The Center of Pandora’s Cluster: Abell 2744 in Sculptor | Hubble

The Center of Pandora’s Cluster: Abell 2744 in Sculptor | Hubble

This Hubble image, taken by the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS), shows the central part of merging galaxy cluster Abell 2744, nicknamed Pandora’s Cluster. This remarkable object seems to be the result of the collision of at least four separate galaxy clusters. This cluster is thought to have a very violent history, having formed from a cosmic pile-up of multiple galaxy clusters. 

Abell 2744 is a giant galaxy cluster resulting from the simultaneous pile-up of at least four separate, smaller galaxy clusters that took place over a span of 350 million years, and is located approximately 4 billion light years from Earth. The galaxies in the cluster make up less than five percent of its mass. The gas (around 20 percent) is so hot that it shines only in X-rays. Dark matter makes up around 75 percent of the cluster's mass. This cluster also shows a radio halo along with several other Abell clusters. It has a strong central halo, along with an extended tail, which could either be relic radiation, or an extension of the central halo.

Credit: NASA, European Space Agency (ESA) and D. Coe of the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI)/J. Merten (Heidelberg/Bologna)

Release Date: June 22, 2011

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