Messier 15

High school (ages 12+)
Space & Astronomy

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/messier-15

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. Who discovered Messier 15?1746 by Jean-Dominique Maraldi
2. What is the scientific name?NGC 7078
3. What is the type?Globular cluster
4. How old is Messier 15?Messier 15 is about 12.5 billion years old, almost as old as the universe itself. It formed only a few hundred million years after the Big Bang.
5. Why do scientists study Messier 15?Scientists study Messier 15 because its stars are very old and have few heavy elements, so it helps us learn about the early universe and how galaxies formed. Its crowded core also creates rare star collisions that teach us about star life cycles.

Globular Cluster: A gravitationally bound collection of hundreds of thousands to millions of old stars, typically found in the halo of a galaxy.
Metallicity: In astronomy, the abundance of elements heavier than hydrogen and helium in a star or celestial object.
Blue Straggler: Stars within globular clusters that appear younger and bluer than their main-sequence turnoff age, often formed through stellar mergers or collisions.
Supermassive Black Hole: A black hole with a mass millions to billions of times that of the Sun, typically found at the center of most galaxies.