
Mass348[3] M
Estimated age93 million years[2]
Other designationsMelotte 127, Colinder 284, vdBH 162
Associations
ConstellationCentaurus
See also: Open cluster, List of open clusters

It is a rich cluster (Trumpler class II3r), with 295 stars according to Haug (1978) and 280 according with Archinal, Hynes (2003).[5] One of its members, V Centauri, is a cepheid variable. Despite its large distance from the cluster centre, it has high likelihood of being a member of it.[6] The tidal radius of the cluster is 6.4 - 12.4 parsecs (21 - 40 light years) and represents the average outer limit of NGC 5662, beyond which a star is unlikely to remain gravitationally bound to the cluster core.[3]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "NGC 5662". SIMBAD. Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg. Retrieved 2015-06-19.
  2. ^ a b WEBDA: NGC 5662
  3. ^ a b Piskunov, A. E.; Schilbach, E.; Kharchenko, N. V.; Röser, S.; Scholz, R.-D. (6 November 2007). "Tidal radii and masses of open clusters". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 477 (1): 165–172. Bibcode:2008A&A...477..165P. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20078525.
  4. ^ Jones, K. G. (March 1969). "The search for the nebulae - VI". Journal of the British Astronomical Association. 79: 213–222. Bibcode:1969JBAA...79..213J.
  5. ^ a b Kronberg, Christine; Frommert, Hartmut. "NGC 5662". messier.seds.org.
  6. ^ Anderson, Richard I.; Eyer, Laurent; Mowlavi, Nami (July 2013). "Cepheids in open clusters: an 8D all-sky census". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 434 (3): 2238–2261. arXiv:1212.5119. Bibcode:2013MNRAS.434.2238A. doi:10.1093/mnras/stt1160.
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