Smallest constellation,
Symbol of a nation.
Shining in the Southern skies,
Chosen for the flag that flies
above New Zealand.
Every Kiwi child can show
The Southern Cross, the Crux we know.
Clear and bright in starry night,
Below the Milky Way.
Crux points towards the Southern Pole,
Contains the Coalsack’s starless hole,
The Milky Way’s great nebula,
Black by Crux’s five bright stars.
To view Crux, find the Centaur’s pair
Of brightest stars, and westward veer
On Milky Way, towards the lustre
Of Crux’s brilliant, shining cluster.