Platais 8

a Carinae Cluster
Observation data (J2000.0 epoch)
Right ascension09h 06m 52.3s[1]
Declination−58° 41′ 06″[1]
Distance440±1 ly (134.9±0.6 pc[1])
Apparent dimensions (V)3.45° × 3.45°[1]
Physical characteristics
Mass546+265
−178[2] M☉
Radius37.2 ± 4.9 ly (11.4 ± 1.5 pc)[2]
Estimated age60±15 Ma[3]
Other designationsPlatais 8, HIP 45080 Cluster, MWSC 1629
Associations
ConstellationCarina
See also: Open cluster, List of open clusters

Platais 8, also known as the a Carinae cluster or HIP 45080 Cluster is a small and faint open cluster located in the southern constellation Carina. It is estimated to be 440 light years distant based on parallax measurements.[1]

The cluster was first noticed by astronomer Imants Platais in 1998.[4] A 2005 paper suggests that Platais 8 might have formed near the area where the Scorpius-Centaurus association is located. [5] The SIMBAD database lists the cluster having 28,185 members[6] but the majority of the stars are field stars. In fact, there are only 32 members physically associated with the cluster.[1] The cluster has a combined mass of 546 M☉ and a radius of 37.2 light years Platais 8 is rather young, with an age of only 60 million years.[3]

  1. ^ a b c d e f Cite error: The named reference CanatGaudin2020 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Piskunov2007 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Vande Putte2010 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Platais1998 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Piskunov2005 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference SIMBAD was invoked but never defined (see the help page).