My God, It's Full Of Stars!

[n2doc]

This cluster of stars is known as Messier 15, and is located some 35 000 light-years away in the constellation of Pegasus (The Winged Horse). It is one of the oldest globular clusters known, with an age of around 12 billion years.

Both very hot blue stars and cooler golden stars can be seen swarming together in the image, becoming more concentrated towards the cluster's bright centre. Messier 15 is one of the densest globular clusters known, with most of its mass concentrated at its core. As well as stars, Messier 15 was the first cluster known to host a planetary nebula, and it has been found to have a rare type of black hole at its centre.

This new image is made up of observations from Hubble's Wide Field Camera 3 and Advanced Camera for Surveys in the ultraviolet, infrared, and optical parts of the spectrum.

http://www.spacetelescope.org/images/heic1321a/

http://www.thisiscolossal.com/2013/11/hubble-messier-15-star-cluster/

[polichick]

1. Spectacular! Thanks - k&r

[sharp_stick]

2. Wow n/t

[rdharma]

3. A 35,000 year old picture.

Wonder what it looks like now.....?

[Fla Dem]

28. That's hard to get your mind around. A current picture of something that was 35,000 years ago. nt

[Angleae]

37. Probably not a whole lot different.

35,000 years is a blink in the lifespan of a star.

[LuvNewcastle]

4. I sure hope we have other lives after this one in which to explore

this vast cosmos. Otherwise, what is the point of these pitifully short lives we have? Thinking about that is frustrating as hell.

[FiveGoodMen]

12. Of course, you might have said the same thing in a previous life

[WHEN CRABS ROAR]

21. The best part is that

we are all part of that vast cosmos, forever.

[jtuck004]

23. There is a theory that matter cannot be created or destroyed, only changed. And we are matter.

When this combination that made us changes, whatever it is that is the human spirit (nothing to do with religion, btw) simply goes back out into the universe. Part will be incorporated in others, part simply becomes part of whatever is out there. And will become part of what is there at a deeper level than we ever could as humans.

So perhaps you will get your wish. I hope so.

[gtar100]

38. Yes, and eternity is an awfully long time to work out all the combinations.

[whopis01]

39. We are all made of star dust.

If you put enough hydrogen together, and leave it alone long enough, it will begin to contemplate itself.

[CrispyQ]

5. Stunning! -nt

[jakeXT]

6. video

[Spitfire of ATJ]

29. Always thought it would be cool to have a concrete mount to a telescope....

Then quality gearing for the tracking. Then the ultimate would be an HD digital camera hooked to a projector inside.

Point and click and then look at the wall.

[jakeXT]

34. No cold feet? nt

[Spitfire of ATJ]

35. Nor craned necks.

[Burf-_-]

7. WWCSD

"If we long to believe that the stars rise and set for us, that we are the reason there is a Universe, does science do us a disservice in deflating our conceits?"

"The Earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena. Think of the endless cruelties visited by the inhabitants of one corner of this pixel on the scarcely distinguishable inhabitants of some other corner, how frequent their misunderstandings, how eager they are to kill one another, how fervent their hatreds. Think of the rivers of blood spilled by all those generals and emperors so that, in glory and triumph, they could become the momentary masters of a fraction of a dot.

Our posturings, our imagined self-importance, the delusion that we have some privileged position in the Universe, are challenged by this point of pale light. Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark. In our obscurity, in all this vastness, there is no hint that help will come from elsewhere to save us from ourselves."

~Carl Sagan x2 ~

[heaven05]

18. the human condition

succinctly put. But, I really did enjoy Carl Sagan's intellect since it dealt with an existence full of stars and galaxies and not earthly hot air that's getting hotter all the time. I, like a poster in this OP, hope that rights to visit other galaxies are accorded our consciousness after death here.

[tridim]

8. I think I'd enjoy living life around a globular cluster star.

The sky would be beautiful.

[AlbertCat]

24. The sky would be beautiful.

It's not now?

[tridim]

25. You know what I meant. :)

[AlbertCat]

31. You know what I meant. :)

Yes I did. I was teasing of course.

That reminds me....


I must remember to get up before dawn to see if I can see the "new" comet!

[broiles]

9. With all the light polution, I forget the sky is full of stars. Thanks

[Cheap_Trick]

10. Thought maybe you were talking about the monolith

[riqster]

11. I didn't know your name was Dave.

Welcome back, HAL's been asking about you.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

13. The distance between the stars in the center is still 1/4 LY apart...

If there are planets in those clusters and advanced life, can you imagine them hopscotching around in there before venturing into the void that is the rest of the galaxy? It would be like us exploring the Milky Way before venturing into the void between galaxies but on a micro-scale.

[FiveGoodMen]

14. They'd probably have too crazy a climate for most life if they didn't even stay

with the same star.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

17. I didn't mean the planet would drift around in there...

It's more like this:



A lot more incentive to get to the next star when it's so close even by rocket.

[FiveGoodMen]

30. You're right. The sky would really be something, wouldn't it?

[Spitfire of ATJ]

32. Lousy vacation spot for a vampire.

[Posteritatis]

42. The comets/etc alone would be something else

All those overlapping Oort clouds...

[Spitfire of ATJ]

43. In all likelyhood there would be Oort rivers.

[lastlib]

45. or puddles..........

[ErikJ]

15. Black hole at its center vacuuming them all up

will be 35,000 yrs before we know what happened. It might be gone now for all we know.

[burrowowl]

16. Awesome!

[WinkyDink]

19. I think that just made my cataracts worse! :-)

[MyNameGoesHere]

20. Dave, is that you?

Love
HAL

[Hekate]

22. I love these gorgeous pictures. TY so much for posting this. nt

[JEFF9K]

26. They got their Christmas lights up early!

[Paper Roses]

27. Spectacular. ---And we have the nerve to think we are the only ones? n/t

[SheilaT]

33. Astronomy camp!

Last month I did an adult astronomy camp through the University of Arizona, spent two days on Mount Lemmon (some 9,000 feet) and got to see that globular cluster and lots of other stuff through a 61 inch telescope.

It was beyond cool.

[Northerner]

36. Wow, just incredable beauty.

[BrotherIvan]

40. Huge Rec!

Thanks so much for posting this. I weep a little every time I think about how we not only have severely slashed space programs in favor of weapons--demonstrating succinctly our insanity--but people say, "Who cares about space?" To be able to see such a gorgeous photo is beyond all imagining. And humbling. So perhaps that's the reason people say they don't care, they don't want to miss a beat and realize we are less than specks.

[greiner3]

41. With the cluster at about 80%;

Of the age of the universe, I would imagine M15 holds an amazing trove of info about what happened so long ago.

I would imagine it would be like the discovery of a huge chunk of the Earth suddenly found to be 3.5 billion years old.

[lastlib]

44. "My Stars! It's full of God!!"

(or something.......................)