Northeastern Perseus
By Shawn Grant
Perseus the Hero is a very obvious constellation in the fall and winter skies. Perseus according to Greek mythology, killed the snake-haired Gorgon Medusa. To the amateur astronomer Perseus has a large mix of deep sky objects. There are complex galaxy clusters, nebula, dark nebula and many open clusters. There are many showpiece objects like the double cluster, M76 and M34. One can spend their lives just exploring Perseus alone. In this star hop we are going to concentrate on the northeastern portion of the constellation.
We will start the tour off with a very nice open cluster that is best seen with binoculars. This is the Alpha Perseus association also known as Melotte 20. The cluster is 3 degrees in size surrounding its flagship star Alpha Perseus. The cluster also contains Psi, 29, 31, 34 and 50 other fainter stars. The cluster is loose but nicely detached. There are several chains of stars that make the cluster a remarkable binocular sight and a great start to this star hop.
North of the association is the 2.94 magnitude star Gamma Perseus. It is 256 light years away and 352 time more luminous then our own sun. This will be our starting point to many of the clusters.
58 minutes east of Gamma is the open cluster NGC 1220. It is a small cluster with a size of 1.6 minutes and a magnitude of 11.8. The cluster is well detached with 13th magnitude and fainter stars that kind of form a triangle shape. This is a nice cluster for larger telescopes.
There is a little nicer cluster just 41 minutes to the southeast called King 5. It has a moderate size of 7 minutes. The cluster is rich and compressed with stars 13th magnitude and fainter stars. This cluster is very beautiful and a great treat for larger dobs.
Now move 1.3 degrees to the southeast to a somewhat unremarkable open cluster Czernik 15. It is only 3 minutes in size and the stars are very faint. It is well detached with some compression. The sister cluster Czernik 16 is 1.1 degrees to the northeast. It is a little larger then Czernik 15 with a 
size of 9 minutes. The stars are fairly faint. It takes a 10" or larger to pick the cluster out. It can be a little hard to pick out from the background because the stars are somewhat sparse.
While looking at Czernik 16 you may have noticed Berkely 9 just 17 minutes to the east. It is 5 minutes in size with faint stars. The cluster is very well detached and it is fairly compressed. The cluster kind of looks like a crab.
Move your telescope 1.2 degrees to the south to the open cluster NGC1348. It is a very small cluster. The stars are somewhat bright compared to the previous clusters. It is well-detached and rich cluster. You will want to use high magnification to appreciate the cluster fully.
We will make a big jump 2.6 degrees northeast of NGC1348 to the open cluster called NGC1444. It is 4 minutes in size and has a magnitude of 6.6. One thing you will notice is there is a bright star of 6th magnitude SAO 24248. It brings impact and beauty to the clusters. There is also a nice chain of stars that form a nice S pattern.
King 7 is a grand cluster. The cluster shows that the object doesn’t have to belong to the NGC catalog to look nice. Explore beyond the NGC catalog and you will be pleasantly surprised. King 7 is 1.6 degrees southeast of NGC 1444. It has a moderate size of 5 minutes. It is very well detached and compressed. The cluster is rich in stars with magnitudes ranging from 9th on. The cluster looks like a sprinkling of diamond dust.
1.1 degrees to the northeast of King 7 lies NGC 1496. This cluster is not well detached or rich in stars. It does have an interesting shape. Some observers see a chain of stars that form a shape of a "C". I noted that is looks like and arrow that points to the north. What do you see?
Make another big jump to a grand cluster NGC 1528. It is larger with a size of 24 minutes and brighter at magnitude 6.4 then some of the previous on this tour. The cluster is well detached and rich. The stars are somewhat compressed with magnitudes ranging from 8th all the way to the limits of the larger telescopes. The cluster has an overall shape of a triangle. This is a lovely specimen of a Perseus open cluster.
If you can tear your eye off the spender move 1.2 degrees to the south to NGC 1545. This is a little smaller cluster with a size of 18 minutes. It is bright with a magnitude of 6.2. There are three bright 7th magnitude stars that are very obvious in the cluster. The cluster is rich but there isn’t much compression though other observers have mentioned otherwise. The three bright stars make this cluster remarkable. NGC 1513 is the last object on our tour. It is located 1.8 degrees southwest of NGC 1545. It is 9 minutes in size and 8.4 magnitude. This cluster is very rich and very compressed. The magnitudes of the stars range from 12th to 14th magnitude. The cluster is somewhat odd because of the way the stars a distributed. It is one of those clusters that you can spend hours observing and it is a fitting end to our star hop.
Many of the objects discussed may not be on your popular book charts. You may need quality astronomy software such as Guide to fully appreciate this star hop. Also remember do not be afraid to go beyond the NGC catalog. There are many great and even showpiece objects that are not part of the catalog.
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