Globular cluster
47 Tucanae
Also NGC 104 · Caldwell 106
A brilliant globular cluster in the southern sky, second only to Omega Centauri in brightness.
Measured
- Distance
- about 14,740 light-years (published estimates 14,640–14,840)
- Size
- about 120 light-years across (approximate)
- Constellation
- Tucana
- Position (J2000)
- RA 0h 24m 05s, Dec −72.08°
How far, from the Sun
About 14,700 light-years. To cross it:
- Light14,700 years
- Voyager 1's speed262 million years
- Driving at 100 km/h159 billion years
Voyager 1 at the speed it moved outward over the year to 2026-10-25 (JPL Horizons). Driving: nonstop, never refuelling.
Facts
- Its mass is about 850,000 times the Sun's.
- It hosts more than 20 millisecond pulsars.
- It appears beside the Small Magellanic Cloud but is nearly 14 times closer.
- Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille catalogued it in 1751.
Where this comes from
- Baumgardt & Vasiliev 2021, Gaia EDR3 (4.52 ± 0.03 kpc)
Every catalogue Ouranos draws is credited on the credits page.