Posts tagged star cluster

This is R136. It is  another star cluster located in the Tarantula Nebula. It is the largest, hottest and most massive cluster of stars known in the universe. Their stars are 10 times hotter than our Sun and up to 100 times more massive. It is approximately 170 thousand light years from Earth. 

This is the Quintuplet Cluster. It is a young star cluster that has spawned the galaxy’s densest gathering of stellar titans. Over the next million years, it will dissolve into the gravitational maelstrom that surrounds storm. It is approximately 25 thousand light years from Earth. 

This is NGC 1850. It is a large star cluster that features not one but two star clusters. The main cluster is approximately 50 million years old and the smaller cluster is 4 million years old. These clusters have been the birthplace of many massive, short lived stars. It is approximately 160 thousand light years from Earth. 

This is RCW 38. It is a treasure chest of new stars. It is a star forming region. To the visible eye, it appears to be a dark molecular cloud but seen with infrared it reveals new stars. It is approximately 5.5 thousand light years from Earth. 

This is Trapezium. It is the Orion Nebula’s most massive stars that came to life one million years ago. They are surrounded by brown dwarfs, stars too small to ignite fusion of hydrogen in their cores, that they only glow as gravitational energy. It is approximately 1.5 thousand light years away from Earth. 

This is Pleiades, also known as the Seven Sisters. According to the ancient Greeks, Pleiades are the children of Atlas, the Titan that was condemned to guard the heavens, and Pleione, daughter of Oceanus. The sisters are Alcyone, Asterope, Taygeta, Celaeno, Electra, Merope and Maia. Asterope is actually a double star, which makes them eight. The blue veil is a passing dust cloud in this open star cluster. It is approximately 440 light years away from Earth.