Columba association

[1][a] The association is named after the constellation Columba which contains many of the stars first recognized in the group.

Stars in young associations are a popular target for professional astronomers.

The stars are often surrounded by circumstellar disks, discs of dust and other planet forming matter around a young star, and young planets that still glow in the infrared spectrum, which makes it easier to directly image, using the light reflected off of the planets to obtain an image of the planets.

The most famous star in the Columba association is HR 8799 which has four directly imaged planets.

The association also contains several A-type and F-type stars, such as Omega Aurigae, HR 8799, 26 Geminorum and AS Columbae.