Omega Centauri | |
---|---|
Observation data (J2000epoch) | |
Class | VIII[1] |
Constellation | Centaurus |
Right ascension | 13h 26m 47.28s[2] |
Declination | −47° 28′ 46.1″[2] |
Distance | 15.8 ± 1.1 kly (4.84 ± 0.34 kpc)[3] |
Apparent magnitude(V) | 3.9[4] |
Apparent dimensions (V) | 36′.3[5] |
Physical characteristics | |
Mass | (4.05±0.1)×106[6]M☉ |
Radius | 86 ± 6 ly[7] |
Metallicity | = –1.35[8]dex |
Estimated age | 11.52 Gyr[8] |
Other designations | NGC 5139,[9] GCl 24,[9] ω Centauri,[3]Caldwell 80 |
See also: Globular cluster, List of globular clusters |
Omega Centauri (ω Cen or NGC 5139) is a globular cluster in the constellation of Centaurus that was first identified as a non-stellar object by Edmond Halley in 1677. Located at a distance of 15,800 light-years (4,850 pc), it is the largest globular cluster in the Milky Way at a diameter of roughly 150 light-years.[10] It is estimated to contain approximately 10 million stars and a total mass equivalent to 4 million solar masses,[11] making it the most massive globular cluster of the Milky Way.
Omega Centauri is so distinctive from the other galactic globular clusters that it is thought to have an alternative origin as the core remnant of a disrupted dwarf galaxy.[12]
Observation history[edit]
In 150 AD, Greco-Roman writer and astronomer Ptolemy catalogued this object in his Almagest as a star on the horse's back, 'Quae est in principio scapulae'. German lawyer and cartographer Johann Bayer used Ptolemy's data to designate this object 'Omega Centauri' with his 1603 publication of Uranometria. Using a telescope from the South Atlantic island of Saint Helena, English astronomer Edmond Halley rediscovered this object in 1677, listing it as a non-stellar object. In 1715, it was published by Halley among his list of six 'luminous spots or patches' in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society.[13]
Swiss astronomer Jean-Philippe de Cheseaux included Omega Centauri in his 1746 list of 21 nebulae,[13] as did French astronomer Lacaille in 1755, who gave it the catalogue number L I.5. It was first recognized as a globular cluster by Scottish astronomer James Dunlop in 1826, who described it as a 'beautiful globe of stars very gradually and moderately compressed to the centre'.[14][15]
Properties[edit]
At a distance of about 15,800 light-years (4,850 pc) from Earth, Omega Centauri is one of the few globular clusters visible to the naked eye—and appears almost as large as the full Moon when seen from a dark, rural area.[16] It is the brightest, largest and, at 4 million solar masses,[6] the most massive known globular cluster associated with the Milky Way. Of all the globular clusters in the Local Group of galaxies, only Mayall II in the Andromeda Galaxy is brighter and more massive.[17] Orbiting through the Milky Way, Omega Centauri contains several million Population II stars and is about 12 billion years old.[18]
The stars in the core of Omega Centauri are so crowded that they are estimated to average only 0.1 light years away from each other.[18] The internal dynamics have been analyzed using measurements of the radial velocities of 469 stars.[19] The members of this cluster are orbiting the center of mass with a peak velocity dispersion of 7.9 km s−1. The mass distribution inferred from the kinematics is slightly more extended than, though not strongly inconsistent with, the luminosity distribution.
Evidence of a central black hole[edit]
A 2008 study presented evidence for an intermediate-mass black hole at the center of Omega Centauri, based on observations made by the Hubble Space Telescope and Gemini Observatory on Cerro Pachon in Chile.[20][21]Hubble's Advanced Camera for Surveys showed that stars are bunching up near the center of Omega Centauri, as evidenced by the gradual increase in starlight near the center. Using instruments at the Gemini Observatory to measure the speed of stars swirling in the cluster's core, E. Noyola and colleagues found that stars closer to the core are moving faster than stars farther away. This measurement was interpreted to mean that unseen matter at the core is interacting gravitationally with nearby stars. By comparing these results with standard models, the astronomers concluded that the most likely cause was the gravitational pull of a dense, massive object such as a black hole. They calculated the object's mass at 4.0 x 104solar masses.[20]
However, more recent work has challenged these conclusions, in particular disputing the proposed location of the cluster center.[22][23] Calculations using a revised location for the center found that the velocity of core stars does not vary with distance, as would be expected if an intermediate-mass black hole were present. The same studies also found that starlight does not increase toward the center but instead remains relatively constant. The authors noted that their results do not entirely rule out the black hole proposed by Noyola and colleagues, but they do not confirm it, and they limit its maximum mass to 1.2 x 104solar masses.
