Globular cluster Omega Centauri imaged by Einstein Probe

Omega Centauri is the largest cluster in the Milky Way, with a mass a million times that of our Sun. During Einstein Probe’s first months in space, observations of the well-known cluster helped to test and calibrate the satellite’s imaging quality.

Binary systems comprising a star with a black hole or neutron star companion generate X-rays when material from the star falls onto its heavy companion. Many such systems call Omega Centauri their home, making it shine brightly in X-ray light. Einstein Probe’s Follow-Up X-ray Telescope observed the structure and core region of the globular cluster.

Read more about Einstein Probe’s first images

[Image description: The image is square but rotated 45 degrees on top of a black background and looks like hundreds of blue lights in a diamond shape. A handful of the light dots are bigger, magenta-coloured at their centre, and are located near the edges of the image. Centrally, there are smaller light dots close together creating a brighter centre of the image.]