The Dark Doodad

Today we turn to a striking example of a dark nebula in the southern skies. The so-called “Dark Doodad” lies in the constellation Musca, just south of the Southern Cross.



The Basics

• Dark nebulae are dense interstellar clouds of cold gas and dust. Some, like the Doodad, obscure light from background stars. Others, like the Horsehead Nebula in Orion, block light from emission nebulae in young star-forming regions. Either way, dark nebulae look like “holes” in space.

• The Doodad is one of the more conspicuous dark nebulae in the sky. It stretches in a north-south direction for 3 degrees, and has unusually well-defined edges. This makes it relatively easy to see in dark skies.

• To see the Dark Doodad, use your telescope at low power, or try a pair of binoculars. Because you’ve trained your eye to see light through your telescope, it takes practice to see a dark nebula since you are, in essence, looking for “nothing”.

A Deeper Look

• At the south end of the Doodad, you’ll find the fine globular cluster NGC 4372, a sparkling showpiece in its own right. Use higher magnification to resolve the stars in this under-appreciated cluster.

• Dark nebulae are massive clouds of fine dust and gas that don’t radiate energy. But they have nothing to do with the hypothetical “dark matter” cosmologists use to explain the observed motion of galaxies through the universe.

A view of the constellation Musca. The “Dark Doodad” is top left

A Bit Of History

The Dark Doodad was named only 20 years ago by American amateur astronomer and writer Dennis di Cicco upon seeing an image he took from Alice Springs in central Australia.

Personal View

Astronomer Bark Bok once said, “All the good stuff is in the southern hemisphere”. You southerners have the two brightest globular clusters, the Magellanic clouds, the Southern Cross, and the Coalsack all high in the southern sky. I have to admit, it’s hard to disagree with Dr. Bok.