archive / atlas record
Pleiades
A young nearby cluster known across many sky cultures.
- classification
- Open star cluster
- system
- Milky Way
The Pleiades are young stars formed from the same molecular cloud. Their shared motion and age help test models of stellar evolution.
- Class
- Open star cluster
- Location / system
- Milky Way
- Distance
- About 440 light-years from Earth
Only values with an established scientific consensus are listed. Where a quantity is uncertain or model-dependent, it is discussed in the sections below rather than stated as data.
Overview (starter entry, expanded review pending)
The Pleiades are young stars formed from the same molecular cloud. Their shared motion and age help test models of stellar evolution.
Astrometry and colour–magnitude analysis
Pleiades's member stars are identified through shared positions and motions. Their colours and luminosities are compared with stellar-evolution models to estimate age and distance.
- What remains least constrained about Pleiades?Composition, internal structure, formation history or local environment can require different observations and may remain model-dependent.
Items above are unresolved. Hypotheses are labelled as such and are not presented as confirmed findings.
CDS Strasbourg // verified 28 September 2026