The Hubble Telescope captured the Pismis 26 star cluster, a finding highlighted by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.
Globular clusters are densely packed, nearly spherical gatherings of stars bound by gravity. They can contain thousands of stars and present a compact, rounded silhouette when viewed from Earth. Pismis 26 lies about 23,000 light-years away, tucked into the Scorpius constellation. It sits close to the Milky Way’s core, in a region where interstellar dust is particularly thick. This cosmic dust scatters blue light while letting red light pass through, which can alter the apparent color and shape of the cluster as seen through telescopes.
The stars in Pismis 26 are unusually enriched with heavy elements, meaning they contain a higher proportion of atoms heavier than hydrogen and helium. In particular, nitrogen stands out as abundant, a trait often observed in stars from this sector of the galaxy. Over cosmic timescales, the gravitational tug of the galactic center can strip outer stars from the cluster, leading to a slow, gradual loss of members. Current estimates place the age of Pismis 26 at around 12 billion years, marking it as a living fossil from the early Milky Way era.
Researchers rely on observations like these to map how star clusters form, evolve, and interact with their surroundings. The light from Pismis 26 travels across the galaxy, carrying details about the cluster’s chemical makeup, stellar populations, and dynamic history. Studying clusters such as this helps astronomers reconstruct the timeline of our galaxy, shedding light on ancient events that shaped where stars, gas, and dust are found today. These studies feed into broader questions about how galaxies grow and how stellar dynamics unfold in crowded, dusty regions of space. The data also inform models of galactic evolution and the life cycles of stars in dense environments. Attributions: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center