Omega Centauri

Omega Centauri or NGC 5139 is a globular cluster of stars orbiting the Milky Way. It is the largest globular cluster associated with the Milky Way that has been discovered to date. Omega Centauri contains several million Population II stars, and is about 12 billion years old.

With more observations, it has been found that Omega Centauri is not like other globular clusters, in that it has several generations of stars. It has been speculated that it is actually the core of a dwarf galaxy several hundred times its present size, which was ripped apart and absorbed by our Milky Way galaxy.

The core of Omega Centauri hides a middleweight grade 40 000 black hole, with stars spinning wildly around it. This region is very crowded, with stars packed as closely as 0.1 light years apart. The entire region measures 150 light years across.