Stars come in bunches. Of the over 200 globular star clusters that orbit the center of our Milky Way Galaxy , 47 Tucanae is the second brightest globular cluster (behind Omega Centauri ). Known to some affectionately as 47 Tuc or NGC 104, it is only visible from the Southern Hemisphere . Light takes about 20,000 years to reach us from 47 Tuc which can be seen near the SMC in the constellation of Tucana . Red Giant stars are particularly easy to see in this picture . The dynamics of stars near the center of 47 Tuc are not well understood, particularly why there are so few binary systems there.
Media Credits & Attribution
Credit: W. Keel ( U. Alabama in Tuscaloosa ) et al., 1.54-m Telescope , Chile