Open clusters (OCs) are groups of stars that are loosely gravitationally bound to each other and are formed from the same giant molecular cloud. There are over 1,000 of these clusters in the Milky Way, and scientists are continuously searching for more to gain a better understanding of these stellar groupings. The study of OCs is essential for enhancing our knowledge of the formation and evolution of our galaxy.
NGC 2345 (or OCL 575) is a young galactic OC with a low metallicity, located approximately 10,000 light years away within the Milky Way’s disk. This cluster is known for its high fraction of Be stars and also contains blue and red supergiants, making it an intriguing target for studying stellar evolution.
With the aim of investigating NGC 2345 in detail, a team of astronomers led by Kuldeep Belwal from the Indian Center for Space Physics in Kolkata, India, utilized HCT’s Hanle Faint Object Spectrograph Camera (HFOSC) and analyzed data from Gaia’s Data Release 3 (DR3). The study was further supported by datasets from the Two Micron All-Sky Survey (2MASS) and the American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO) Photometric All-Sky Survey (APASS).
“For the first time, we analyzed the cluster members to determine the fundamental parameters of cluster NGC 2345,” the researchers wrote in the paper.
2024-03-14 08:00:05
Source from phys.org