The stars of the Pleiades clustering have fascinated and interested humanity for as long as we know . They are mention in Nipponese documents , in Hinduism , in Islam , in the Bible , and they are even in myths from the Celts , the Aztecs , the Maori , and the Sioux .
Now , after millennia , we know how fast they are spinning . This information will help astronomers better understand how planetal systems and their innkeeper stars form and evolve .
The Pleiades are more than theseven sistersin the Greek myth . They are a populous star clump with almost 1,000 member . These principal formed at the same metre about 125 million year ago , which make the population of the Pleiades a great example of headliner entering youthful adulthood . During this age , satellite tend to form and maven run to spin quicker than when they are mature .
" The Pleiades star cluster provides an anchor for theoretical models of stellar rotation go both directions , young and older , " said Luisa Rebull , research scientist at the Infrared Processing and Analysis Center at Caltech , in astatement . " We still have a lot we need to learn about how , when and why stars slacken their twist rates and hang up their ' dance shoe , ' so to utter . "
The inquiry will be published in three papers in the Astrophysical Journal and they ’re presently available online atarXiv .
The team has used the satellite - huntsman telescopeKeplerto study the luminosity give off by the Pleiades . Kepler focused on drop in the luminosity produced by adept spots , tracking them as they moved around the stars .
The cluster was chase for 72 day , with the rotary motion of 750 cluster members valuate , including 500 of the lowest - peck , subdued , and smallest stars in the Pleiades . The squad discovered that fully grown stars be given to rotate more slowly , with a period between one and 11 Earth day , while many smaller object revolve in less than a day . By comparison , sunspots near the equator of the Sun go around in about 26 days .
" In the ' concert dance ' of the Pleiades , we see that dull rotators tend to be more monumental , whereas the fastest rotators tend to be very light stars , " said Rebull .
The Pleiades are located 450 swooning - year from Earth , and have a robust range of types and masses , with promising blue maven a few time the tidy sum of the Sun to stellar midget 10 per centum of our yellow companion .
" We hope that by comparing our results to other star clump , we will find out more about the relationship between a star ’s quite a little , its long time , and even the history of its solar system , " Rebull conclude .
