Today we are going to explore Gaia 1, a topic that has captured the attention of people of all ages and walks of life. Since its emergence, Gaia 1 has generated great interest due to its impact on our society and our daily lives. In this article, we are going to dive into the history of Gaia 1, explore its implications in today's world, and reflect on its future. Whether you are an expert on the topic or just curious to learn more about it, this article will provide you with a complete and insightful overview of Gaia 1. Join us on this fascinating journey!
Open cluster in the constellation Canis Major
This article is about the star cluster. For the star with a planet, see
Gaia-1.
Location of Gaia 1 (circled)
Gaia 1 is an open cluster of stars discovered in 2017 by astronomers using data from the Gaia Space Observatory. It is a high-mass and bright cluster, but it remained unseen in prior astronomy due to veiling glare in ordinary telescopes overwhelmed by the star Sirius, which lies 10 arcmins west.[2] Its half-light radius is about 29 light-years (9 pc), assuming a distance of 15,000 light-years (4,600 pc), and it has an estimated mass of about 22,000 M☉.[1]
Researchers detected the Gaia 1 cluster applying automated "star gauging" to the Gaia observatory's data on star locations.[3] This analysis surprisingly indicated a prominent concentration of stars, previously unknown and uncataloged, adjacent to Sirius. Gaia observed a cluster population of approximately 1,200 stars down to Gaia magnitude 19. Analysis of 2MASS data for those stars shows a red giant branch and a pronounced red clump that allows the absolute magnitude of the stars to be deduced and the distance calculated. Fitting the red giant branch also allows the age of the cluster to be calculated at 6.3 billion years.[1]
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