Globular Cluster 47 Tucanae

The heart of the giant Globular Cluster 47 Tucanae reveals the glow of 200,000 stars.

Globular star clusters can be home to hundreds of thousands of stars, in constant motion, orbiting around the center of the cluster. In this cluster, Hubble shows a parade of young white dwarfs starting a 40-million-year migration away from the core. Observations show that in globular clusters the heavyweight stars reside in the crowded core, and lightweight stars live on the outskirts. Lower mass stars rob momentum from more massive stars causing the heavier stars sink to the core as their orbits slow, while the lighter stars pick up speed and move across the cluster to the edge.

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Object Name: 47 Tucanae, NGC 104

Release Date: May 13, 2015

Image Credits: NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)-ESA/Hubble Collaboration. Acknowledgment: J. Mack (STScI) and G. Piotto (University of Padova, Italy)



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