How to find the Double Cluster in Perseus on autumn evenings

The Double Cluster is a pair of open star clusters in the constellation Perseus, near Cassiopeia in the Northern Hemisphere sky.

Each cluster contains a few hundred young, hot stars that are many thousands of times more luminous than the Sun.

The pair is about 7,500 light-years away, in the Perseus arm of the Milky Way, while our solar system is in the Orion arm.

To find it, look for Cassiopeia’s distinctive M or W shape, then scan the space between Cassiopeia and Perseus with binoculars.

Under dark skies, the clusters can also be seen without binoculars.

From mid-northern latitudes, they remain above the horizon all year; farther south in the Northern Hemisphere, autumn and winter evenings are good times to look.

The clusters are harder to see when they are near the horizon, so waiting until later in the night can help.

They are highest in the northern sky on late autumn and early winter evenings.