Stars often form in groups. One of the most famous star clusters that can be easily seen with the naked eye is the Pleiades star cluster, which attracts attention with its brightness. Located about 450 light-years from Earth, the Pleiades formed about 100 million years ago and is expected to last for another 250 million years. Similarly, the Sun is thought to have been born in a star cluster, but due to its age of 4.5 billion years, the members of the cluster it was born in have long since dispersed. This impressive photo of the Pleiades star cluster was taken from the famous rock formation Half Dome in Yosemite National Park in California, USA. It was created in October 2019, using the same location and camera, combining 28 frames for the foreground and 174 frames to bring the stars into focus. The astrophotographer took the shot after calculating when the Pleiades would realign with the Half Dome, but the sky appeared darker than usual due to an unexpected power outage.

January 27, 2025 Astronomy Photo of the Day (NASA APOD)

Image Source and Copyright: Dheera Venkatraman