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Old 10-12-2012, 02:54 PM
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madbadgalaxyman (Robert)
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Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 936
Hi Paddy,

As I remarked in previous posts, M11 is arguably a globular cluster.
The radial falloff of the (2-Dimensional) star density and the overall mass of this cluster resemble what is found in a low-mass globular star cluster.

The distinction between high-mass open star clusters and low-mass globular star clusters is increasingly academic;
because of the fact that as the Total Star Cluster Mass progressively increases, the stellar distribution within a cluster increasingly resembles that found in a globular star cluster!
(e.g. the N3603 cluster and the supercompact Star Cluster at the center of the Tarantula Nebula are either high-mass open clusters or low-mass globulars...... 10,000 or more Solar Masses clusters are all very similar to globulars in appearance!)
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