Astronomy Picture of the Day [1]Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. 2025 July 26 [2]See Explanation. Clicking on the picture will download the highest resolution version available. Globular Cluster Omega Centauri Image Credit & [3]Copyright: Data acquisition - SkyFlux Team, Processing - [4]Leo Shatz Explanation: Globular star cluster [5]Omega Centauri [6]packs about 10 million stars much older than the Sun into a volume some 150 light-years in diameter. Also known as NGC 5139, at a distance of 15,000 light-years it's the largest and brightest of 200 or so known [7]globular clusters that roam the halo of our Milky Way galaxy. Though most star clusters consist of stars with the same age and composition, the enigmatic Omega Cen exhibits the presence of [8]different stellar populations with a spread of ages and chemical abundances. In fact, [9]Omega Cen may be the [10]remnant core of a small galaxy merging with the Milky Way. With a [11]yellowish hue, Omega Centauri's red giant stars are easy to pick out in this [12]sharp telescopic view. A two-decade-long exploration of the dense star cluster with the Hubble Space Telescope has revealed evidence for a massive black hole near the [13]center of Omega Centauri. Tomorrow's picture: awesome __________________________________________________________________ [14]< | [15]Archive | [16]Submissions | [17]Index | [18]Search | [19]Calendar | [20]RSS | [21]Education | [22]About APOD | [23]Discuss | [24]> __________________________________________________________________ Authors & editors: [25]Robert Nemiroff ([26]MTU) & [27]Jerry Bonnell ([28]UMCP) NASA Official: Amber Straughn [29]Specific rights apply. [30]NASA Web Privacy, [31]Accessibility, [32]Notices; A service of: [33]ASD at [34]NASA / [35]GSFC, [36]NASA Science Activation & [37]Michigan Tech. U. References 1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html 2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2507/oc_ls_2025.jpg 3. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply 4. https://app.astrobin.com/u/spinlock 5. https://earthsky.org/clusters-nebulae-galaxies/omega-centauri-milky-ways-prize-star-cluster 6. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap080906.html 7. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Globular_clusters 8. https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2021A&A...653L...8L/abstract 9. https://esahubble.org/news/heic0809/ 10. https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2019NatAs...3..667I/abstract 11. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap151224.html 12. https://app.astrobin.com/i/7na4mz 13. https://science.nasa.gov/missions/hubble/nasas-hubble-finds-strong-evidence-for-intermediate-mass-black-hole-in-omega-centauri/ 14. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250725.html 15. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html 16. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html 17. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html 18. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search 19. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html 20. https://apod.com/feed.rss 21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html 22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html 23. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=250726 24. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250727.html 25. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html 26. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/ 27. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html 28. http://www.astro.umd.edu/ 29. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply 30. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html 31. https://www.nasa.gov/general/accessibility/ 32. https://www.nasa.gov/privacy/ 33. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/ 34. https://www.nasa.gov/ 35. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/ 36. https://science.nasa.gov/learners 37. http://www.mtu.edu/