Hidden Treasure at the Southern Cross

by Esther Iranyi June 25, 2023

The Southern Cross is New Zealand's most well known star constellation.

It features on our countries flag and the Maori know it as Te Punga, the anchor of a great sky waka (canoe) or Māhutonga an opening in the Milky Way through which storm winds escape.

Crux can also be used to find the southern celestial pole.

The Southern celestial pole is a point in the sky, directly above the Earth's south pole, around which all the stars in the southern hemisphere appear to rotate.

Unlike the northern hemisphere where the north star Polaris serves as a guide, the southern celestial pole lacks a bright star marker.

However by extending an imaginary line from the top star of Crux to the bottom star and extending it about four and a half times we can find the approximate position of the southern celestial pole.

Also hidden within the Southern Cross constellation is a little star cluster called the Jewel Box.

This little "A" shaped treasure chest showcases a display of colourful stars, ranging from blue, orange, yellow. It appears as a faint and misty star with bare eyesight.

I’ve enlarged the Jewel box star cluster in this glow in the dark mural to reveal its secrets.

Get a custom mural like this here.