This diagram shows how white dwarfs, the burned-out relics of stars, are distributed in the ancient globular star cluster 47 Tucanae. The youngest white dwarfs are the hottest and bluest stars dwelling mostly in the cluster's core, where the most massive stars reside. Shortly before collapsing to become white dwarfs, the stars shed most of their mass. Now, as lightweight white dwarfs, they interact gravitationally with more massive stars in the core. Through these gravitational encounters, the white dwarfs rob enough speed from their more massive cousins to begin migrating slowly outward from their home. During their journey, they become older and cooler white dwarfs, depicted in the orange dots. Eventually, the white dwarfs settle on the outskirts of the cluster, where the oldest, coolest, reddest white dwarfs reside.
Credits
NASA, ESA, and A. Feild (STScI)| About The Object | |
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| Object Name | 47 Tuc, 47 Tucanae, NGC 104 |
| About The Object | |
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| Object Name | A name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object. |
| Object Description | The type of astronomical object. |
| R.A. Position | Right ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Dec. Position | Declination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Constellation | One of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears. |
| Distance | The physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs. |
| Dimensions | The physical size of the object or the apparent angle it subtends on the sky. |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description |
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| Instrument | The science instrument used to produce the data. |
| Exposure Dates | The date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time. |
| Filters | The camera filters that were used in the science observations. |
| About The Image | |
| Image Credit | The primary individuals and institutions responsible for the content. |
| Publication Date | The date and time the release content became public. |
| Color Info | A brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented. |
| Orientation | The rotation of the image on the sky with respect to the north pole of the celestial sphere. |
