Cygnus OB2

Cygnus OB2
Cygnus OB2 in the light of H-Alpha; 2.5° view Credit: IPHAS
Observation data (J2000.0 epoch)
Constellation	Cygnus
Right ascension	20h 33m 12s[1]
Declination	41° 19′ 00″
Distance	4.7 kly (1450 pc)
Apparent magnitude (V)	6.1
Apparent dimensions (V)	60.0′
Physical characteristics
Estimated age	1 to 7 million years
Notable features	-
See also: Open cluster, List of open clusters

Cygnus OB2 is one of the largest young clusters of stars in our Galaxy, and home to some of the most massive stars known, including Cyg OB2 #8 and Cyg OB2 #12, one of the most luminous stars known. The region is embedded within a wider region of star formation known as Cygnus X, which is one of the most luminous objects in the sky at radio wavelengths. The region is approximately 4,700 light years from Earth in the constellation of Cygnus.

The young cluster is one of the largest known, and the largest in the northern hemisphere. Although it is over ten times more massive than the famous Orion Nebula, Cygnus OB2 is much less well known due to its location behind a massive dust cloud known as the Cygnus Rift, which obscures many of the stars in it. Despite this, recent surveys ranging from radio to X-ray wavelengths have observed the region to incredible depths in an attempt to gain a better understanding of how the processes of star and planet formation occur on such large scales, compared to the small scales of nearby regions. These studies include observations with some of the world's premier astronomical observatories including the Chandra X-ray Observatory, Spitzer Space Telescope, and the Herschel Space Observatory.

References

1. ^ "SIMBAD Astronomical Database". Results for Cygnus OB2. http://simbad.u-strasbg.fr/Simbad. Retrieved 2009-12-06. 

External links

• Cygnus OB2