NGC 4372
Globular cluster in the constellation Musca
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
NGC 4372 (also known as Caldwell 108) is a globular cluster in the southern constellation of Musca. It is southwest of γ Muscae (Gamma Muscae) and west of the southern end of the Dark Doodad Nebula (Sandqvist 149), a 3° thin streak of black across a southern section of the great plane of the Milky Way.
| NGC 4372 | |
|---|---|
NGC 4372 imaged by 2MASS | |
| Observation data (J2000 epoch) | |
| Class | XII[1] |
| Constellation | Musca |
| Right ascension | 12h 25m 45.43s[2] |
| Declination | −72° 39′ 32.7″[2] |
| Distance | 18.9 kly (5.8 kpc)[3] |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 9.85[2] |
| Apparent dimensions (V) | 18' |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Absolute magnitude | −8.52 |
| Mass | 3.29×105[3] M☉ |
| Radius | 49.5 ly |
| Metallicity | [Fe/H] = –2.33±0.08[4] dex |
| Estimated age | 12.54 Gyr[5] |
| Other designations | Caldwell 108 |
NGC 4372 "is partially obscured by dust lanes, but still appears as a large object some 10 arcseconds in diameter," according to Astronomy of the Milky Way (2004).[6]
The cluster has highly peculiar chemistry similar to NGC 5694, being extremely iron-poor yet having super-solar abundances of magnesium and titanium.[4]