Disrupted dwarf galaxy[edit]
It has been speculated that Omega Centauri is the core of a dwarf galaxy that was disrupted and absorbed by the Milky Way.[24] Indeed, Kapteyn's Star, which is currently only 13 light years away, is thought to originate from Omega Centauri.[25] Omega Centauri's chemistry and motion in the Milky Way are also consistent with this picture.[16] Like Mayall II, Omega Centauri has a range of metallicities and stellar ages that suggests that it did not all form at once (as globular clusters are thought to form) and may in fact be the remainder of the core of a smaller galaxy long since incorporated into the Milky Way.[26]
In fiction[edit]
The novel Singularity (2012) by Ian Douglas, presents as fact that Omega Centauri and Kapteyn's Star originate from a disrupted dwarf galaxy, and this origin is central to the novel's plot. A number of scientific aspects of Omega Centauri are discussed as the story progresses, including the likely radiation environment inside the cluster and what the sky might look like from inside the cluster.[27]
The novel Waiting for Omega (2016) by David Villa is set on a planet 'diametrically opposite' Omega Centauri (renamed w-Centauri) with respect to Earth, thereby marking the globular cluster as a pointer to humanity's distant and all but forgotten homeworld.[28]
This cluster figures in the German pulp science fiction series Perry Rhodan, and a cycle of the spinoff series Atlan is set in Omega Centauri. Omega Centauri cycle (German).
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^Shapley, Harlow; Sawyer, Helen B. (August 1927), 'A Classification of Globular Clusters', Harvard College Observatory Bulletin, 849 (849): 11–14, Bibcode:1927BHarO.849..11S.
- ^ abGoldsbury, Ryan; et al. (December 2010), 'The ACS Survey of Galactic Globular Clusters. X. New Determinations of Centers for 65 Clusters', The Astronomical Journal, 140 (6): 1830–1837, arXiv:1008.2755, Bibcode:2010AJ..140.1830G, doi:10.1088/0004-6256/140/6/1830.
- ^ abvan de Ven, G.; van den Bosch, R. C. E.; Verolme, E. K.; de Zeeuw, P. T. (2 January 2006). 'The dynamical distance and intrinsic structure of the globular cluster ω Centauri'. Astronomy and Astrophysics. 445 (2): 513–543. arXiv:astro-ph/0509228. Bibcode:2006A&A..445.513V. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20053061.
best-fit dynamical distance D=4.8±0.3 kpc .. consistent with the canonical value 5.0±0.2 kpc obtained by photometric methods
- ^Skiff, Brian A. (May 2, 1999), 'Observational Data for Galactic Globular Clusters', The NGC/IC Project, retrieved 2013-08-13.
- ^Arnold, H. J. P.; Doherty, Paul; Moore, Patrick (1999), The Photographic Atlas of the Stars, CRC Press, p. 173, ISBN978-0750306546.
- ^ abD'Souza, Richard; Rix, Hans-Walter (March 2013), 'Mass estimates from stellar proper motions: the mass of ω Centauri', Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 429 (3): 1887–1901, arXiv:1211.4399, Bibcode:2013MNRAS.429.1887D, doi:10.1093/mnras/sts426.
- ^distance × sin( diameter_angle / 2 ), using distance of 5kpc and angle 36.3', = 86 ± 6 ly. radius
- ^ abForbes, Duncan A.; Bridges, Terry (May 2010), 'Accreted versus in situ Milky Way globular clusters', Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 404 (3): 1203–1214, arXiv:1001.4289, Bibcode:2010MNRAS.404.1203F, doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2010.16373.x.
- ^ ab'NGC 5139'. SIMBAD. Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg. Retrieved 2006-11-16.
- ^'Omega Centauri: The Largest Globular Cluster'. Universe for Facts. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
- ^'APOD: 2010 March 31 - Millions of Stars in Omega Centauri'.
- ^Noyola, Eva; Gebhardt, Karl; Bergmann, Marcel (2008). 'Gemini and Hubble Space Telescope Evidence for an Intermediate Mass Black Hole in omega Centauri'. The Astrophysical Journal. 676 (2): 1008. arXiv:0801.2782. Bibcode:2008ApJ..676.1008N. doi:10.1086/529002.
