Scutum

The Shield

A small, faint summer constellation lying in a bright stretch of the Milky Way, home to the Wild Duck Cluster.

Chart drawn as the sky looks when you face the constellation: north is up and east is to the left. Dot size shows brightness, and color hints at temperature. The connecting lines are one common stick figure; other traditions draw them differently.

Best season: Summer
Best months: June through September, low in the south on summer evenings
Visibility: Visible from the United States, low in the south
Abbreviation: Sct

How to find it

Look between Aquila and Sagittarius in a bright part of the Milky Way.
On a dark night the Scutum Star Cloud shows as a bright patch of Milky Way.

Brightest stars

Alpha Scuti (a modestly bright orange star)

What to look for

The Scutum Star Cloud, a bright knot in the Milky Way that is easy to see on a dark night.
The Wild Duck Cluster in binoculars as a small, fuzzy patch.

Binocular and telescope targets

Wild Duck Cluster (M11): a dense open cluster with hundreds of stars, a showpiece in binoculars and small telescopes
Scutum Star Cloud: a bright patch of the Milky Way, rich in binoculars

Using it to find other things

Scutum lies between Aquila and Sagittarius, along the Milky Way.

About this constellation

Scutum is among the smallest constellations, and it has no bright stars. It matters because it sits in the middle of a very rich stretch of the Milky Way.

The Wild Duck Cluster gets its name from the V-shaped formation of stars that, in a telescope, resembles a flock of ducks in flight.

Related guides

Visibility depends on your latitude, the date, and the time of night. The months above assume a typical evening from the contiguous United States, so use a planetarium app to confirm what is up tonight. Never look at the Sun through binoculars or a telescope without a proper solar filter.

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