Fossils in the Galaxy: Globular Clusters - Ask a Spaceman!

How are globular clusters so old? Where did they come from, and how are they linked to galaxy formation? What makes them so globular, anyway? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman!


Keep those questions about space, science, astronomy, astrophysics, and cosmology coming to #AskASpaceman for COMPLETE KNOWLEDGE OF TIME AND SPACE!

00:00 What is a Globular Cluster?
04:04 Two Kinds of Globular Clusters
08:32 Where Did It Come From?
11:46 Why Do We Care?

[davidshoyt]

I’m a public educator for astronomy at the Daniels observatory in Greenville. I really appreciate your delivery and presentation style. Awesome work!

[Marbles]

Loved it. Love the topic. Love the mystery. Great presentation. Thank you very much.

[MrMrduke]

So glad I found you! Loving your content!

[alansnyder]

I loved this topic. The fact that globular cluster's don't contain dark matter is super interesting and seems like a clue to what it is. Like after we find out, we will look back on this and say of course.

A topic I would like to see covered is, what might JWST see when it looks to the early universe to see the period of galaxy formation. Something like, "If it see A, thatm means this theory is more likely" or "If it sees B, that theory is more likely". And then just for fun some reader polls about A vs B. Then in a few years after the results are in we can revisit that episode.

[LordBitememan]

“The Florida of the galaxy. . .”

. . . Globular cluster man kidnaps, married alligator.

[wanderinginterneter]

Hi. Im a big fan. I watch "How The Universe Works" and i also want to be an astrophysicist

[ZeroOskul]

I love this show!
Paul kicks it hard!

I enjoy your videos since you were just talking I'm front of the camera.
But this video is awesome!!

[wcsxwcsx]

There's one thing I don't understand about globular clusters. If their stars are so densely packed and they're so old, and they don't seem to be rotating like a galaxy, then why haven't the stars felt the gravitational effect of all the surrounding stars and collapsed in toward the center of the cluster? To keep them apart, they would have to be in a rotating disk like a galaxy. A static globe shape would seem to be impossible.

[michaelgoble]

Hello dr sutter. If dark matter was the result of a decaying black hole, by whatever means, and globular clusters don’t really have dead stars and likely very few if any black holes as a consequence, , , and considering globular clusters do not have dark matter suggesting when they formed it wasn’t prevalent like it is today when they formed meaning maybe it was created sometime after, and only where stars formation and deaths were occurring. Not the GC. It would then seem likely to me that the dark matter phenomenon would be explained by dispersal of black holes or unbound dark hole matter. I’m sure it’s been thought of but I’m curious. Thank you for all you give us! Cheers.

[garrycollins]

I'll need to watch that again. It's like I almost understood it.

[GreatGranger]

When is your second book coming on Audible?

[Crushnaut]

Random question. If as the universe ages the local strength of dark energy increases, to the point of being able to pull apart atoms, neutron, etc does it ever get so energy dense that the energy density is now the same as the beginning of the universe?

[michaelpettersson]

Failed to form a galaxy because they just didn't have enough mass... Then and advertisement kicks in proclaiming "Just can't get enough, just can't get enough" in a jingle... 😄

[dougieh]

Have you looked into temporal mechanics? It has an interesting explanation for dark matter and dark dark energy.

[edwardhinton]

I always thought of them as failed galaxies.

[paulharland]

That's really cool probably one of those things humanity will only ever be able to observe at extreme distance though. We'll be lucky to make it to the nearby stuff. I wonder if solarsail craft traveling along the gravitational focal lines of the sun would get a boost from the focused light of distant stars. Maybe in the future humanity will use the gravitational focal lines of stars like we did trade winds.

[noksenwangsa]

Shouldn't older stars have more metals brewing within because fussion had been going on for long enough time to burn out hydrogen into heavier elements by now ??

[wcsxwcsx]

Here's another question: How can globular clusters have no dark matter if they're embedded in galaxies that do have dark matter?

[waferty]

So....there is something strange in the neighborhood ?