The Southern Cross

Shining in the southern sky, the four bright stars portrayed in the left part of this image represent a useful orientation mark which helps identifying the South Celestial Pole. Because of the rather distinctive asterism they form, these stars have been officially classified as the Crux constellation, or the Southern Cross.

The vast dark cloud, visible in the lower part of the image, is usually referred to as the Coalsack Nebula; it also has a preeminent role in the Australian Aboriginal culture, representing the head of an emu in the traditional constellation of the "Emu in the Sky".

The ruddy object glowing in the upper part of the image owes its colour to the blaze of hydrogen gas. Catalogued as IC 2948, this emission nebula hosts a sparkling cluster of young stars.

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O snímku

Id:yb_southern_cross_cc
Typ:Fotografický
Datum zveřejnění:3. prosince 2009 23:22
Velikost:3500 x 2323 px

O objektu

Jméno:IC 2948
Typ:Milky Way : Nebula : Appearance : Emission
Milky Way : Star : Grouping : Cluster
Vzdálenost:6000 světelné roky
Constellation:Musca
Kategorie:Nebulae

Image Formats


Pozadí

1024x768
613,4 KB
1280x1024
1,0 MB
1600x1200
1,4 MB
1920x1200
1,7 MB
2048x1536
2,2 MB

Souřadnice

Position (RA):12 28 3.76
Position (Dec):-64° 53' 58.02"
Field of view:1473.79 x 978.17 arcminutes
Orientace:Sever je 73.4° levá od svislé osy