RA 206.6465° · Dec -62.9165° · openngc
2 more points to reach Common.
NGC 5281 is a trash cluster. It sits in the constellation Cen and shines at apparent magnitude 5.9.
NGC 5281 is a trash cluster worth 13 points across 2 science badges. Explore its facts, badges and place on the sky map, then add it to your dex on Spacedle.
Look for NGC 5281 in the constellation Cen. At apparent magnitude 5.9, it can be glimpsed with the unaided eye under dark skies.
Like any astronomical target, NGC 5281 is best seen from a dark site away from city lights, and when it is above the horizon depends on your latitude and the time of year. The visibility panel above works out tonight's viewing window for your saved location.
NGC 5281 scores 13 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the trash tier. Another 2 points would lift it into a rarer tier.
That score comes from 2 science badges — Star cluster and Bright deep-sky object — each earned for a real, measurable property of the object. Rarity on Spacedle is never random: the more remarkable an object's astrophysics, the more badges it collects, the higher it scores, and the rarer it ranks.