- ^ abO'Meara, Stephen James (2013), Deep-Sky Companions: Southern Gems, Cambridge University Press, p. 244, Bibcode:2013dcsg.book...O, ISBN978-1107015012.
- ^Dunlop, J. (1828). 'A catalogue of nebulae and clusters of stars in the southern hemisphere, observed at Parramatta in New South Wales'. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society. 118: 113–151. Bibcode:1828RSPT.118.113D. doi:10.1098/rstl.1828.0010. Omega Centauri is listed as No. 440 on p. 136.
- ^Harrington, Phil (May 1, 2013), 'Binocular Universe: Songs of the Deep South', Cloudy Nights Telescope Reviews, retrieved 2013-08-13.
- ^ ab'Black hole found in Omega Centauri'. ESA. 2008-04-02. Retrieved 2009-11-06.
- ^Frommert, Hartmut; Kronberg, Christine (March 22, 1998), 'NGC 5139', The Munich Astro Archive, retrieved 2013-08-13.
- ^ ab'Peering into the Core of a Globular Cluster', Hubble Site news Center, October 4, 2001, retrieved 2013-08-13.
- ^Merritt, David; Meylan, Georges; Mayor, Michel (September 1997). 'The stellar dynamics of Omega Centauri'. The Astrophysical Journal. 114: 1074–1086. arXiv:astro-ph/9612184. Bibcode:1997AJ..114.1074M. doi:10.1086/118538.
- ^ abNoyola, E.; Gebhardt, K.; Bergmann, M. (April 2008). 'Gemini and Hubble Space Telescope Evidence for an Intermediate-Mass Black Hole in ω Centauri'. The Astrophysical Journal. 676 (2): 1008–1015. arXiv:0801.2782. Bibcode:2008ApJ..676.1008N. doi:10.1086/529002.
- ^Noyola, Eva; Christensen, Lars Lindberg; Villard, Ray; Michaud, Peter (April 2, 2008), 'Black hole found in enigmatic Omega Centauri', Monthly Notes of the Astronomical Society of South Africa, 67 (5–6): 82, Bibcode:2008MNSSA.67..82., retrieved 2013-08-13.
- ^Anderson, J.; van der Marel, R. P. (February 2010). 'New Limits on an Intermediate-Mass Black Hole in Omega Centauri. I. Hubble Space Telescope Photometry and Proper Motions'. The Astrophysical Journal. 710 (2): 1032–1062. arXiv:0905.0627. Bibcode:2010ApJ..710.1032A. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/710/2/1032.
- ^van der Marel, R. P.; Anderson, J. (February 2010). 'New Limits on an Intermediate-Mass Black Hole in Omega Centauri. II. Dynamical Models'. The Astrophysical Journal. 710 (2): 1063–1088. arXiv:0905.0638. Bibcode:2010ApJ..710.1063V. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/710/2/1063.
- ^'Astronomers Find Suspected Medium-Size Black Hole in Omega Centauri' (Press release). 2008-04-02. Retrieved 2009-11-06.
- ^'Backward star ain't from round here', New Scientist, retrieved 2013-08-13.
- ^Hughes, J. D.; Wallerstein, G. (December 1998), 'Age and Metallicity Effects in Omega Centauri I: Stromgren Photometry', Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 30: 1348, Bibcode:1998AAS..193.6809H.
- ^Douglas, Ian (2012). Singularity. Harper Voyager. ISBN978-0061840272.
- ^Villa, David (2016). Waiting for Omega. Smashwords. ISBN9781370669363.
Further reading[edit]
- Myeong, G. C.; Evans, N. W.; Belokurov, V.; Sanders, J. L.; Koposov, S. E.; (April 2018). 'The Shards of ω Centauri'. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. arXiv:1804.07050. Bibcode:2018arXiv180407050M.CS1 maint: Uses authors parameter (link)
External links[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Omega Centauri. |
- Omega Centauri on WikiSky: DSS2, SDSS, GALEX, IRAS, Hydrogen α, X-Ray, Astrophoto, Sky Map, Articles and images
Coordinates: 13h 26m 45.89s, −47° 28′ 36.7″
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Omega_Centauri&oldid=896573460'
Messier 92 in the Hercules constellation.
Star clusters are very large groups of stars. Two types of star clusters can be distinguished: globular clusters are tight groups of hundreds to millions of old stars which are gravitationally bound, while open clusters, more loosely clustered groups of stars, generally contain fewer than a few hundred members, and are often very young. Open clusters become disrupted over time by the gravitational influence of giant molecular clouds as they move through the galaxy, but cluster members will continue to move in broadly the same direction through space even though they are no longer gravitationally bound; they are then known as a stellar association, sometimes also referred to as a moving group.
