EASTERN TUCANA WITH THE SMC AND OCTANS
The image features the fuzzy Small Magellanic Cloud, which lies a bit toward the upper left,
one of our two bright satellite galaxies about 200,000 light years away. To the immediate left of it
is the slightly fuzzy image of 47 Tucanae, one of the largest and brightest of
globular clusters, which lies some 17,000 light years distant.
Eastern Tucana lies in the upper right corner, made prominent by the close
pairing of Beta-1,2 with Beta-3 to the immediate left. Zeta Tuc is directly down from Beta, with
Epsilon down and to the right of Zeta. Theta Tuc is right above 47 Tuc.
South is down and to the left, western
Tucana off to the right. A major portion of
Octans lies opposite, in the lower left quadrant. The bright star toward
bottom center is the luminary, Nu Octantis, with fainter Alpha down and a bit to the right.
The bright star at
center left is Beta Hydri in Hydrus.