| Mayall II | |
|---|---|
Hubble Telescope image of Mayall II | |
| Observation data (J2000epoch) | |
| Constellation | Andromeda |
| Right ascension | 00h 32m 46.51s[1] |
| Declination | +39° 34′ 39.7″[1] |
| Distance | 2.52 ± 0.14Mly (770 ± 40kpc) |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | +13.81[1] |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Mass | 1×107[2] M☉ (2×1037 kg) |
| Radius | 21.2 ± 1.0 ly (6.5 ± 0.3 pc) (Half light radius rh) and tidal radius 263.2 ± 12.7 ly (80.7 ± 3.9 pc)[3] |
| Estimated age | ~ 12 Gyr[2] |
| Other designations | SKHB 1, HBK 0-1[1] |
| See also:Globular cluster,List of globular clusters | |
Mayall II, also known asNGC-224-G1,SKHB 1,GSC 2788:2139,HBK 0-1,M31GC J003247+393440 orAndromeda's Cluster, is aglobular cluster orbiting M31, theAndromeda Galaxy.
It is located 130,000light-years (40 kpc)[3] from the Andromeda Galaxy's galactic core, and is the brightest[3] (byabsolute magnitude) globular cluster in theLocal Group, with an absolute visual magnitude of −10.94 and the luminosity of 2 million Suns.[4] It has anapparent magnitude of 13.81 in V band. Mayall II is considered to have twice the mass ofOmega Centauri, and may contain a central,intermediate-mass (~ 2×104M⊙)black hole.[3]
It was first identified as a possible globular cluster by American astronomersNicholas Mayall andOlin J. Eggen in 1953 using aPalomar 48-inch (1.2 m)Schmidt plate exposed in 1948.[3]
Because of the widespread distribution ofmetallicity, indicating multiplestar generations and a large stellar creation period, many contend that it is not a true globular cluster, but is actually the galactic core that remains of adwarf galaxy consumed by Andromeda.[3][5]