Star clusters visible to the naked eye include the Pleiades (M45), Hyades, and the Beehive Cluster (M44).
- 1Globular cluster
- 2Open clusters
Globular cluster[edit]
The globular cluster Messier 15 photographed by HST.
Globular clusters are roughly spherical groupings of from 10,000 to several million stars packed into regions of from 10 to 30 light-years across. They commonly consist of very old Population II stars—just a few hundred million years younger than the universe itself—which are mostly yellow and red, with masses less than two solar masses.[1] Such stars predominate within clusters because hotter and more massive stars have exploded as supernovae, or evolved through planetary nebula phases to end as white dwarfs. Yet a few rare blue stars exist in globulars, thought to be formed by stellar mergers in their dense inner regions; these stars are known as blue stragglers.
In our galaxy, globular clusters are distributed roughly spherically in the galactic halo, around the Galactic Centre, orbiting the centre in highly elliptical orbits. In 1917, the astronomer Harlow Shapley made the first reliable estimate the Sun's distance from the galactic centre based on the distribution of globular clusters.
Until the mid-1990s, globular clusters were the cause of a great mystery in astronomy, as theories of stellar evolution gave ages for the oldest members of globular clusters that were greater than the estimated age of the universe. However, greatly improved distance measurements to globular clusters using the Hipparcos satellite and increasingly accurate measurements of the Hubble constant resolved the paradox, giving an age for the universe of about 13 billion years and an age for the oldest stars of a few hundred million years less.
Our galaxy has about 150 globular clusters,[1] some of which may have been captured from small galaxies disrupted by the Milky Way, as seems to be the case for the globular cluster M79. Some galaxies are much richer in globulars: the giant elliptical galaxyM87 contains over a thousand.
A few of the brightest globular clusters are visible to the naked eye, with the brightest, Omega Centauri, having been known since antiquity and catalogued as a star before the telescopic age. The brightest globular cluster in the northern hemisphere is Messier 13 in the constellation of Hercules.
Super star cluster[edit]
Super star clusters are very large regions of recent star formation, and are thought to be the precursors of globular clusters. Examples include Westerlund 1 in the Milky Way.[2]
Open clusters[edit]
The Pleiades, an open cluster dominated by hot blue stars surrounded by reflection nebulosity.
Open clusters are very different from globular clusters. Unlike the spherically distributed globulars, they are confined to the galactic plane, and are almost always found within spiral arms. They are generally young objects, up to a few tens of millions of years old, with a few rare exceptions as old as a few billion years, such as Messier 67 (the closest and most observed old open cluster) for example.[3] They form from H II regions such as the Orion Nebula.
Open clusters usually contain up to a few hundred members, within a region up to about 30 light-years across. Being much less densely populated than globular clusters, they are much less tightly gravitationally bound, and over time, are disrupted by the gravity of giant molecular clouds and other clusters. Close encounters between cluster members can also result in the ejection of stars, a process known as 'evaporation'.
The most prominent open clusters are the Pleiades and Hyades in Taurus. The Double Cluster of h+Chi Persei can also be prominent under dark skies. Open clusters are often dominated by hot young blue stars, because although such stars are short-lived in stellar terms, only lasting a few tens of millions of years, open clusters tend to have dispersed before these stars die.
Establishing precise distances to open clusters enables the calibration of the period-luminosity relationship shown by Cepheidsvariable stars, which are then used as standard candles. Cepheids are luminous and can be used to establish both the distances to remote galaxies and the expansion rate of the Universe (Hubble constant). Indeed, the open cluster NGC 7790 hosts three classical Cepheids which are critical for such efforts.[4][5]
Embedded clusters[edit]
The embedded Trapezium cluster can be seen in X-ray light which penetrates the cloud.
