NGC 6268 (OC)

Open Cluster in Scorpius
R.A.Dec.SizeMag SBCnt.StTypeDistanceChart
17h 02m 09.0s-39° 42′ 51.5″6.0′9.513.1II2pOC----
NGC 6268 DSS plate
Source: POSS-2 UK Schmidt Red (STScI) | Field: 15′ × 15′

Background

NGC 6268 is a small, faint open cluster  3,500 light-years away in Scorpius.  9.5 mag,  9' wide. Less defined than its neighbours NGC 6231 and NGC 6242.

My Observing Notes

25-cm (Meade 10-inch LX200, The Coffee Grinder): Even fainter and less defined than NGC 6242 — the third member of the NGC 6231–6242–6268–H 12 grouping near ζ Scorpii.(Friday, May 2025)

References

Charts

NGC 6268 ultra-wide chart
Ultra-wide view (~25° field)
NGC 6268 wide-field chart
Wide-field view with Telrad rings (4°, 2°, 0.5°)
NGC 6268 finderscope view
Finderscope view (9×50 RACI, ~4.4° TFOV)
NGC 6268 eyepiece view
Eyepiece view — 35 mm Panoptic on 12-inch f/5 (1.6° TFOV)