What is the Scorpius-Centaurus Association?
Q: What is the Scorpius-Centaurus Association?
A: The Scorpius-Centaurus Association is a group of stars near the Sun that are between 380 to 470 light years away.
Q: How old are the stars in the Scorpius-Centaurus Association?
A: The stars in the Scorpius-Centaurus Association range from 11 to 15 million years old.
Q: How did the stars in the Scorpius-Centaurus Association form?
A: The stars in the Scorpius-Centaurus Association all formed from the same cloud of material.
Q: What is the main part of the complex of recent and ongoing star-formation?
A: The main part of the complex of recent and ongoing star-formation is the Sco-Cen OB association.
Q: What is the velocity of the stellar members of the Scorpius-Centaurus Association?
A: The stellar members of the Scorpius-Centaurus Association have nearly parallel velocity vectors, moving at about 20 km/s with respect to the Sun.
Q: Why is the Scorpius-Centaurus Association no longer held together by gravity?
A: The variation of velocity within the subgroups is about 1-2 km/s, and the group is most likely no longer held together by gravity.
Q: What does the presence of iron-60 in sea floor sediments suggest?
A: The presence of iron-60 in fossilized bacteria in sea floor sediments suggests there was a supernova near the solar system about 2,000,000 years ago.