Hubble Resolves Pismis 24-1
Date: 11 December 2006
Satellite: Hubble Space Telescope
Depicts: Cl Pismis 24, Pismis 24, Pismis 24-1, Emission nebula NGC 6357
Copyright: NASA, ESA and Jesús Maíz Apellániz (Instituto de astrofísica de Andalucía, Spain)
Left: ACS WFC image of emisison nebula NGC 6357 with the star Pismis 24-1 in the centre (the brightest star).
Middle: Looking closer at Pismis 24-1 with Hubble's ACS High Resolution Channel (HRC) it becomes clear that it is in reality two stars.
Right: ACS HRC image close-up showing the two stars comprising Pismis 24-1. Initially it was thought to be a single star with an incredibly large mass of 200 to 300 solar masses. New NASA/ESA Hubble measurements of the star, have, however, resolved Pismis 24-1 into two separate stars, of around 100 solar masses each.
Last Update: 1 September 2019
