| NGC 1846 | |
|---|---|
 Picture from the Hubble Space Telescope | |
| Observation data (J2000epoch) | |
| Constellation | Dorado |
| Right ascension | 05h 07m 34.900s[1] |
| Declination | −67° 27′ 32.45″[1] |
| Distance | 160,000 ly (50000 pc) |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 10.68[2] |
| Apparent dimensions (V) | 3.8′[1] |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Mass | 5.7×104[2] M☉ |
| Estimated age | 1.70±0.05 Gyr[2] |
| See also:Globular cluster,List of globular clusters | |
NGC 1846 is aglobular cluster containing hundreds of thousands of stars in the outer halo of theLarge Magellanic Cloud.[3] It was discovered on November 6, 1826, byJames Dunlop and is included in theNew General Catalogue. At an aperture of 50 arcseconds, its apparent V-band magnitude is 10.68, but at this wavelength, it has 0.07 magnitudes ofinterstellar extinction.[2]
NGC 1846 is about 1.7 billion years old. Its estimated mass is5.7×104 M☉, and its total luminosity is1.68×105 L☉, leading to a mass-to-luminosity ratio of 0.34M☉/L☉.[2] All else equal, older star clusters have higher mass-to-luminosity ratios; that is, they have lower luminosities for the same mass.[2]
In an image taken by the Hubble Space Telescope in 2006 (see picture), astronomers spotted a green planetary nebula towards the bottom of the image. It is uncertain whether NGC 1846 contains this planetary nebula or if it just happened to be on the same line of sight; however, measurements of the motion of the cluster's stars along with the nebula's central star lead to the conclusion that it is a member of the cluster.[3]
Media related toNGC 1846 at Wikimedia Commons | This star cluster–related article is astub. You can help Wikipedia byadding missing information. |
