Dark nebula
The Coalsack
Also Caldwell 99
A dark cloud of dust beside the Southern Cross that blots out the Milky Way behind it.
Measured
- Distance
- 590 light-years
- Size
- about 60 light-years across (approximate)
- Constellation
- Crux
- Position (J2000)
- RA 12h 49m 59s, Dec −62.50°
How far, from the Sun
590 light-years. To cross it:
- Light590 years
- Voyager 1's speed10.5 million years
- Driving at 100 km/h6.37 billion years
Voyager 1 at the speed it moved outward over the year to 2026-10-25 (JPL Horizons). Driving: nonstop, never refuelling.
Facts
- It is one of the most prominent dark nebulae visible to the naked eye.
- It spans about 6 degrees of sky, and may extend up to 10.
- In Aboriginal Australian astronomy it forms the head of the Emu in the Sky.
Where this comes from
- Franco 1989 (180 ± 26 pc), as quoted by Versteeg et al. 2024
Every catalogue Ouranos draws is credited on the credits page.