2007-01-22 03:12:03 · 7 answers · asked by bubblemae2003 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
A constellation is an artificial grouping of stars that we humans have come up with over time. It's kind of like drawing a giant connect-the-dots in the sky, with stick figures of heroes, villians, Gods, animals, etc. The actual stars are nowhere near each other, especially since some constellations stretch over large chunks of the sky (IE, Orion).
A star cluster is an actual bunch of stars that are bound together by gravity. One of the most well-known is the Pleiades, AKA the "seven sisters". (Interesting trivia: the Japanese car company Subaru uses the Pleiades as their name & logo -- ''subaru" is the Japanese name for the Pleiades).
2007-01-22 03:22:30 · answer #1 · answered by Brandon F 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The other answers are correct: clusters are actual physical groups of stars and constellations are convenient groupings in the sky that have no physical connection. However......
There is one cluster of stars that makes up all but two of seven bright stars in a constellation: Ursa Major, or the Great Bear. Five of the brightest stars in that constellation are part of an actual star cluster. The one on the end of the tail of the bear (or the handle of the big dipper), and the outermost star in the bowl of the big dipper are not included in the cluster. The others are bound together and are moving in the same direction in space.
2007-01-22 12:34:04 · answer #2 · answered by David A 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A constellation is an area of the sky. A cluster is a group of stars bound together by gravity.
2007-01-22 11:34:50 · answer #3 · answered by bldudas 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A cluster is close to each other in space/time. A constellation is just close to each other by our perception on earth. The actual stars or galaxies that make up a constellation may not be near each other in space. Just look like that from earth.
B
2007-01-22 11:17:48 · answer #4 · answered by Bacchus 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
A constelation is imaginary. It is a picture drawn from stars, just connect the dots.
A cluster of stars is a group of stars held together by gravity.
2007-01-22 11:19:01 · answer #5 · answered by FourKingHigh 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
A constellation is a group of stars that can be hundreds of light years apart that people usually group together to form familiar pictures in the sky .. e.g. big dipper. They are not physically related to each other .A cluster is a collection of stars that is usually gravitationally bound to each other and all the stars are in relatively close proximity
2007-01-22 11:19:53 · answer #6 · answered by Gene 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
constellation is predefined by man to a group of stars
cluster is a group of stars that are near each other it may consist of many constellations
2007-01-22 11:21:26 · answer #7 · answered by mali 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