Star lore
Tucana
Direct answer
Tucana is a far-southern constellation representing a toucan and containing the Small Magellanic Cloud and 47 Tucanae.
Tucana is the Toucan, a polar constellation with a naked-eye galaxy and globular cluster.
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At a glance
- Found in
- Constellations & Star Lore
- Related
- Triangulum, Triangulum Australe, Vela, Virgo Constellation
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The story behind Tucana
Tucana came from late-sixteenth-century Dutch voyages and was published in Bayer's Uranometria.
A one-minute story
The Road of the Sun
Where the twelve signs came from, and why they carry the names they do.
Why Tucana matters
The Small Magellanic Cloud and 47 Tucanae place two fundamentally different stellar systems side by side in appearance.
Tucana in practice: an example
47 Tucanae looks like a compact fuzzy star beside the broader irregular glow of the Small Magellanic Cloud.
Where readings of Tucana go wrong
The globular cluster belongs to the Milky Way, while the Small Magellanic Cloud is a separate dwarf galaxy.
Sources and editorial method
Research references used for this entry include:
- International Astronomical Union: The Constellations - Official names, abbreviations, and boundaries for the 88 modern constellations.
- NASA Space Place: What Are Constellations? - NASA introduction to constellation regions, patterns, visibility, and seasonal sky changes.
- Source
- The Great Almanac Dictionary
- Category
- Constellations & Star Lore
- Last updated
- 2026-09-26
Compare cluster and galaxy in Tucana
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Common questions
What is Tucana?
Tucana is a far-southern constellation representing a toucan and containing the Small Magellanic Cloud and 47 Tucanae.
What do people get wrong about Tucana?
The globular cluster belongs to the Milky Way, while the Small Magellanic Cloud is a separate dwarf galaxy.
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