Approximately how long does it take for an open cluster structure to usually break down completely?
Answer
Within just a few hundred million years
Open clusters are known to have relatively brief existences on the cosmic timescale because they are weakly bound and constantly subjected to external galactic forces. The process of dissolution, driven by tidal interactions with the galaxy, proceeds relatively quickly. It typically takes only a few hundred million years for the original cohesive structure of the cluster to dissipate entirely. Once this time frame passes, the former members, though still sharing common origins, are no longer grouped together, having transitioned into what are known as field stars.
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