Polarissima Cluster aka. NGC 188

by Neven Krcmarek

Objects in field: NGC 188

Equipment: Sky-Watcher Explorer 130PDS, ZWO ASI294MC Pro

Integration: 36h 18m

NGC 188 (Caldwell 1), the northernmost open cluster near Polaris, is a remarkably old survivor at 7.5-7.8 billion years, with a boxy thick-disk orbit that kept it safe from Galactic disruption. It hosts 19 blue stragglers from collisions/mass transfer and 4 unusually Li-rich giants, defying standard stellar evolution making it a key lab for mixing mechanisms and early disk chemistry. At 1.9 kpc…