Dark Doodad Nebula | Musca
Dark molecular cloud in Musca. Officially unamed (sometimes misidentified as LDN 1780) it was apparently given the informal 'Dark Doodad' name in 1986 by American astronomer Dennis DiCicco. Click on the image for a fullscreen version.
Below: A close-up of the ancient globular cluster NGC 4372 seen in the southern (lower) region of the nebula (processed to emphasise the globular's stars). Click for a fullscreen version.
11-inch Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope at 560mm focal length; dedicated astro camera.
