Stars you can only see in the Southern Hemisphere

Written By: Emily Bills

Published Date: February 5, 2015 Last Edited: February 5, 2015

Christopher Pilny

Emily Bills for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online

Take it from Danny and Sandy, stargazing is a must on summer nights. But it can also be worth it to brave the cold as you wait for a meteor shower with a cup of hot chocolate.

Stars represent the other galaxies, universes, and whatever else that lays far beyond our night sky. And because of this, we will never get tired of looking for constellations.

But we in the Northern Hemisphere can’t see some of the beloved constellations viewed by our friends in the Southern Hemisphere. So, if you’re an avid stargazer, you may need to start planning a trip. Here’s a list we’ve compiled of Southern Hemispheric-specific constellations for your reading pleasure.

Stars you can only see in the Southern Hemisphere

1. The Southern Cross (Crux)

For those who live south of the equator, it’s the Southern Cross, or Crux, that you look for to guide you whilst stargazing. The four bright stars make up a cross formation, (although some people say it looks more like a kite). Two of the four stars, Acrux and Becrux, are first-magnitude stars, meaning they are among the brightest in the sky. Along the eastern edge of the Crux is the Coalsack Nebula, a dark place where stars are born. Just near the Coalsack is something called The Jewel Box, which holds a cluster of red, white, and blue stars. To see the Southern Cross, you have to be below 25 degrees north. Or watch this video:

Or this (kinda):

2. Carina (The Keel)

This constellation is known as the keel, or the bottommost part of a ship. It makes a kind of “U” shape, and the circle at the end could be seen as the ship’s figurehead. It was originally part of a huge constellation called Argo Navis, a huge boat in the sky. The brightest star in Carina is Canopus, and is actually the second brightest star in the sky after Sirius.

3. Centaurus (The Centaur)

Centaurus lies below Hydra and Scorpius and resembles a half-man, half-horse creature. Its brightest star, Alpha Centauri, is the third brightest star in the sky and the closest star to the sun. It is also the home of the brightest and biggest globular cluster, a spherical cluster of stars that is extremely dense in the middle, Omega Centauri (NGC 5139). This cluster is actually visible to the naked eye as a faint smudge in the sky.

4. Sagittarius

While you can technically see this constellation in the Northern Hemisphere, it is best seen in the South. Like Centaurus, Sagittarius is a centaur, but he has a man riding atop him. This constellation is very large and most of the stars are faint, so many people just recognize the brighter stars in the center as a little teapot. On very dark summer and fall nights, you may be able to see ‘steam’ rising out of the spout. This steam is actually the galactic center of our frothy Milky Way.

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