Too Much Light?

SRS · Post by **SRS** » Fri Apr 20, 2007 9:06 pm

Looking at a dense star cluster like today's Omega Centauri, it makes me
wonder - would the area inside such a cluster actually be inimical to
life (on a planet) in such a cluster - is there perpetual light there?

craterchains · Post by **craterchains** » Sat Apr 21, 2007 12:24 pm

That would depend on the "kind" of life capable of surviving and thriving in such an environment.

craterchains · Post by **craterchains** » Sat Apr 21, 2007 12:24 pm

That would of course depend on the "kind" of life capable of thriving in such conditions.

Qev · Post by **Qev** » Sat Apr 21, 2007 7:38 pm

I don't know that it'd be too bright, per se... as a rule, aren't the stars in globular clusters older and dimmer than our Sun? Even so, it would never be dark in such a place... would make for a spectacular night sky.

A bigger problem would be that the close proximity of so many stars would make planetary orbits extremely unstable. I doubt a planet would remain in orbit around its host star very long before tidal forces would disrupt that orbit. Depends, on how close to the primary the planet orbits, of course.

slowhands · Post by **slowhands** » Sat Apr 21, 2007 8:09 pm

From time to time, the POD is a 3-D image e,g, "face in mars", that requires red-blue glasses. Maybe some kind person would offer them fo sale? Where (in the Minneapolis area) would I find such?

kovil · Post by **kovil** » Sat Apr 21, 2007 9:11 pm

It all depends on how one defines life.

John Dobson defines it as anything that "directs a stream of negative entropy upon itself".

I define it as "where electrical and chemical changes occur", which allows automobiles to qualify in a rudimentary way, tho they are symbiotic in needing us to direct that stream of 'negative entropy' at the gas station.

So, in the central region of a globular cluster there would be electrical flows and to some extent chemical changes in the plasmas and ISM, consciousness of a sort, on a very large scale, so its 'thoughts' would be 'simple', but 'profound' !

makc · Post by **makc** » Mon Apr 23, 2007 1:33 pm

somebody moved that thread (how would the sky look) before to Cafe, probably thinking it had no relation to picture in APOD.

this thread (would life be possible) is not really different in having anything in common with a picture in APOD, so it will share the destiny of its precedor

Starship Asterisk*

Too Much Light?

Too Much Light?

threads on conditions in star clusters