Canis Major and Winter Clusters

Canis Major and other constellations of winter nights (in the northern hemisphere) display some of the most beautiful star clusters. While some of them are also visible to the naked eye, most are best seen through a binocular or an amateur telescope. Sirius, the alpha star in Canis Major and brightest star in the entire night sky, shines above the tree while the prominent cluster M41 is only few degrees below it. To recognize two other notable clusters in this view move the slider on the image.