Aquila
Open cluster
RA: 19 11 20
Dec: +13 06 49

Berkeley 82_DSS_crop.JPG

On the third night of the Golden State Star Party this past June, I came across an object that I’d circled on my star atlas. Circled objects like this are ones I've highlighted at some point in the past because I thought they would be interesting to observe, and I circled this one so long ago that I didn’t remember when I did so, and didn't recall ever observing it.

With a little searching it turns out Berkeley 82 it was on the Oregon star Party observing list in 2009, which was when I plotted it on my atlas, and when I first observed it. I usually place a check mark next to the object in my atlas after observing it, but I’m glad I forgot to do so in this case. In this way, I got to observe this lovely little cluster for the first time twice!

Berkeley 82 is a striking, well detached open cluster in the Aquila portion of the Milky Way. Its three brightest stars – two of which are conspicuously yellow – are close to being equally spaced from each other and form a gentle curve that several fainter stars follow, and form a distinct boundary. These fainter stars straggle away, giving the cluster the look of a jellyfish.

I found it interesting to compare my notes and sketches made nearly 13 years apart, so here they are – first is the 2009 observation:

“Very nice little cluster. Well detached, a little more so than Berk 2 [which I had just observed] and with a more pleasing shape – the 3 brightest stars give an impression of a bow shock as the cluster moves through the galaxy…although I’m sure that’s not the case. 253x, 21.67 SQM.” (28-inch f/4, August 18, 2009)

Berk82_2009.JPG Berk82_2009_invert.JPG

“This is a cool open cluster! Its three brightest stars really stand out, not only because they’re bright, but that two, and perhaps all 3 are yellow. The overall cluster is nearly circular, making it even more distinctive. 183x, 21.60 SQM.” (30-inch f/2.7, June 30, 2022)

Berk82_2022_rotate_rotated.jpg Berk82_2022_rotate_invert_rotated_2.jpg

The two sketches are close, but not exactly the same, and I didn’t note the yellow color of the brightest stars in my first observation but the two observations give a more complete idea of what I saw. Berkeley 82 is easy to find, being only about a degree and half to the southeast from the 3rd magnitude star Zeta / 17 Aquila.

When you need a break from observing objects you can barely see, give Berkeley 82 a go, and let us know!