C99 · Coalsack Nebula
| Chinese name | 煤袋星云 |
|---|---|
| Type | Dark nebula |
| Constellation | Cru |
| RA | 12h50m |
| Dec | −62° |
| Apparent magnitude | — |
| Hemisphere | Southern |
| Best season | Spring |
| Difficulty | Hard |
| Focal length | 广角 24–135mm |
About
The Coalsack is the most prominent dark nebula in the southern sky, lying roughly 600 light-years away and spanning some 7° by 5° across Crux, Centaurus and Musca. It is a dense cloud of interstellar dust and molecular gas that blots out the rich Milky Way starlight behind it, appearing as a striking black void against the glowing band. Its extinction reaches several magnitudes, and the cloud likely harbors the early stages of future star formation. Many southern indigenous cultures recognized it as a dark celestial figure. Photographing it requires a wide-field lens to capture the silhouette together with the surrounding Milky Way.