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Old 02-07-2009, 08:46 AM
Enchilada
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Enchilada is offline
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Sydney, Australia
Posts: 753
Post Number of Stars ad Densities of Globular Star Clusters

Few globular clusters have any information of number of stars or the total masses. Most are frankly guesstimates, but some of the largest or closest can be roughly estimated. From the 13 billion ages of these beasties, the initial stars forming globulars have long since gone, leaving the largest stars at about 0.8 solar masses or less. This mass can be estimated from the so-called turn-off point - the place on the globular's H-R diagram. It also tells something the the cluster's age. From this a distribution can be calculated. The following list gives a rough range in mass and number of stars.

NGC 6388 in Scorpius is by far the heaviest by far, while Omega Centauri and 47 Tuc are close behind.

Top 3 by Mass and Number

NGC 6388 (Sco)
M⊙= 2 510 000 No. Stars= 3 500 000

NGC 5139 / ω Cen
M⊙ = 1 440 000 No. Stars= 2 000 000

NGC 104 / 47 Tuc
M⊙ = 150 000 No. Stars= 1 600 000

Smallest Clusters

Pal 5 (Ser)
M⊙ = 23 700 No. Stars= c.70 000

NGC 6366 (Oph)
M⊙ = 15 500 No. Stars= c.40 000

Pal 13 (Peg)
M⊙ = 1 230 No. Stars= c.25 000

On any true scale they roughly average up to about 50 parsecs or 150 light years across producing about one star per light year or 0.25+/-0.10pc.

Maximum densities could be as high as 1 000 stars per parsec!

According to the data derived by Cheroff and Diorgovski; AJ., 339, pg.904-918 (1989), in real terms, NGC 5854 in Hydra is the most tightly packed. Second is the core of 47 Tucanae, while ω Centauri comes in at a surprisingly low 15th. One of the least compact globulars we presently know of is Pal 15.

I can give you more technical details, if so required, especially if you have some cluster in mind.
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