Astronomy Picture of the Day

   [1]Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                              2025 February 27
    [2]See Explanation. Clicking on the picture will download the highest
                        resolution version available.

                     Open Star Clusters M35 and NGC 2158
   Image Credit & [3]Copyright: [4]Evan Tsai, LATTE: Lulin-ASIAA Telescope

   Explanation: [5]Framed in this single, starry, telescopic field of view
   are two open star clusters, M35 and NGC 2158. Located within the
   boundaries of the constellation Gemini, they do appear to be side by
   side. Its stars concentrated toward the upper right, M35 is relatively
   nearby, though. [6]M35 (also cataloged as NGC 2168) is a mere 2800
   light-years distant, with 400 or so stars spread out over a volume
   about 30 light-years across. Bright blue stars frequently distinguish
   younger open clusters like [7]M35, whose age is estimated at 150
   million years. At lower left, [8]NGC 2158 is about four times more
   distant than M35 and much more compact, shining with the more yellowish
   light of a population [9]of stars over 10 times older. In general, open
   star clusters are found along the plane of our [10]Milky Way Galaxy.
   Loosely gravitationally bound, their member stars [11]tend to be
   dispersed over billions of years as the open star clusters orbit the
   galactic center.

                     Tomorrow's picture: pixels in space
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    Authors & editors: [23]Robert Nemiroff ([24]MTU) & [25]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([26]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Amber Straughn [27]Specific rights apply.
              [28]NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices
                A service of: [29]ASD at [30]NASA / [31]GSFC,
                         [32]NASA Science Activation
                           & [33]Michigan Tech. U.

References

   1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
   2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2502/M35_NGC2158_2048.jpg
   3. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
   4. https://www.astrobin.com/users/mjrt/
   5. https://www.astrobin.com/m2fh5u/
   6. https://science.nasa.gov/mission/hubble/science/explore-the-night-sky/hubble-messier-catalog/messier-35/
   7. http://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0011136
   8. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NGC_2158
   9. https://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0202018
  10. http://www.atlasoftheuniverse.com/galaxy.html
  11. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_cluster#Eventual_fate
  12. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250226.html
  13. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  14. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  15. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  16. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  17. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  18. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod.rss
  19. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  20. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  21. http://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=250227
  22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250228.html
  23. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  24. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  25. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  26. http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  27. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  28. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  29. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  30. https://www.nasa.gov/
  31. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  32. https://science.nasa.gov/learners
  33. http://www.mtu.edu/