Photometric survey of marginally investigated open clusters

I. Basel 11b, King 14, Czernik 43

¹ Institut für Astronomie der Universität Wien, Türkenschanzstr. 17, 1180 Wien, Austria e-mail: martin.netopil@univie.ac.at
² Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía CSIC, Apartado 3004, 18080 Granada, Spain

Received: 16 December 2005
Accepted: 21 March 2006

Abstract

Aims.To progress in galactic studies based on open clusters, e.g. cluster formation rate or kinematical properties, one needs to improve the number of open clusters observed. However, only half of the 1700 known galactic open clusters have been properly observed so far, making any statistical investigation insignificant, especially at larger distances from the Sun.

Methods.We study marginally investigated or neglected open clusters with Bessell CCD  photometry, whose data were used to fit isochrones to the individual color-magnitude diagrams.

Results.We examined the galactic clusters Basel 11b, King 14 and Czernik 43, the last being observed for the first time to this extent. As well as a careful comparison to available photometry, their parameters such as age, interstellar reddening, distance and apparent diameter were determined. The obtained cluster properties were verified by near infrared 2MASS data. The three investigated intermediate age clusters are all located in the galactic disk with distances between 1.8 and 3.0 kpc from the Sun.