Pleiades

Pleiades, in astronomy

Pleiades (plē`ədēz, plī`–), in astronomy, famous open star cluster in the constellation Taurus; cataloged as M45. The cluster consists of some 500 stars, has a diameter of 35 light-years, and is 400 light-years distant from the earth. Six stars are easily visible to the naked eye—Alcyone (the brightest), Electra, Celaeno, Sterope, Maia, and Taygete. Known as the Seven Sisters, this group was named by the Greeks for the seven daughters of Atlas and Pleione; the seventh Pleiad was, according to legend, lost or in hiding. Many faint stars associated with the other six are visible with the telescope; one of these stars may have been much brighter and visible to the naked eye in ancient times, thus accounting for the many early references to seven stars. The Pleiades cluster is 150 million years old, making it a young star cluster.

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Pleiades, in Greek mythology

Pleiades, in Greek mythology, seven daughters of Atlas and the nymph Pleione. According to one legend they were the attendants of Artemis and were changed into stars by the gods when they were pursued by the amorous hunter Orion. Their names were Maia, Merope, Electra, Celaeno, Taygete, Sterope (or Asterope), and Alcyone. The lost Pleiad was either Electra (2) or Merope.

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Pleiades

Open cluster of stars in the constellation Taurus, about 400 light-years from Earth. It contains a large amount of bright nebulous material and several hundred stars, of which six or seven can be seen by the unaided eye and have figured prominently in the myths and literature of many cultures. In the Northern Hemisphere, the rising of the Pleiades near dawn in spring has from ancient times marked the opening, and their morning setting in autumn the end, of seafaring and farming seasons.

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Pleiades [′plē·ə‚dēz]

(astronomy)

An open cluster of a few hundred stars in the constellation Taurus; six of the stars are easily visible to the naked eye.

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Pleiades 

an open, or galactic, cluster in Taurus. Six to nine of the brightest stars of the cluster can be seen with the naked eye. Statistical calculations have established that there are about 540 stars in the cluster, although the number is probably much greater. The brightest star in the Pleiades is Alcyone (η Tauri);

Table 1. The brightest stars In the Pleiades
Name	Visual magnitude
Note: Between Celaeno and Pleione there is a star of magnitude 5.45. and between Celaeno and Asterope I a star of magnitude 5.65
Alcyone(η Tauri)...............................	2.87
Atlas......................................	3.64
Electra ....................................	3.71
Maia......................................	3.88
Merope ....................................	4.18
Taygeta....................................	4.31
Pleione ....................................	5.09
Celaeno....................................	5.46
Asterope I ..................................	5.76
Asterope II ..................................	6.16

like other bright stars in the cluster (see Table 1), Alcyone is a hot star of spectral class B. As shown clearly in long-exposure photographs, the bright stars of the Pleiades illuminate surrounding sections of the large dust nebula within which the entire cluster is located. The cluster has a diameter of 15 parsecs, or about 49 light-years. All the stars of the cluster move through space along nearly parallel paths.

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Pleiades 

in Greek mythology, the seven daughters of Atlas and of the Oceanid Pleione. According to one variant of the myth, the hunter Orion met the Pleiades and for several years sought their love until Zeus turned both the Pleiades and Orion into constellations. Even in the sky, Orion cannot overtake the Pleiades. Metaphorically, the term refers to a group of outstanding poets or political or military leaders. Examples are the Alexandrian Pleiad of the third century B.C., the French Pléiade of the 16th century A.D., and the Pushkin Pleiad of the 19th century, all composed of poets.