Dorado - Goldfish

Learn about the constellation Dorado - Goldfish, location, facts, mythology, meteor showers and deep space objects.

Dorado is a southern constellation. The constellation was one of twelve constellations created by Pieter Dirkszoon Keyser and Frederick de Houtman

Location: Southern Constellation 5h RA -60° Dec

Dorado is notable for containing most of the Large Magellanic Cloud, the remainder being in the constellation Mensa. The South Ecliptic Pole also lies within this constellation. Because Dorado contains part of the Large Magellanic Cloud, it is rich in deep-sky objects.

Mythology

Being a modern constellation there is no mythology surrounding Dorado. Dorado constellation was created by the Dutch astronomer Petrus Plancius from the observations of Dutch navigators Pieter Dirkszoon Keyser and Frederick de Houtman. The constellation was first depicted in Johann Bayer's star atlas Uranometria in 1603.

Deep Space Objects

Dorado contains most of the Large Magellanic Cloud, an irregular galaxy near the Milky Way. The LMC is home to WOH G64, one of the largest stars known, and to the Tarantula Nebula, the most active star-forming region in our galactic neighbourhood. The South Ecliptic Pole is also located in the direction of Dorado.

In this table, the observation month represents the month in which the object reaches its highest point in the sky. It can also be viewed a few months before and after depending on your location. Direction is the compass direction in which the object is located, with Z meaning Zenith or overhead.