The Double Cluster
The Double Cluster is a pair of young star clusters side by side in Perseus, NGC 869 and NGC 884, also called h and Chi Persei. Both are about 7,000 light-years away and about 13 million years old, with stars much younger and hotter than the Sun. From a dark site you can see them with your eyes as a hazy spot; in binoculars they are one of the finest sights in the northern sky.
When to see it
Best evenings: October to March (northern hemisphere).
Seen from north of about 23° S. Choose your city for tonight’s times and where to look.
“Up” means at least 10° above the horizon while the Sun is at least 12° below it (dark enough for faint nebulae and galaxies). Your location, if you share it, stays on this device.
At a glance
- Distance
- 7,000 light-years [1]
- The light you see left it
- around 5,000 BCE
- Constellation
- Perseus
- Position (J2000)
- RA 2h 20m 42s, Dec +57° 08′
- Visible from
- north of about 23° S (farther south it never climbs 10° above the horizon)
- High in the evening (9 pm)
- October to March from mid-northern latitudes
- How to see it
- With binoculars
The Double Cluster tonight from four cities
| City | Tonight |
|---|---|
| New York | Up now and all night, best around 11:30 pm, look north.best 11:30 pm, 73° up, north |
| Los Angeles | Up now and all night, best around 11 pm, look north.best 11 pm, 67° up, north |
| London | Up now and all night, best around 4:30 am, look north-west.best 4:30 am, 46° up, north-west |
| Sydney | Always below your horizon here.never rises here |
Tonight in each city’s local time, computed November 8, 2026 with Astronomy Engine (the page refreshes every hour). For your own city, choose it above.
The Double Cluster: the facts
| Also called | h and Chi Persei; NGC 869 and NGC 884 [1] |
|---|---|
| Age | both about 13 million years, likely from the same star-forming region [1] |
| Their stars | many young, bright, hot O and B stars [2] |
| Field of view | the pair spans about three full Moons (1.5°) with the stars round them [1] |
How do you find the Double Cluster?
Find Cassiopeia, the W of five bright stars, and Mirfak, the brightest star of Perseus. The Double Cluster lies roughly halfway between them. From a dark site it's a hazy spot to the eye; binoculars split it into two crowded clusters.
From mid-northern latitudes it never sets, so it's in the sky all night, every night, highest in late autumn and winter evenings.
Step inside the Double Cluster in Everdust
In Everdust’s Night Sky, look at the Double Cluster and pinch to fly there on Apple Vision Pro, or tap it on iPhone, iPad and Android. What you arrive in, in the app’s own words: “The Double Cluster as it is today: two young clusters side by side, modelled round their brightest stars. Their slow drift is sped up.”
Everdust on the App Store for iPhone, iPad and Vision ProEverdust on Google Play for Android
Everdust is free on the App Store for Apple Vision Pro, iPhone and iPad, and on Google Play for Android; Night Sky flies to the Double Cluster on all of them. It is also free on Apple TV, with other worlds. I make Everdust, so weigh that; a star-map app such as Stellarium or SkySafari will find the Double Cluster just as well.
Questions people ask
Can I see the Double Cluster tonight? It depends on where you are. It can be seen from north of about 23° S, and it is best in the evening sky October to March from mid-northern latitudes. Choose your city on this page for tonight's times and where to look. With binoculars: A hazy spot to the eye from a dark site, between Perseus and Cassiopeia; binoculars show two glittering clusters side by side.
Where is the Double Cluster in the sky? In the constellation Perseus, at right ascension 2h 20m 42s and declination +57° 08′ (J2000). It can be seen from north of about 23° S (farther south it never climbs 10° above the horizon).
How far away is the Double Cluster? Both clusters are about 7,000 light-years away (NASA), separated from each other by only a few hundred light-years.
Can you see the Double Cluster with the naked eye? Yes, from a dark location, as a hazy patch between Perseus and Cassiopeia. Binoculars are best.
Sources
- Distance: “both clusters are about 7,000 light-years away” (science.nasa.gov, the figure Everdust uses)
- NOIRLab noao-hcper: h and chi Persei
Distance and position: the deep-sky catalog in Everdust’s Night Sky (read November 1, 2026), each figure quoted from the source above. Constellation, seasons and tonight are computed with Astronomy Engine (Don Cross, MIT license). More: Wikipedia.
