Corona Australis


45 minutes exposure, Fuji Superia 200 film. 135mm f/3.5 Tamron lens.

To the east of Scorpius and almost surrounded by Sagittarius is the constellation Corona Australis, the Southern Crown. Like its northern counterpart, the main stars form a rough circle. Unlike its northern counterpart however, the Southern Crown lies near a rich portion of the Milky Way. Despite this however, there are relatively few deep-sky objects within the constellation's boundaries apart from double stars.

One of the most interesting deep-sky objects is NGC 6726, an interesting region of bright and dark nebulosity on the border with Sagittarius and close to NGC 6723. NGC 6726 is a region of thick dust which shines by reflecting starlight from the stars buried deep within it. Several of these stars are erratic variables, sometimes called "nebula variables". In the photograph above, the nebula appears as the dark patch to the left of centre.


45 minutes exposure, Ektachrome 200 slide film.
85mm f/2 Canon lens.


45 minutes exposure, Ektachrome 200 slide film.
135mm f/3.5 Tamron lens.


122 second exposure
Madified Canon 350D camera with a 135mm f/3.5 Tamron lens.