Dorado,Mensa & Volans

 Dorado is a constellation in the southern sky.

Its name refers to the dolphinfish, which is known as dorado in Spanish, 

although it has also been depicted as a swordfish.

 The South Ecliptic pole also lies within this constellation .the location of the South Ecliptic pole, which lies near the fish's head. The pole was called "Polus Doradinalis" by Willem Jansson Blaeu.

This constellation contains more than half of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), a satellite of the Milky Way Galaxy and one of the nearest galaxies to Earth at a distance of 160,000 light-years. 

The LMC is home to S Doradus, one of the most luminous stars, and Supernova 1987A, the nearest supernova to Earth in more than 350 years.           

                             S Doradus

                                                                       Supernova 1987A  

Its name comes from the Spanish word for the dolphinfish, which lives in the Pacific Ocean and is also commonly known by the Hawaiian name mahimahi.(strong-strong).

Mensa is a constellation in the Southern Celestial Hemisphere near the south celestial pole.

Mensa was created by Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille out of dim Southern Hemisphere stars in honor of Table Mountain.

He recalled that the Magellanic Clouds were sometimes known as Cape clouds, and that Table Mountain was often covered in clouds when a southeasterly stormy wind blew.

 Hence he made a "table" in the sky under the clouds.

                         

 Its name is Latin for table.

Table Mountain  is a flat-topped mountain forming a prominent landmark overlooking the city of Cape Town in South Africa.

View of Table Mountain and Cape Town seen from Bloubergstrand. Table Mountain is flanked by Devil's Peak on the left and Lion's Head on the right.

It is a significant tourist attraction, with many visitors using the cableway or hiking to the top was known as "Mons Mensae".

Mensa contains no Messier objects but does contain part of the Large Magellanic Cloud, or LMC. 

The LMC is an irregular galaxy located outside our Milky Way Galaxy.

 It is the third closest galaxy to our own and is one of the few galaxies that can be seen with the naked eye. 

The rest of the LMC is located in the constellation Dorado.

 Other deep-sky objects in Mensa include an open star cluster called NGC 1987 and a spiral galaxy known as IC 2051. 

Both of these objects are extremely dim and can only be seen with a large telescope.

                                                            NGC 1987

Mensa is bordered by Dorado to the north, Hydrus to the northwest and west, Octans to the south, Chamaeleon to the east and Volans to the northeast.

Volans is a constellation in the southern sky. It represents a flying fish; its name is a shortened form of its original name, Piscis Volans.

                                     Meathook Galaxy (NGC 2442)

Volans represents a type of tropical fish that can jump out of the water and glide through the air on wings.

 In early celestial maps, the flying fish was often depicted as accompanying the ship Argo Navis, and being chased by the predatory fish represented by the adjoining constellation Dorado.

Volans contains several notable deep sky objects, among them the Lindsay-Shapley Ring (AM0644-741), the Meathook Galaxy (NGC 2442), and the spiral galaxy NGC 2397.