A small, hazy spot can be seen in the southern night sky, the Small Magellanic Cloud. The name is misleading, however, because it is a dwarf galaxy. At least that was thought until the end of 2023. New observations now
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Nebulae in the Small Magellanic Cloud
Tarantula Nebula – NGC2070
Like gracile spider legs the structures of the Tarantula Nebula spread themselves in the left part of my image. It is visible to the naked eye as a bright, nebulous spot in the southern starry sky, although it is not
Read moreCentaurus A
My photo, taken in Namibia, shows the fifth brightest galaxy in the sky. It is already recognisable in binoculars as a faint patch of nebulosity and is known as Centaurus A. It is surrounded by a lot of dust, which
Read moreSmall Magellanic Cloud – NGC292
Andrea Corsali was the first European to describe the Magellanic Cloud in 1515, but it became better known six years later when Ferdinand Magellan described his circumnavigation of the globe. Like the Large Magellanic Cloud, the Small Magellanic Cloud is
Read moreLarge Magellanic Cloud – PGC 17223
The Large Magellanic Cloud is the brightest neighbouring galaxy to our Milky Way. Simulations calculate that it will probably collide with our Milky Way in one to four billion years. Ferdinand Magellan set out 500 years ago with a fleet
Read moreSunflower Galaxy – M63
The galaxy M63 has fluffy structured spiral arms which has given it the name “Sunflower Galaxy”. The blue glow comes from bright, young stars. Emission nebulae of hot, ionised hydrogen glow red and in between are many bands of dark
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