NGC 288 is a magnitude +9.4 globular star cluster located 30,000 light-years away in the constellation Sculptor.
The cluster was discovered by German-British astronomer William Herschel using a 47.5 cm (18.7 inch) f/13 speculum reflector at Clayhall Farm House in Old Windsor on the 27th October 1785.
Title: Detection of a Nearby Halo Debris Stream in the WISE and 2MASS Surveys Authors: Carl J. Grillmair, Roc Cutri, Frank J. Masci, Tim Conroy, Branimir Sesar, Peter R. M. Eisenhardt, Edward L. Wright
Combining the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer All-Sky Release with the 2MASS Point Source Catalogue, we detect a nearby, moderately metal-poor stellar debris stream spanning 24 degrees across the southern sky. The stream, which we designate Alpheus, is at an estimated distance of ~1.9 kpc. Its position, orientation, width, estimated metallicity, and to some extent its distance, are in approximate agreement with what one might expect of the leading tidal tail of the southern globular cluster NGC 288.