Page 70 - BBC Sky at Night Beginners Guide to Astronomy - 2017 UK

STAR CLUSTERS

IN BINOCULARS

THROUGH A PAIR OF BINOCULARS, STAR CLUSTERS
ARE VIBRANT, DEEP-SPACE JEWELS. HERE ARE SOME
TIPS ON HOW AND WHEN TO OBSERVE THEM

When you gaze up at the night the dusty spiral arms of our appears, since the stars haven’t globular clusters form a halo
sky, it looks like a lot of stars Galaxy. They travel together had much time to drift apart. around it and their creation is
are on their own. But a solitary- through space, but gentle tidal much less well understood.
looking star may be a member forces eventually cause the TITANIC GLOBULARS In terms of observing, this
of a vast group that’s travelling stars to move apart until they There is another variety of star all means that the majority
through space as a unit. If we begin to merge into the general cluster out there: the globular of open clusters are found in
wind the clock back millions of starry background. cluster. These are much bigger or close to that misty river of
years, we may fi nd the stars of There are many fi ne than the open sort, consisting stars stretching across the
one of these families forming in examples of newer and older of hundreds of thousands or sky, the Milky Way, while
the same vast cloud of dust and clusters out there that are millions of generally reddish, globular clusters are seen all
gas, known as a nebula. perfect for looking at with older stars. Whereas open over the sky. When looking at
Known as open clusters, binoculars. As a rule of thumb, clusters are found and made them with the naked eye you’ll
these families of anywhere you can pretty much assume within the plane of our Galaxy, see only fuzzy patches, but a
from a few dozen to a few
pair of binoculars will reveal
that the younger the open
from a few dozen to a few that the younger the open pair of binoculars will reveal
cluster, the more compact it
some truly spectacular gems.
thousand stars are created in cluster, the more compact it some truly spectacular gems.
thousand stars are created in

(AURA/ STSCI/ NASA), NOAO/AURA/NSF, WILL GATER N.A.SHARP, REU PROGRAM/NOAO/AURA/NSF, THE HUBBLE HERITAGE TEAM A pair of 10x50 binoculars is

the perfect way to enjoy the
full majesty of star clusters

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