Astrophysics (Index)About

stellar cluster

(SC, star cluster, cluster)
(group of stars apparently formed by a single cloud)

A stellar cluster or star cluster (sometimes abbreviated SC) is a general term including both globular clusters and open clusters, consisting of groups of stars near each other, with other similarities that suggest their formation is from a single cloud. The distinction between globular versus open clusters is that the former are tightly bound by gravity and the latter is more loosely bound.

A young stellar cluster (YSC) is one showing signs of being young, i.e., ultraviolet indicating early stars. In surveys for finding stellar clusters, possible YSCs have been termed YSCCs for young stellar cluster candidates. An embedded cluster (EC) is a cluster in a gas cloud, i.e., one still residing in the cloud of its formation.

A stellar association is looser than an open cluster but shows signs of common origin, such as similar age and metallicity. Often it is a moving group (aka kinematic group), a group of stars that are generally moving together. Such groups are presumed to be the remnants of stellar clusters, a notion supported by the fact that such groups often show older stars than typical of open clusters.

(stars,galaxies,star clusters)
Further reading:
ClCl Terzan 5general prefix for star cluster

Referenced by pages:
Boltzmann Transport Equation (BTE)
extended source
field star
galaxy age determination
galaxy cluster (CL)
gravitationally bound
Hill radius
Lick indices
Magellanic Stream
main sequence fitting
Messier Catalog (M)
metallicity (Z)
Milky Way subgroup
N 103B
New General Catalogue (NGC)
point source
rare designator prefixes
red supergiant cluster (RSGC)
star formation history (SFH)
signatures of formation
SMBH formation
spectral line designation
stellar population synthesis code
standard candle
star cloud
stellar age determination
stellar distance determination
stellar dynamics
stellar encounter
stellar kinematics
synthetic photometry
tidal arm
turn-off point (TO)
virial theorem
wide binaries (WB)