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Messier 35

This young open cluster is home to some 400 stars

Distance

2,800 light-years

Apparent Magnitude

5.3

constellation

Gemini

object type

Open Cluster

A scattering of stars shine against the black background of space. Most of the stars are white, but some are red. Some small, dim background galaxies are also visible.
Open clusters are groups of stars that are only loosely bound by gravity. This image captures several of the hundreds of stars in open cluster M35, also known as the Shoe Buckle cluster.
NASA, ESA, and E. Nelan (Space Telescope Science Institute), A. Riess (The Johns Hopkins University), J. Rhodes (Jet Propulsion Laboratory) ; Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)

he only Messier object in the constellation Gemini, Messier 35 (M35), also called NGC 2168 or the Shoe Buckle Cluster, is a relatively young open cluster of stars about 150 million years old. Open clusters are groupings of stars that are loosely gravitationally bound. They tend to form from the same cloud of gas and dust, so their stars share characteristics like age and chemical composition, which can be helpful for studying how stars form and evolve. Over time, tidal forces within a host galaxy may overwhelm an open clusters’ gravitational pull, and its stars may disperse into the galaxy.

An image of a group of red and white stars in the upper right corner, in a box that points to an image in the lower left corner of their location within open cluster M35.
A wide-view image of Messier 35 (lower left) shows location of the smaller but more detailed view captured by Hubble (upper right).
Ground-based image: N.A. Sharp, NOIRlab, NSF, AURA Hubble image: NASA, ESA, and E. Nelan (Space Telescope Science Institute), A. Riess (The Johns Hopkins University), J. Rhodes (Jet Propulsion Laboratory); Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)

These two Hubble images capture some of M35’s approximately 400 stars, which are spread out over a region about 30 light-years across. M35 contains numerous hot blue stars as well as some cooler and older orange and red giant stars.

The cluster was first discovered in 1745 by Swiss astronomer Philippe Loys de Chéseaux, and cataloged by Charles Messier in 1764. Hubble took these images as part of a calibration program that periodically looks for changes in the sensitivity of the instruments.

Scattered white-colored stars shine against an inky black background.
Hubble’s view of M35 captures some of the stars that make up the relatively young cluster. Hubble provides a close-up view of the cluster.
NASA, ESA, and E. Nelan (Space Telescope Science Institute), A. Riess (The Johns Hopkins University), J. Rhodes (Jet Propulsion Laboratory) ; Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)
An image of a loose group of white stars in the upper right corner, in a box that points to an image in the lower left corner of their location within open cluster M35.
A wide-view image of Messier 35 (lower left) shows location of the smaller but more detailed view of Messier 35 captured by Hubble (upper right).
Ground-based image: N.A. Sharp, NOIRlab, NSF, AURA Hubble image: NASA, ESA, and E. Nelan (Space Telescope Science Institute), A. Riess (The Johns Hopkins University), J. Rhodes (Jet Propulsion Laboratory); Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)

M35 is large and can be seen as a fuzzy object with the unaided eye on very dark nights, as a haze with some resolvable stars in binoculars, or as a grouping of bright stars with a telescope. Located near Castor’s right foot in Gemini, it is best seen in the winter months in the Northern Hemisphere. A smaller, more compact, neighboring open cluster, NGC 2158, may also be visible within nearly the same field of view.

This star chart for M35 represents the view from mid-northern latitudes for the given month and time.
Image courtesy of Stellarium
A star chart showing the location of M35 among line drawings of the constellations Taurus, Gemini, Auriga and Orion. North is indicated at the bottom of the image along with the date, January at 10 p.m.
This star chart for M35 represents the view from mid-southern latitudes for the given month and time.
Image courtesy of Stellarium

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