M45 · Pleiades

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Credit NASA, ESA, AURA/Caltech, Palomar Observatory The science team consists of: D. Soderblom… · Public domain

Chinese name	昴星团
Type	Open cluster
Constellation	Tau
RA	03h47m
Dec	+24°
Apparent magnitude	1.6ᵐ
Hemisphere	Northern
Best season	Winter
Difficulty	Easy
Focal length	中焦 400–800mm

About

The Pleiades, also called the Seven Sisters, lie about 444 light-years away in Taurus and form the most famous and recognizable open cluster, with six or seven stars visible to the naked eye. A relatively young cluster (about 100 million years old), it contains over a thousand stars, the brightest being hot blue-white B-type giants. These luminous stars are passing through a chance-encountered interstellar dust cloud, scattering their light into a dreamy blue reflection nebula whose filaments emerge in deep exposures. It holds an important place in mythologies and calendars worldwide and is called Subaru in Japan. Spanning about 2°, it suits a medium focal length and is one of winter's most photogenic beginner targets.