A NEAR-INFRARED IMAGING SURVEY OF NGC-2282

We present the first near-infrared (JHK) imaging and photometry of a y oung cluster associated with NGC 2282, a reflection nebula in Monocero s. Our observations reveal that the cluster is centrally concentrated with a surface density that falls as r(-1). The cluster has a radius o f roughly 1.6 pc and contains at least 100 members, approximately 9% o f which exhibit infrared excess emission characteristic of young stell ar objects. infrared extinction maps suggest that the cluster is locat ed at the edge of a molecular cloud and is not heavily reddened. We co nstruct the K-band luminosity function (KLF) of the cluster and find t hat it increases with magnitude up to the completeness limit of our ob servations (m(K)=15.0). The shape of the KLF is similar to those of ot her young clusters, such as IC 348 and the Trapezium, which suggest th at the cluster contains a significant population of pre-main sequence stars. However, at the distance of NGC 2282 (1.7 kpc) our observations are not deep enough to sample the low mass end of the cluster IMF, Co nsequently, our KLF does not provide meaningful constraints on either the age of the cluster or the duration of star formation within it. On the other hand, the low extinction toward the cluster, its location a t the edge of a molecular cloud, and the relatively small fraction of infrared excess sources suggest that it is a relatively evolved cluste r of pre-main-sequence stars with an age of 5-10X10(6) years. (C) 1997 American Astronomical Society.