Cosmic Doodad

Normally I don’t republish APOD pictures so close to their original posting date, but with a name like The Dark Doodad Nebula, it must be repeated.

What is that strange dark ribbon on the sky? When observing the great globular cluster NGC 4372, observers frequently take note of a strange dark streak nearly three degrees in length running near it. Unnamed, the streak, actually a long molecular cloud, has become known as the Dark Doodad Nebula. (Doodad is slang for a thingy or a whatchamacallit.)