Berkeley 17 in Auriga

Dear Group,

The oldest (or second oldest) open star cluster in our galaxy is
Berkeley 17 in Auriga with an estimated age of 10.06 billion years.
Lying at a distance of 8,800 light-years away, the cluster is quite dim
with a magnitude of only 14.0.

NGC 6791 in Lyra has produced conflicting age estimates including a
figure of 10.20 billion years. As a result, there is some ambiguity as
to whether NGC 6791 or Berkeley 17 is the oldest cluster.

Further details and a photo based on two hours total exposure is
available at http://www.perseus.gr/Astro-DSO-Cluster-Berkeley-17.htm .
Clicking on the image will yield an image with better image scale for
viewing.

In checking for other photos of Berkeley 17, I could only find one
example taken using film emulsion. If anyone is aware of other sample
images, I would be most interested.

Clear skies!

Anthony.