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Zooming into an Open Star Cluster Yields Unexpected Results
This movie takes a closer loook at Hubble's image of NGC 6791, one of the oldest and largest open clusters known. The detection of white dwarfs that vary in age leads astronomers to rethink the theory that stars found in these clusters develop at the same time from large clouds of interstellar dust and gas.
- Release DateJuly 10, 2008
- Science ReleaseWhat’s My Age? Mystery Star Cluster Has 3 Different Birthdays
- Credit
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White Dwarf Stars in Open Cluster NGC 6791
In studying the dimmest burned-out stars in globular star cluster NGC 6791, NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has uncovered a paradox: three different populations of stars exist in an object where all the stars should have formed at the same time out of an interstellar cloud of gas...
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Last Updated
Mar 28, 2025
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Claire Andreoli
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov