Observing at the OzSky "Alumni" Star Safari

The southern night skies at the OzSky "Alumni" Star Safari are something to behold!

Not only does the hub of the Milky Way start the evening right up near the zenith (yes, both Sagittarius and Scorpius cross the meridian way up there!), but you'll also enjoy the stunning Magellanic Clouds overhead and so much more.

Eye Candy Observing Lists

While this list is by no means exhaustive, it will hopefully act as a starting point to help you get your own personal observing lists started, or perhaps provide some inspiration to get yours refined if you've already started one.

Planetary and Bright Nebulae

• R Coronae Australis Nebula (NGC 6729)
• PacMan (Skull) Nebula (NGC 246)
• Cleopatra's Eye (NGC 1535)
• Little Gem (NGC 6818)
• Saturn Nebula (NGC 7009)
• Helix Nebula (NGC 7293)
• Tarantula Nebula (NGC 2070)

Galaxies, Galaxies and More Galaxies

• Dorado Seyfert Galaxy (NGC 1566)
• String of Pearls (NGC 55)
• Cartwheel Galaxy (ESO 350-40)
• Milkweed Seed Galaxy (NGC 247)
• Silver Coin Galaxy (NGC 253)
• Small Magellanic Cloud (NGC 292 (SMC))
• Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC)
• Sculptor Dwarf Galaxy (ESO 351-30)
• Fornax Barred Spiral (NGC 1365)
• Fornax Dwarf Galaxy (ESO 356-04)
• Barnard's Galaxy (NGC 6822)
• Grus Quartet of galaxies (NGC 7582)
• Klemora 4 (Hickson 90) (HCG 90)

Globular Clusters

• 47 Tucanae (NGC 104)
• Tucana Spare Globular (NGC 362)
• Reticulum Dwarf (ESO 118-31)
• Pavo Globular (The Starfish) (NGC 6752)

Carbon Stars and Variable Stars

• R Sculptoris (HR 423)
• TW Horologium (HR 977)
• R Doradus (HR 1492)
• Hind's Crimson Star (R Leporis) (HR 1607)
• V Aquila (HR 7220)
• T Indus (HR 8145)
• Y Pavo (HR 8156)
• Mira (Omicron Ceti) (HR 681)

Double and Multiple Stars

• Alpha Centauri (Rigil Kent)
• Alpha Crucis (Acrux)
• Alpha Capricorni
• Alpha Circini
• Alpha Librae
• Beta Piscis Austrini (Dunlop 240)
• Beta Tucanae (HR 126)
• Beta Sagitarii (Dunlop 226)
• Beta Scorpii
• Gamma Aries (Mesarthim) (HR 545)
• Gamma Corona Australis (HR 7226)
• Gamma Velorum
• Delta Tucanae
• Zeta Aquarii (HR 8558)
• Zeta Reticuli
• Theta Indi (HR 8140)
• Theta Eridanus (Acamar) (HR 897)
• Iota Pictoris (Dunlop 18)
• Mu (µ) Crucis
• h 3670 (HR 1475)
• pi-1 Gru (HR 8521)

Challenge Objects

• AM1 in Horologium – One of the most distant Globular Clusters in the Milky Way system, and one of the Ultimate Globular Challenges
• The Aurora Australis – Yes, The Southern Lights - Not at all "likely" to see this (hence a "Challenge Object", but we have seen it from "worse" latitudes in the past!

Other OzSky Observing Resources

The OzSky Star Safari website contains several very useful observing resources which you might like to review prior to your trip, including:

• The Bambury 600 List
• The Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC)
• The Local Group of Galaxies
• Treasures of the SMC

Further information and additional observing lists can also be found on the OzSky Star Safari website at https://www.OzSky.org/resources (under the "Resources" link), however in the interim, hopefully this page will serve to whet your appetite for what else there might be to discover in the Southern Night Skies at the 2026 OzSky "Alumni" Star Safari.

As mentioned previously, this list is just a very small sample of some of the Southern Skies Eye Candy objects and will hopefully inspire you to get some ideas together for your 2026 OzSky "Alumni" Star Safari southern skies observing lists.

Previous Editions:
Overview, Trip Planning, Bookings & Logistics
Observing Expectations at OzSky Alumni