Article
Article
Crux
Article By:
Pasachoff, Jay M. Hopkins Observatory, Williams College, Williamstown, Massachusetts.
Last reviewed:January 2020
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.169600
The Southern Cross, a small southern constellation. Because of the absence of a star at the center of the cross, this constellation really looks like a kite (see illustration). To its side, the Coalsack is a giant dark silhouette of dust against the Milky Way Galaxy. In it the colorful open star cluster known as the Jewel Box is found. It contains dozens of hot, bright, blue stars plus a prominent, central red supergiant. See also: Star clusters
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