About this Object:
Open Cluster M36 (also known as Messier Object 36, Messier 36, M36, or NGC 1960) is an open cluster in the Auriga constellation. M36 is at a distance of about 4,100 light years away from Earth and is about 14 light years across. There are at least sixty members in the cluster. The cluster is very similar to the Pleiades cluster (M45), and if it were the same distance from Earth it would be of similar magnitude.

About this Photo:
Location: From my driveway in Georgetown, Texas
Telescope: Orion ED80 @ F7.5
Mount: HEQ-5
Guiding: Orion StarShoot AutoGuider / Taurus Tracker III
Camera: Canon 40D Modified
Exposure: 3 x 180 sec + 3 x 300 Sec + 5 x 60sec @ ISO 1600 (29 min.)
Acquisition: ImagesPlus 3.75 Camera Control
Processing: ImagesPlus 3.75 – Darks,Flats,Bias
Post-processing: Adobe Photoshop CS3; Noise Ninja; Noel Carboni's Tools;
Date(s): March 10, 2010
Temperature(s): 70-80º F