NGC 1981 Upper Sword

NGC 1981 is a bright young open cluster in the constellation Orion. It forms the northernmost part of the Sword of Orion asterism, being visible to the naked eye as a blurred spot; Its components are young, blue stars of magnitude 6 to 8, the brightest of which form an arc in the eastern part of the cluster, while the less luminous ones are arranged to the west. The cluster is completely solved with 10x50 binoculars on clear nights; With a 100mm telescope it offers a beautiful view even at low magnifications. NGC 1981 is immersed in the large Orion Molecular Nebula Complex, and its stars partially illuminate the NGC 1977 nebula.

Its position lies almost straddling the celestial equator; this means that its observation is possible from almost all regions of the Earth, with the exception of a few degrees around the North Pole. Its visibility is also almost identical for pairs of opposite latitudes, from which it appears at almost the same height above the horizon. The best time to observe it in the evening sky is between November and April.