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Credit & Copyright: ESA/Hubble,
NASA
Explanation:
Palomar 12
was not born here.
The stars of the globular cluster, first identified in the
Palomar Sky Survey,
are younger than those in other
globular star clusters that roam the halo of
our Milky Way Galaxy.
Palomar 12's position in our galaxy and measured motion
suggest its home was once the
Sagittarius Dwarf Elliptical Galaxy,
a small satellite
of the Milky Way.
Disrupted by
gravitational tides during close encounters
the satellite galaxy has lost its stars to the
larger Milky Way.
Now part of the Milky Way's halo, the
tidal capture of
Palomar 12 likely took place some 1.7 billion years ago.
Seen behind spiky foreground stars in the sharp Hubble image,
Palomar 12 spans nearly 60 light-years.
It lies about 60,000 light-years away,
toward the constellation Capricornus.
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NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: globular cluster
Publications with words: globular cluster
See also: