Hubble2005-01-barred-spiral-galaxy-NGC1300

The Eridanus Cluster is a galaxy cluster roughly from

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

, containing about 73 main

galaxies A galaxy is a system of stars, stellar remnants, interstellar gas, dust, dark matter, bound together by gravity. The word is derived from the Greek ' (), literally 'milky', a reference to the Milky Way galaxy that contains the Solar System. ...

and about 200 total galaxies. About 30% have

Hubble classification The Hubble sequence is a morphological classification scheme for galaxies invented by Edwin Hubble in 1926. It is often colloquially known as the Hubble tuning-fork diagram because the shape in which it is traditionally represented resembles a t ...

s of elliptical or S0 and the remaining 70% are spiral or irregular. These galaxies reside in smaller groups which are all loosely gravitationally bound to each other, suggesting that the system is still condensing from the Hubble flow and may eventually form a cluster of about 10¹⁴ . A low velocity dispersion compared to that of, for example, the Coma cluster, supports this hypothesis. The Eridanus Cluster is located in the

constellation A constellation is an area on the celestial sphere in which a group of visible stars forms Asterism (astronomy), a perceived pattern or outline, typically representing an animal, mythological subject, or inanimate object. The origins of the e ...

Eridanus near the Fornax Cluster, and is sometimes called the "Fornax II Cluster".

Table of galaxies

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eridanus Cluster Eridanus (constellation) Galaxy clusters Southern Supercluster

Table of galaxies

See also

References