The Seven Sisters,Messier 45, and other names by different cultures, is an
asterism and an
open star cluster containing middle-aged, hot
B-type stars in the north-west of the constellation
Taurus. It is among the
star clusters nearest to Earth, it is the nearest
Messier object to Earth, and is the cluster most obvious to the
naked eye in the
night sky.The cluster is dominated by
hot blue and luminous stars that have formed within the last 100 million years.
Reflection nebulae around the brightest stars were once thought to be left over material from their formation, but are now considered likely to be an unrelated dust cloud in the
interstellar medium through which the stars are currently passing.Computer simulations have shown that the Pleiades were probably formed from a compact configuration that resembled the
Orion Nebula. Astronomers estimate that the cluster will survive for about another 250 million years, after which it will disperse due to gravitational interactions with its galactic neighborhood.Together with the open star cluster of the
Hyades, the Pleiades form the
Golden Gate of the Ecliptic.
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