Low-dispersion spectra of the order of 1000 Å mm^-1 have been obtained for stars in several faint galactic clusters with a transmission grating placed in front of the photographic plate at the Cassegrain focus of the Kavalur 102-cm telescope. The intensity distribution in the shorter wavelengths has been taken as the principal criterion for the spectral classification of the individual stars in the area covered by the photographic plate. The uncertainty in this procedure has been found to be about two spectral subclasses. A combination of these spectral classes with the visual magnitudes derived from the image diameters on the POSS charts provide the HR diagrams for each cluster area. These diagrams are adequate to establish the cluster membership of any star to a first approximation. This technique has been tested on six galactic open clusters, four of which are well-studied. We find good agreement both in terms of the ages of the clusters and individual stellar membership.

During the eclipse of 1980 February 16 we photographed the solar corona at an effective wavelength of 6300 å. Using a quadruple camera we also obtained the coronal pictures in polarized light for four Polaroid orientations. We have used these observations to derive the coronal brightness and polarization and from these the electron densities in the corona out to a distance of about 2.5 R⊙ from the centre of the disc. The coronal brightness matches well with that of the corona of 1958 October 12.

The results of modified objective grating observations and photoelectric as well as photographic photometry of the open cluster NGC 2374 are presented. The cluster contains at least twenty stars as definite members down tom_v ≈ 15mag. There is a uniform extinction ofE(B - V) = 0.175 mag and the distance is 1.2 ± 0.1 kpc. The most likely age of this cluster is 7.5 ×10⁷ years.

Photoelectric and photographic photometry of twenty-nine stars was done in the field of the open cluster Collinder 97 ≡ OC1 506. Of these stars, a total of twenty-four have been found to be possible members. There is apparently no interstellar extinction in the direction of this cluster which is in the constellation of Monoceros: itsE(B-V) = 0.0 mag. This cluster is situated at a distance of 0.63 ± 0.01 kpc, which is well within the local arm of our Galaxy. The age of this cluster is in the range of 1 × 10⁸ to 5.9 × l0⁸ yr, which puts it in an older age group. Thus, it cannot be specifically considered as a spiral-arm tracer in the study of our Galaxy.

Photoelectric and photographic photometry of 72 stars was done in the field of the not-well-studied open cluster Czernik 20= OCl 427 in the direction of the Auriga constellation. Of these stars, a total of 43 have been found to be probable members down tom_v− 15.75 mag. There is apparently a variable extinction across the field of the cluster withE(B-V) ranging from 0.53 to 0.38 mag. The cluster stars show a range in their ages from 1.0 × 10⁷ to 7.1 × 10⁷ years, indicating that Czernik 20 is young enough to be considered as a spiral-arm tracer in the study of our Galaxy. The distance of this cluster is found to be 4.27 ±0.14 kpc and it is located inside the outer Perseus arm of the Milky Way

Continuing the study of faint young open clusters as tracers of spiral features in our Galaxy, photoelectric and photographic photometry of 39 stars was done in the field of the faint open cluster NGC 2236 ≡ OCl 501 in the direction of Monoceros constellation. Out of these stars, a total of 22 down tom_v ≃ 15.4 mag have been found to be probable members. There is apparently a variable extinction across the field of the cluster with E(B - V) ranging between 0.84 mag and 0.68 mag. The median age of this cluster is estimated to be 7.6 × 10⁷ years and the cluster is thereby considered as belonging to the marginally old category. Thus, it cannot be specifically used as a spiral arm tracer in the study of our Galaxy. This cluster is located at a distance of 3.72 ± 0.13 kpc, which places it at the inner edge of the outer Perseus spiral feature of the Milky Way.