Five Dazzling Constellations You Can Spot In The Southern Hemisphere
Do you think you are familiar with the night sky? If you have stargazed from the northern hemisphere only, you know half the story.
From the southern hemisphere, a wealth of brilliant astronomical objects are visible in the night sky, and as a northerner, if you view the seasonal constellations, they all appear upside-down. In the southern hemisphere, you are going to experience a whole new sky, and you will need time to explore and familiarize yourself with the stunning dark skies to enjoy the astronomical adventure. Check out five dazzling constellations that you can spot from the southern hemisphere.
Crux
It is also known as the Southern Cross. This constellation points to the South Pole, and it houses the Coal Sack nebula (one of the most popular dark nebulae). Crux is also home to Acruz, the twelfth brightest star to exist in the sky, and is known for hosting the Crucids, its own meteor shower. This incredibly fancy cluster is one of the brightest and youngest in the sky.
Jewel Box cluster
You can best observe this dazzling cluster through binoculars or may even settle for a small telescope. If you are fond of the northern hemisphere’s Perseus Double Cluster, you will fall for the Jewel Box cluster almost instantly. This blazing open cluster is located close to Becrux and Gacrux in the Southern Cross. If you try to view the cluster through a telescope, you will be amazed to spot 100 vividly sparkling blue and red stars.
Canopus
Canopus a.k.a the Great Star of the South - visually, it is Sirius’ big brother and the second brightest twinkler also after Sirius. In the northern hemisphere, it is rarely visible, but stargazers in the southern hemisphere can locate both the stars, and they are often spotted together. But the gleaming brothers do not lie close to each other; Sirius lies 8.7 lightyears away from earth, while Canopus lies 313 lightyears away, and is 65 times bigger than the Sun.
Musca
The northern sky has all the heroes and legends: Perseus, Andromeda, and Hercules. But the southern sky has Musca. It is named Musca after its shape, which resembles a housefly. It mostly consists of faint but notable stars and deep sky objects like the Hourglass Nebula, the Spiral Planetary Nebula, the globular clusters, and more.
Tucana
Tucana can be observed in the southern night sky through a small telescope or binoculars - in both cases, it appears mesmerizing and colorful. The constellation shelters the Small Magellanic Cloud (named after Ferdinand Magellan, the explorer).
If you are a southerner and love gazing at the night sky, try to locate these vivid clusters of stars.
