In some strange and mysterious way, the four stars that comprise the constellation Crux — better known as the Southern Cross — have come to represent the lands that lie below the equator.
Travelers in the Southern Hemisphere eagerly look for their first glimpse of the Cross. Crux certainly looks like an almost perfect small cross, perhaps marred to a slight degree by a dim, superfluous fifth star. (Two of the main four stars, Acrux and Becrux, are of first-magnitude brightness.)
Like the Big Dipper of the northern sky, the Southern Cross indicates the location of the pole and as such is often utilized by navigators. The longer bar of the Cross points almost exactly toward the south pole of the sky, which some aviators and navigators have named the "south polar pit" because, unfortunately, it is not marked by any bright star.
Acrux (-493.445323;705.4917993)
Gacrux (-617.9098973;885.965432)
Alpha Centauri (-965.215678;372.421357)
Beta Centauri (-865.215678;572.421357)
