NGC 2112

OPEN CLUSTER IN ORION (THE HUNTER)

(ra: 05h 53' 09"/ dec 00º 24')

COLLABORATION WITH EZEQUIEL BELLOCCHIO

December 2025, Observatorio Cielos Albertnos, Buenos Aires, Argentina

DATA

TYPE: Open Cluster

Visual Brightness: 9.1

APPARENT DIAMETER: 18 arc minutes

DISTANCE: 2770 light years

IMAGE INFORMATION

SCOPE: Askar SQA55 f4.8 Quintuplet Petzval

CAMERA: ZWO 2600 Color

MOUNT: ZWO AM5M

FILTERS:  None

SKY CONDITIONS: bortle 3 skies

OBJECT DESCRIPTION AND IMAGE SESSION

NGC 2112 is an intermediate-age open cluster located in the constellation Orion, first discovered by William Herschel in 1786. Situated approximately 850 parsecs (2,770 light-years) away, it has a visual magnitude of 9.1, making it visible with binoculars or small telescopes. It is characterized as a moderately concentrated cluster containing roughly 50 to 100 stars. The reddish glow seen in the background in this image ionized Hydrogen gas. This gas is pat of a larger structure known as Barnard's Loop. NGC 2112's age is estimated at about 2 billion years. Observations of NGC 2112 have also led to the discovery of brown dwarfs, which are objects that are too massive to be considered planets but not massive enough to undergo sustained hydrogen fusion in their cores like stars. In 2000, a team of astronomers discovered four brown dwarf candidates in the cluster using deep infrared imaging.

This image is a crop of a larger filed of view that covers 5 degress incluiding barnard loop Messier 78 and LDN 1622 acquired by Ezequiel Bellocchio