Dorado, Mensa, & Reticulum

DORADO the Swordfish, MENSA the Table Mountain, and RETICULUM the Reticule (also spelled Reticle) are three relatively dim constellations seen by residents of the Southern Hemisphere. Geographically in the night sky, these constellations are relatively close to the South Celestial Pole, which is located in the constellation Octans the Octant. The most magnificent feature in the region is the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), which spans the boundaries of Dorado and Mensa. Within the LMC are various nebulae and star-forming regions, including the Tarantula Nebula (NGC 2070 and 30 Doradus) in Dorado and N159 in Mensa. The Papillon Nebula is a nebula within a nebula (N159)! The Tarantula Nebula is an emission nebula about 179,000 light-years away from Earth. In addition to nebulae found in the region, multiple galaxies are found within the boundaries of Dorado and Reticulum. With an apparent magnitude of about 3.27, Alpha Doradus is the brightest star in the three constellations. Finally, the region has multiple binary and variable stars, which are stars in which the brightness often fluctuates. Several variable stars include R Doradus, R Reticuli, TZ Mensae, and U Mensae. NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD) image links - the yellow text below - automatically open in new tabs and windows.

DORADO
Brightest Star: Alpha Doradus (α)
Galaxies: Large Magellanic Cloud; New General Catalogue (NGC) objects: 1515, 1533, 1549, 1553, 1566, 1617, and 1672
Nebulae: N44 emission nebula in the LMC; Tarantula Nebula (NGC 2070)

MENSA
Brightest Star: Alpha Mensae (α)
Galaxy: Large Magellanic Cloud
Nebulae: N159 and Papillon Nebula in the LMC

RETICULUM
Brightest Star: Alpha Reticuli (α)
Galaxies: NGC 1313, NGC 1543, and NGC 1559