Star cluster NGC 3572 and its surroundings
Embedded clusters are groups of very young stars that are partially or fully encased in an Interstellar dust or gas which is often impervious to optical observations. Embedded clusters form in molecular clouds, when the clouds begin to collapse and form stars. There is often ongoing star formation in these clusters, so embedded clusters may be home to various types of young stellar objects including protostars and pre-main-sequence stars. An example of an embedded cluster is the Trapezium Cluster in the Orion Nebula. In ρ Ophiuchi cloud (L1688) core region there is an embedded cluster.[6]
The embedded cluster phase may last for several million years, after which gas in the cloud is depleted by star formation or dispersed through radiation pressure, stellar winds and outflows, or supernova explosions. In general less than 30% of cloud mass is converted to stars before the cloud is dispersed, but this fraction may be higher in particularly dense parts of the cloud. With the loss of mass in the cloud, the energy of the system is altered, often leading to the disruption of a star cluster. Most young embedded clusters disperse shortly after the end of star formation.[7]
The open clusters found in the Galaxy are former embedded clusters that were able to survive early cluster evolution. However, nearly all freely floating stars, including the Sun,[8] were originally born into embedded clusters that disintegrated.[7]
Intermediate forms[edit]
In Messier 68, its constituent stars span a volume of space with a diameter of more than a hundred light-years.
In 2005, astronomers discovered a new type of star cluster in the Andromeda Galaxy, which is, in several ways, very similar to globular clusters although less dense. No such clusters (which also known as extended globular clusters) are known in the Milky Way. The three discovered in Andromeda Galaxy are M31WFS C1[9]M31WFS C2, and M31WFS C3.
These new-found star clusters contain hundreds of thousands of stars, a similar number to globular clusters. The clusters also share other characteristics with globular clusters, e.g. the stellar populations and metallicity. What distinguishes them from the globular clusters is that they are much larger – several hundred light-years across – and hundreds of times less dense. The distances between the stars are thus much greater. The clusters have properties intermediate between globular clusters and dwarf spheroidal galaxies.[10]
How these clusters are formed is not yet known, but their formation might well be related to that of globular clusters. Why M31 has such clusters, while the Milky Way has not, is not yet known. It is also unknown if any other galaxy contains this kind of clusters, but it would be very unlikely that M31 is the sole galaxy with extended clusters.[10]
Another type of cluster are faint fuzzies which so far have only been found in lenticular galaxies like NGC 1023 and NGC 3384. They are characterized by their large size compared to globular clusters and a ringlike distribution around the centers of their host galaxies. As the latter they seem to be old objects.[11]
Astronomical significance of star clusters[edit]
Artist's impression of an exoplanet orbiting a star in the cluster Messier 67.[12]
Stellar clusters are important in many areas of astronomy. Because the stars were all born at roughly the same time, the different properties of all the stars in a cluster are a function only of mass, and so stellar evolution theories rely on observations of open and globular clusters.
Clusters are also a crucial step in determining the distance scale of the universe. A few of the nearest clusters are close enough for their distances to be measured using parallax. A Hertzsprung–Russell diagram can be plotted for these clusters which has absolute values known on the luminosity axis. Then, when similar diagram is plotted for a cluster whose distance is not known, the position of the main sequence can be compared to that of the first cluster and the distance estimated. This process is known as main-sequence fitting. Reddening and stellar populations must be accounted for when using this method.
Nearly all stars in the Galactic field, including the Sun, were initially born in regions with embedded clusters that disintegrated. This means that properties of stars and planetary systems may have been affected by early clustered environments. This appears to be the case for our own Solar System, in which chemical abundances point to the effects of a supernova from a nearby star early in our Solar System's history.
Nomenclature[edit]
In 1979, the International Astronomical Union's 17th general assembly recommended that newly discovered star clusters, open or globular, within the Galaxy have designations following the convention 'Chhmm±ddd', always beginning with the prefix C, where h, m, and d represent the approximate coordinates of the cluster center in hours and minutes of right ascension, and degrees of declination, respectively, with leading zeros. The designation, once assigned, is not to change, even if subsequent measurements improve on the location of the cluster center.[13] The first of such designations were assigned by Gosta Lynga in 1982.[14][15]
See also[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Star cluster (category) |
- Open cluster and globular cluster
Notes[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ abRobert Dinwiddie; Will Gater; Giles Sparrow; Carole Stott (2012). Nature Guide: Stars and Planets. DK. pp. 14, 134–137. ISBN978-0-7566-9040-3.
- ^'Young and Exotic Stellar Zoo: ESO's Telescopes Uncover Super Star Cluster in the Milky Way'. ESO. 2005-03-22. Archived from the original on 2017-12-01. Retrieved 2017-11-27.
