In 2001 we went on a cruise around South America and I was the ship’s astronomy lecturer. My job was to help the paying passengers do some stargazing and give them some fun lectures about the stars. It was great fun, and I had a marvelous time getting to know the Southern Hemisphere skies along with my shipmates. One of our favorite areas to look was the constellation Carina, which harbors the great luminous blue variable Eta Carinae. This (probable) double star system is on the verge of tearing itself apart, and when it does the view should be spectacular.

The Nebula itself is made up of cast-off material from the star system, and there is evidence of star-forming activity inside the clouds. So, the whole area is being watched with great interest by those who want to understand the mechanics of starbirth and stardeath.

Of course we couldn’t see any of this from the ship — our view was “limited” to the gaspingly beautiful southern Milky Way and the Magellanic Clouds and all the other sights we don’t get much chance to see from the Northern Hemisphere. The sky is just full of great stuff to study, and if you travel a lot, it enhances your visits to other lands.