Messier 39 - Open Cluster in Cygnus Astrophotography
Updated: May 31, 2023
Another cluster photographed as a "secondary target" to end the night: Messier 39!
M39 is an open star cluster in the constellation of the Swan: Cygnus. You can see a blanket of stars in the background, with the cluster popping out. Messier 39 is one of the nearest clusters to Earth, after the Pleiades, the Beehive, and a couple of others.
We only spent one hour on this target, and the result is pretty neat!
GEAR USED:
Camera: Canon 7D Mark II
Telescope: Orion 8" Astrograph f/3.9
Mount: Atlas EQ-G motorized Mount
Processing: Pixinsight
ACQUISITION DETAILS:
Total Exposure Time: 1 hour
Exposure Time per frame: 3 minutes
20 lights - 15 Darks - 15 Bias
ISO: 800
Star cluster astrophotography: Learn about the different types of star clusters.
How to Locate Messier 39
Messier 39 is located in the busy constellation of Cygnus, and can be seen with binoculars and any telescope!
IC 5146 (The Cocoon Nebula) can be seen not far from M39, but you probably will not be able to see them both in the same field even with small binoculars.
Messier Catalog: See our catalog of Messier objects that we have imaged so far.
Final Thoughts
This open cluster in Cygnus may seem like a boring target at first, but just one hour of imaging is enough to have a wonderful-looking photo. The stars pop out really easily, the background is filled with smaller ones, and the processing is a breeze! This is a good example of why you should not skip less famous objects and try them anyway!
Clear Skies,
Galactic Hunter
