I figured it was about time I took a picture of the Pleiades – that famous star cluster that’s been known throughout the world since ancient times. In Greek mythology the stars in this cluster are known as the seven sisters – the daughters of Atlas and Pleione. The cluster is easily visible without the aid of a telescope, and as a kid I was told that if you could make out at least six stars, then your eyesight was pretty good. If you are familiar with the constellation of Orion, then you can find the Pleiades by following a line drawn through the three stars in Orion’s belt.
Just like the seven sisters, the stars in the Pleiades are also siblings – having formed from the same stellar nursery only about 100 million years ago. Since that time, they’ve traveled through space together. Currently they are making their way through an interstellar dust cloud about 450 light years from us. The area is brightly illuminated by blue-white starlight from the sisters, reflecting off the cloud.
In case you are interested, you can locate the seven sisters as follows: The two bright stars at the bottom of the image are the parents, Pleione and Atlas. The large star above the parents is Alcyone. Moving upward and slightly to the right, the next sister we encounter is Merope. A little higher, and over to the left is Maia, the eldest daughter. To the left of Maia are two stars close together – the top one is the sister Asterope. Moving upward again and to the right, the next big star is Taygeta, followed by Celaeno; and finally the large star top and center is Electra.
