在南半球的夜空中,大麦哲伦星系是一個昏暗的天體,跨立在山案座和劍魚座兩個星座的邊界之間。它的名稱來自航海家斐迪南·麥哲倫,在他繞行地球一週的遠航中觀察了它與小麥哲倫星系(SMC)。(其實早在約西元964年,波斯天文学家阿布德·热哈曼·阿尔苏飞就已經在恆星之書(Book of Fixed Stars)中記錄了這兩個星系。
^Caldwell, J. A. R.; Coulson, I. M. The geometry and distance of the Magellanic Clouds from Cepheid variables. Royal Astronomical Society, Monthly Notices. 1986, 218: 223–246. Bibcode:1986MNRAS.218..223C.引文使用过时参数coauthors (帮助)
^Nikolaev, S.; et al.. Geometry of the Large Magellanic Cloud Disk: Results from MACHO and the Two Micron All Sky Survey. The Astrophysical Journal. 2004, 601 (1): 260–276. Bibcode:2004ApJ...601..260N. doi:10.1086/380439.引文使用过时参数coauthors (帮助)
^Schommer, R. A.; et al.. Spectroscopy of giants in LMC clusters. II - Kinematics of the cluster sample. Astronomical Journal. 1992, 103: 447–459. Bibcode:1992AJ....103..447S. doi:10.1086/116074.引文使用过时参数coauthors (帮助)
^Grocholski, A. J.; et al.. Distances to Populous Clusters in the Large Magellanic Cloud via the K-band Luminosity of the Red Clump. The Astronomical Journal. 2007, 134 (2): 680–693. Bibcode:2007AJ....134..680G. arXiv:0705.2039. doi:10.1086/519735.引文使用过时参数coauthors (帮助)