This is a relatively small globular cluster, ranking 112th in luminosity among the Milky Way globular cluster population. It is considered an
Oosterhoff type I cluster (OoI), despite having a relatively low metallicity. Indeed, it has the lowest metallicity of any OoI cluster known. There are 19 RR Lyrae variable star candidates and as many as 23 blue stragglers. A high proportion of the latter are concentrated near the dense core of the cluster, which is consistent with the idea that blue stragglers form through stellar mergers.[3][9]
The cluster lies some 70.4 ± 7.5 kly (21.6 ± 2.3 kpc) from the Galactic Center,[6] and is relatively isolated from other globular clusters in the galaxy.[3] The position of this cluster makes it a candidate for association with the Sagittarius tidal stream, and thus it may have been captured by the Milky Way after separation from the Sagittarius Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy.[6] A contour map of the cluster appears to show S-shaped tidal arms stretching to the north and south for several tidal radii. Such features are predicted for globular clusters that follow elliptical orbits and are near their apogalacticon.[10]
![{\displaystyle {\begin{smallmatrix}\left[{\ce {Fe}}/{\ce {H}}\right]\end{smallmatrix}}}](https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/media/math/render/svg/4c0821bd80891e071c08e7c7ee8e022baedf522c)
Media related to NGC 4147 at Wikimedia Commons
