Open cluster · Cancer

M44 Beehive Cluster

Also known as: NGC 2632

mag 3.195′ across

About

M44, the Beehive Cluster, is an open cluster of magnitude 3.1 in Cancer, about 95′ across.

M44 is in the constellation Cancer.
Best evenings: around mid-March it is highest at about 9 pm (10 pm in summer time); a month earlier, two hours later.
Where on Earth: it is seen well, at least 10° up, from north of 60° S.

When it rises and sets tonight, how high it climbs and how much the Moon gets in the way are worked out in your browser for your place.

EyesA misty patch in Cancer from a dark site — the “little cloud” of ancient astronomers.
Binoculars (10×50)Dozens of stars filling the field — a perfect binocular target.
Telescope (6–8 inch)Too big for most eyepieces; use the lowest power.

For a dark country sky with no Moon. From a city, faint galaxies and nebulae can disappear completely.

Designations	M44, NGC 2632
Type	Open cluster
Magnitude	3.1The smaller the number, the brighter.
Apparent size	95′the full Moon is 31′ across
Constellation	Cancer
Right ascension (J2000)	08h 40m 22.2s
Declination (J2000)	+19° 40′ 20″

Catalog data: OpenNGC by Mattia Verga, CC BY-SA 4.0, and d3-celestial by Olaf Frohn, BSD 3-Clause. All data sources →