Coalsack Nebula
Nebula in Crux · 600 light-years
🔭 Explore Coalsack Nebula in the 3D map →View Coalsack Nebula images →| Type | Nebula |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Crux |
| Object distance | 600 light-years |
| Apparent size | 420′ (arc-minutes) |
| Also known as | C99 · Caldwell 99 |
Caldwell 99, the Coalsack, is the most prominent dark nebula in the sky — a dense cloud of interstellar dust about 600 light-years away that blots out the star-clouds of the southern Milky Way beside the Southern Cross. To the unaided eye it appears as a striking inky void, and many southern-hemisphere cultures wove it into their sky lore. Unlike glowing nebulae it emits no light of its own; we see it purely as a silhouette. It appears as number 99 in Sir Patrick Moore's Caldwell catalogue.
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Related objects
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