Man staring at the night sky, Atacama Desert, Chile. The band of the Milky Way extends the height of the sky, which is spectacularly layered with stars and clouds of gas and dust, extending in the general direction of our galaxy's heart. The small and large Magellanic Clouds, which lay outside the Milky Way, can also be seen to the right. The brightest star visible at top right is Canopus, in the constellation of Carina.