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Open star cluster

Messier 47

Also M47 · NGC 2422

Open in OuranosCompare its size

An open cluster: a family of stars born together from one cloud, slowly drifting apart.

Measured

Distance
1,527 light-years
Size
about 13.6 light-years across (approximate)
Constellation
Puppis
Position (J2000)
RA 7h 36m 41s, Dec −14.49°

How far, from the Sun

1,530 light-years. To cross it:

  • Light1,530 years
  • Voyager 1's speed27.1 million years
  • Driving at 100 km/h16.5 billion years

Voyager 1 at the speed it moved outward over the year to 2026-10-25 (JPL Horizons). Driving: nonstop, never refuelling.

Facts

  • It sits beside Messier 46 on the sky, but at about a third of its distance.
  • Gaia picks out about 1,129 member stars (Hunt & Reffert 2023).

Where this comes from

  • Hunt & Reffert 2023, A&A 673, A114: Gaia DR3 cluster distance 468.3 pc (16th–84th percentile 468–468.5 pc)
  • This research has made use of the SIMBAD database, CDS, Strasbourg, France (Wenger et al. 2000, A&AS 143, 9).
  • This research has made use of the VizieR catalogue access tool, CDS, Strasbourg, France (DOI: 10.26093/cds/vizier).

Every catalogue Ouranos draws is credited on the credits page.