Messier 36 (M36), also known as the Pinwheel Cluster, is an open cluster located in the northern constellation Auriga, the Charioteer. The cluster occupies an area of 12 arc minutes in the sky, corresponding to a linear extension of 14 light years. It has an apparent magnitude of 6.3 and lies at a distance of 4,100 light years from Earth. M36 has the designation NGC 1960 in the New General Catalogue.
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Messier 34 (M34) is a bright, large open cluster located in the northern constellation Perseus. The cluster lies at an approximate distance of 1,500 light years from Earth and has an apparent magnitude of 5.5. It has the designation NGC 1039 in the New General Catalogue.
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Messier 31 (M31), better known as the Andromeda Galaxy, is a large spiral galaxy located in the constellation Andromeda. Lying at a distance of 2.54 million light years from Earth, the Andromeda Galaxy is the nearest major galaxy to our own. It is on a collision course with our home galaxy, the Milky Way. Messier 31 has an apparent magnitude of 3.44. Its designation in the New General Catalogue is NGC 224.
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Messier 21 (M21) is an open cluster located in the southern constellation Sagittarius. It has an apparent magnitude of 6.5. The cluster lies at an approximate distance of 4,250 light years from Earth. Its designation in the New General Catalogue is NGC 6531.
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Messier 18 (M18) is a relatively dim open star cluster located in the constellation Sagittarius. The cluster lies at an approximate distance of 4,900 light years, or 1,500 parsecs, from Earth and has an apparent magnitude of 7.5. Its designation in the New General Catalogue is NGC 6613.
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