Globular Clusters - Definition, Examples, Quiz, FAQ, Trivia

Yes! Some bright globular clusters like Omega Centauri and Messier 13 are visible as fuzzy patches to the naked eye under dark skies. With binoculars or a small telescope, you can see them as grainy balls of light. The larger your telescope, the more individual stars you can see.

Globular clusters formed when the universe was much younger, during a period when galaxies were first assembling. They contain some of the first generations of stars. Since they formed all at once from the same gas cloud, most of their stars are approximately the same age.

Gravity holds globular clusters together! The mutual gravitational attraction between all the stars keeps them bound in a spherical shape. The center of the cluster has the strongest gravity, which is why stars are more densely packed there.

Astronomers have discovered a few planets in globular clusters, but they are extremely rare. The crowded environment near the center makes it difficult for planetary systems to form and survive. Most planets would be gravitationally pulled away from their stars.