- ^Archinal, Brent A., Hynes, Steven J. 2003. Star Clusters, Willmann-Bell, Richmond, VA
- ^Sandage, Allan (1958). Cepheids in Galactic Clusters. I. CF Cass in NGC 7790., AJ, 128
- ^Majaess, D.; Carraro, G.; Moni Bidin, C.; Bonatto, C.; Berdnikov, L.; Balam, D.; Moyano, M.; Gallo, L.; Turner, D.; Lane, D.; Gieren, W.; Borissova, J.; Kovtyukh, V.; Beletsky, Y. (2013). Anchors for the cosmic distance scale: the Cepheids U Sagittarii, CF Cassiopeiae, and CEab Cassiopeiae, A&A, 260
- ^Greene, Thomas P; Meyer, Michael R (1995). 'An Infrared Spectroscopic Survey of the rho Ophiuchi Young Stellar Cluster: Masses and Ages from the H-R Diagram'. Astrophysical Journal. 450: 233. Bibcode:1995ApJ..450.233G. doi:10.1086/176134.
- ^ abLada, Charles J.; Lada, Elizabeth A. (2003). 'Embedded Clusters in Molecular Clouds'. Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics. Annual Reviews. 41 (1): 57–115. arXiv:astro-ph/0301540. Bibcode:2003ARA&A.41..57L. doi:10.1146/annurev.astro.41.011802.094844. ISSN0066-4146.
- ^Gounelle, M.; Meynet, G. (2012-08-27). 'Solar system genealogy revealed by extinct short-lived radionuclides in meteorites'. Astronomy & Astrophysics. EDP Sciences. 545: A4. arXiv:1208.5879. Bibcode:2012A&A..545A..4G. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/201219031. ISSN0004-6361.
- ^'@1592523'. u-strasbg.fr. Retrieved 28 April 2018.
- ^ abA. P. Huxor; N. R. Tanvir; M.J. Irwin; R. Ibata (2005). 'A new population of extended, luminous, star clusters in the halo of M31'. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 360 (3): 993–1006. arXiv:astro-ph/0412223. Bibcode:2005MNRAS.360.1007H. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2005.09086.x.
- ^A. Burkert; J. Brodie; S. Larsen 3 (2005). 'Faint Fuzzies and the Formation of Lenticular Galaxies'. The Astrophysical Journal. 628 (1): 231–235. arXiv:astro-ph/0504064. Bibcode:2005ApJ..628.231B. doi:10.1086/430698.
- ^'First Planet Found Around Solar Twin in Star Cluster'. ESO Press Release. Archived from the original on 2017-12-01. Retrieved 2017-11-27.
- ^XVIIth General Assembly(PDF) (14–23 August 1979). Montreal, Canada: International Astronomical Union. Summer 1979. p. 13. Archived(PDF) from the original on 18 January 2015. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
- ^Lynga, G. (October 1982). 'IAU numbers for some recently discovered clusters'. Bulletin d'Information du Centre de Donnees Stellaires. 23: 89. Bibcode:1982BICDS.23..89L.
- ^'Dictionary of Nomenclature of Celestial Objects'. Simbad. Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg. 1 December 2014. Archived from the original on 8 October 2014. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
External links[edit]
- NGC 2419 -Globular Cluster on SKY-MAP.ORG
- Star Clusters, SEDS Messier pages
- Star cluster - full articleEncyclopædia Britannica,
- Probing the Birth of Super Star Clusters: Implications for Massive Star Formation, Kelsey E. Johnson, 2005
- A new population of extended, luminous star clusters in the halo of M31, A.P. Huxor et al., 2004
- HST/NICMOS Observations of the Embedded Cluster in NGC 2024: Constraints on the IMF and Binary Fraction, Wilson M. Liu et al., 2003
- The Discovery of an Embedded Cluster of High-Mass Stars Near SGR 1900+14, Frederick J. Vrba et al., 2000
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Star_cluster&oldid=895884967'
Although it is often referred to as the Seven Sisters orMatariki, there are in fact thousands of stars in thePleiades. The nine brightest stars of the Pleiades are namedafter the Seven Sisters of Greek mythology: Sterope, Merope,Electra, Maia, Taygete, Celaeno and Alcyone, along with theirparents Atlas and Pleione.
What are the names of the stars that are closest to Matariki?
Why is a Subaru called a Subaru?
Subaru is Japanese for Pleiades. The Pleiades is an open star cluster. The Subaru logo has an image of stars similar to the stars of Pleiades, but whereas the Pleiades has 7 stars, the Subaru logo has only 6.
What is the open cluster of stars visible in the constellation of Taurus?
PLEIADES the crossword answer you want is PLEIADES
How far away is the star pleiades?
Pleiades is not a star, but a star cluster (group of stars). The distance from Earth is about 440 light-years. Pleiades is not a star, but a star cluster (group of stars). The distance from Earth is about 440 light-years. Pleiades is not a star, but a star cluster (group of stars). The distance from Earth is about 440 light-years. Pleiades is not a star, but a star cluster (group of stars). The distance from… Read More
How many stars does pleiades have?
The Pleiades star cluster has nine bright stars, but as it is a star cluster, the total number could be in the few thousand.
One of the stars in the star cluster Pleiades?
Alcyone is the brightest star in the Pleiades open cluster,
What are the names of the seven stars?
Which seven stars, precisely? The Pleiades are sometimes called the 'seven sisters', but there are a lot more than seven stars in the cluster (around a thousand, in fact, of which at least 14 are bright enough to be visible with the naked eye).
Why is the pleides called a steller nursery?
Pleiades is considered a stellar nursery because it is a dense region of stars and gas in our galaxy where stars are still being formed. Basically, Pleiades is a stellar-sized birthing place of stars.
What color is pleiades?
Pleiades is an open cluster of stars. Most are hot B type stars so it will have a temperature of about 10,000 -> 30,000 K so will appear blue to blue white.
What is a group of up to 1000 stars called?
Are there now more than 500 Stars in The Pleiades Constellation or Cluster?
The Pleiades cluster contains over 1,000 statistically confirmed members, although this figure excludes unresolved binary stars.
What type of star is pleiades?
The Pleiades cluster is made up of new, hot stars of type B and A, still in traces of the gas cloud that they condensed from. From one side of the Pleiades to the other is about as far as from here to Sirius, so if you were on a planet attached to one of those stars you would see some fairly bright stars at night.
Are the pleiades bigger than the milky way galaxy?
No. The Pleiades is an open cluster of a few thousand stars within the Milky Way. The Pleiades is a group of stars about 2 degrees across, at a distance of 600 light years. That means it is about 20 light years from one side of the Pleiades to the other, but that it still much less than the size of the Galaxy. From the Pleiades, the Sun would appear as a 9th magnitude star… Read More
What is the pleiades?
The Pleiades also known as M45 or the Seven Sisters - is the name of an open cluster of stars in the constellation of Taurus. Also known as 'the seven sisters'
What is the smallest star in the Pleiades?
The Pleiades (Matariki) contains over 1,000 confirmed stars, and many more unconfirmed. Nobody knows what the smallest star is.
What do the 7 stars of matariki represent?
Names Of Clusters Of Stars List
Matariki is the same as the Pleiades star cluster. Note that it isn't really 7 stars; the Pleiades include hundreds of stars; with the naked eye, you may be able to see 6, or 9, depending on how good the viewing conditions (and your eyesight) are.
What are pleides stars?
The stars of Pleiades are: Sterope Merope Electra Maia Taygeta Celaeno Alcyone Atlas Pleione
How old is then pleiades stars?
Some people believe that the stars are 100 million years old-100 years old!
Names of the stars of the pleiades?
Maori: Waiti Waita Tupu-a-nuku Tupu-a-rangi Waipuna-a-rangi Ururangi Matariki Greek: Alcyone Atlas Electra Maia Merope Taygeta Pleione
What are the names of the pleiades stars?
Maori: Waiti Waita Tupu-a-nuku Tupu-a-rangi Waipuna-a-rangi Ururangi Matariki Greek: Alcyone Atlas Electra Maia Merope Taygeta Pleione
The names of the stars in Pleiades?
Maori: Waiti Waita Tupu-a-nuku Tupu-a-rangi Waipuna-a-rangi Ururangi Matariki Greek: Alcyone Atlas Electra Maia Merope Taygeta Pleione
What does ditloid 7 s in the p mean?
7 stars in the pleiades* *The Pleiades, also known as M45 or the Seven Sisters, is the name of an open cluster in the constellation of Taurus.
What other names are there for the pleiades?
The Seven Sisters (if you are referring to the star cluster).
What are the names of the Pleiades?
Alkyone, Merope, Kelaino, Elektra, Sterope, Taygete, and Maia.
What is Cluster of seven stars in northern sky called?
What are the seven stars of matariki?
The seven stars of Matariki are also known as the Pleiades or Seven Sisters. The stars are: Maia Electra Taygete Alcyone Celaeno Sterope or Asterope Merope
Who discovered Matariki?
You may be referring to the cluster of stars we call 'the Pleiades'. If so, this group of stars is very obvious and can't really have been 'discovered'.
What is the relationship between Vega and Pleiades?
