Universe Today
Description:
"Absolute proper motions, their corresponding errors and membership probabilities of 501 stars in the intermediate-age open cluster NGC 2548 region are determined from MAMA measurements of 10 photographic plates. The plates have the maximum epoch difference of 82 years and they were taken with the double astrograph. The average proper motion precision is 1.18 mas yr -1. These proper motions are used to determine the membership probabilities of stars in the region. The number of stars with membership probabilities higher than 0.7 is 165."
"We present an empirical assessment of the use of broad-band optical colours as age indicators for unresolved extragalactic clusters and investigate stochastic sampling effects on integrated colours. We use the integrated properties of Galactic open clusters (OCs) as models for unresolved extragalactic clusters. The population synthesis code Starburst99 (SB99) and four optical colours were used to estimate how well we can recover the ages of 62 well-studied Galactic OCs with published ages. We provide a method for estimating the ages of unresolved clusters and for reliably determining the uncertainties in the age estimates. Our results support earlier conclusions based on comparisons to synthetic clusters, namely the (U?B) colour is critical to the estimation of the ages of star-forming regions. We compare the observed optical colours with those obtained from SB99 using the published ages and get good agreement."
History of Observation:
"A neat but minute double star, in a tolerably compressed cluster on the Unicorn's flank, and lying 14deg south-east of Procyon. A 9 1/2 [mag], and B 10, both white. This object is in the middle of a splendid group, in a rich splashy region of stragglers, which fills the field of view, and has several small pairs, chiefly of the 9th magnitude. It was discovered by Miss Herschel in 1783, and was classed by WH [William Herschel] in February, 1783."
"Although the circumstances of M48 are not so obvious, only one cluster of the size and brightness likely to be recorded by Messier is found in the region near "the three stars that form the beginning of the unicorn's tail" (Zeta, 27, and 28 Monocerotis). Dr. Morris has pointed out that this cluster, NGC 2548, has the same right ascension as the position given for M48. (Allowance must, of course, be made for precession in comparing Messier's figures with modern positions). The declination disagrees by about 5 degrees. Since no conspicuous star is located 2 1/2 degrees away in declination, we cannot account for this position by another error in sign. It seems unlikely that the comparison star was misidentified, since the right ascension is probably correct. Messier did not publish the name of the star used, and his original records are apparently no longer extant. Thus, a careful survey of the region described by Messier leads to the conclusion that NGC 2548 is the cluster the French observer intended as his 48th object, for lack of any cluster nearby that fits the description."