They are connected by astronomy, both being visible in the night sky. Vega is a star in the constellation of Lyra and the Pleiades is a small cluster in the constellation of Taurus. Both can be seen in the northern hemisphere, Vega during the summer months and the Pleiades during the winter months. Vega is one of the brightest stars in the sky. The Pleiades is easy to see when you know where to look… Read More
What is a cluster of stars near Taurus?
You're probably observing the Pleiades star cluster (Seven Sisters).
Why are the matariki stars rare?
What do you mean with 'rare'? Matariki is the Maori name of the Pleiades - a specific star cluster.
What is the Milky Way and the pleiades are different?
The Pleiades are a star cluster, only about a thousand stars - while the Milky Way is a galaxy, a group of 200-400 billion stars. Rather confusingly, the 'Milky Way' is also the name of the faint band of light in the night sky caused by millions of stars within the Milky Way Galaxy. They are too faint to be seen as individual stars with the naked eye. It is a 'line of sight' effect… Read More
Who is waipuna arangi?
Waipuna A Rangi is one of the stars of Matariki, the constellation also known as the Pleiades or Seven Sisters.
What does the Subaru logo signify?
Subaru is the Japanese word that refers to the constellation Pleiades..commonly know as 'The 7 Sisters'. The stars in the logo are arranged to resemble that formation of stars.
Why are there only 7 stars in the Pleiades star cluster?
It's not seven stars - it's a star cluster containing millions of stars. It's just from Earth it looks like seven points of lights.
What is the color of the Pleiades?
The Pleiades is a open star cluster. It contains mostly blue-white type stars, so the colour of the cluster would appear to be blue-white. However, it is a cluster and not a single star. See related question.
Name the'open cluster' that is well known as 'seven sisters' or 'seven stars'?
What is the name matariki in other languages?
The constellation, Matariki, is also known as the Seven Sisters or the Pleiades. Its actual other names are: Subaru Pleiades Ma'ali' Matariki It can also be called the maori new year By Fauzia
What are the names of the seven stars of the Maori new year?
Matariki is the name given to the seven stars that herald the Maori new year and are known in English as the Pleiades or the Seven Sisters. In some traditions Matariki refers to the 'mother' star with the others named: Tupua Nuku, Tupua Rangi, Waiti, Waita, Waipuna A Rangi, and Ururangi.
What is another name for 'The Pleiades'?
![Names Of Clusters Of Stars Names Of Clusters Of Stars](/uploads/1/2/3/7/123710556/840882692.jpg)
It is often called the Seven Sisters, though there are in fact a lot more than seven stars in it.
The seven sisters constellations?
The Seven Sisters is also known as The Pleiades and it IS NOT a constellation. It's an OPEN CLUSTER of young, hot stars.
What are the seven sisters?
The Seven Sisters is what is known as an open cluster of stars. It's also known as The Pleiades. (PLEE-uh-DEES).
What are the names of the stars in constellation Phoenix?
what is the names of the stars for the constellation phoenix?
Are the Pleiades a cluster of stars?
Names Of Clusters Of Stars Meaning
Yes. The Pleiades are what's known as an open star cluster: a group of stars that were formed from the same molecular cloud, and which are still (loosely) gravitationally bound to each other. They're only about 440 light years away, in the constellation Taurus, which is one reason why they're so bright and easy to spot in the night sky.
Can matariki always be seen?
The Matariki is the Māori name for the cluster of stars also known as the Pleiades. The Pleiades are to be found near the plane of the ecliptic and therefore are only seen when Earth is on the same side of the Sun to them. Thus the Matariki can not always be seen in the night sky.
What are names stars from s word?
What you mean by 'What are names stars from s word?' ?
What has an absolute magnitude greater that Sirius?
Many stars, Sirius is quite an ordinary star, it is bright only because it's close. The bright stars in the Pleiades are all bigger and brighter than Sirius.
What are the pleiades knowen as in New Zealand?
Where is Taurus?
During the winter months in the Northern Hemisphere, Taurus is above and to the right of the unmistakeable constellation Orion. If you follow the 3 stars of Orion's Belt, up to the right, you will come to a reddish looking star. This is Aldebaran. It is in Taurus. Where do you find daedra hearts in skyrim walkthrough. It is on one side of a v-shaped pattern of stars, all of which are part of Taurus. Further up and to the right you will see… Read More
Open Clusters Of Stars
What year did Hermes mom die?
The mother of Hermes was Maia, she was one of the seven Pleiades. They did not die, when Orion pursued them they were placed among the stars as a constellation.