The night sky amazes with its beauty and countless number of heavenly fireflies. What is especially fascinating is that their arrangement is structured, as if they were specially placed in in the right order, forming star systems. Since ancient times, stargazers have tried to count all these myriads of heavenly bodies and give them names. Today, a huge number of stars have been discovered in the sky, but this is only a small part of all existing vast Universe. Let's look at what constellations and luminaries there are.
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Stars and their classification
A star is a celestial body that emits enormous amounts of light and heat.
It consists mainly of helium (lat. Helium), as well as (lat. Hydrogenium).
The celestial body is in a state of equilibrium due to the pressure inside the body itself and its own.
Emits warmth and light as a result of thermonuclear reactions, occurring inside the body.
What types are there depending on life cycle and structure:
- Main sequence. This is the main life cycle of the star. This is exactly what it is, as well as the vast majority of others.
- Brown dwarf. A relatively small, dim object with a low temperature. The first one was opened in 1995.
- White dwarf. At the end of its life cycle, the ball begins to shrink until its density balances gravity. Then it goes out and cools down.
- Red giant. A huge body that emits a large amount of light, but is not very hot (up to 5000 K).
- New. New stars do not light up, just old ones flare up with renewed vigor.
- Supernova. This is the same new one with the release of a large amount of light.
- Hypernova. This is a supernova, but much larger.
- Bright Blue Variables (LBV). The biggest and also the hottest.
- Ultra X-ray sources (ULX). They release large amounts of radiation.
- Neutron. Characterized by rapid rotation and a strong magnetic field.
- Unique. Double, with different sizes.
Types depending from the spectrum:
- Blue.
- White and blue.
- White.
- Yellow-white.
- Yellow.
- Orange.
- Red.
Important! Most of the stars in the sky are entire systems. What we see as one may actually be two, three, five or even hundreds of bodies of one system.
Names of stars and constellations
The stars have always fascinated us. They became the object of study, both from the mystical side (astrology, alchemy) and from the scientific side (astronomy). People looked for them, calculated them, counted them, put them into constellations, and also give them names. Constellations are clusters of celestial bodies located in a certain sequence.
In the sky in certain conditions from different points you can see up to 6 thousand stars. They have their own scientific names, but about three hundred of them also have personal names that they received from ancient times. Stars mostly have Arabic names.
The fact is that when astronomy was actively developing everywhere, the Western world was experiencing the “dark ages”, so its development lagged significantly behind. Here Mesopotamia was most successful, China less so.
The Arabs not only discovered new but they also renamed the heavenly bodies, who already had a Latin or Greek name. They went down in history with Arabic names. The constellations mostly had Latin names.
Brightness depends on the light emitted, size and distance from us. The brightest star is the Sun. It is not the largest, not the brightest, but it is closest to us.
The most beautiful luminaries with the greatest brightness. The first among them:
- Sirius (Alpha Canis Major);
- Canopus (Alpha Carinae);
- Toliman (Alpha Centauri);
- Arcturus (Alpha Bootes);
- Vega (Alpha Lyrae).
Naming periods
Conventionally, we can distinguish several periods in which people gave names to heavenly bodies.
Pre-Antique period
Since ancient times, people have tried to “understand” the sky, and gave the night luminaries names. No more than 20 names from those times have reached us. Scientists from Babylon, Egypt, Israel, Assyria and Mesopotamia worked actively here.
Greek period
The Greeks didn't really delve into astronomy. They gave names to only a small number of luminaries. Mostly, they took names from the names of the constellations or simply attributed existing names. All astronomical knowledge of ancient Greece, as well as Babylon, was collected Greek scientist Ptolemy Claudius(I-II centuries) in the works “Almagest” and “Tetrabiblos”.
Almagest (Great Construction) is the work of Ptolemy in thirteen books, where he, based on the work of Hipparchus of Nicea (c. 140 BC), tries to explain the structure of the Universe. He also lists the names of some of the brightest constellations.
Table of celestial bodies described in the Almagest
| Name of the stars | Name of constellations | Description, location |
| Sirius | Big dog | Located in the mouth of the constellation. She is also called the Dog. The brightest of the night sky. |
| Procyon | Small dog | On the hind legs. |
| Arcturus | Bootes | Did not enter Bootes form. It is located below it. |
| Regulus | a lion | Located in the heart of Leo. Also called Tsarskaya. |
| Spica | Virgo | On the left hand. It has another name - Kolos. |
| Antares | Scorpion | Located in the middle. |
| Vega | Lyra | Located on the sink. Another name is Alpha Lyra. |
| Chapel | Auriga | Left shoulder. Also called - Goat. |
| Canopus | Ship Argo | On the keel of the ship. |
Tetrabiblos is another work of Ptolemy Claudius in four books. The list of celestial bodies is supplemented here.
Roman period
The Roman Empire was engaged in the study of astronomy, but when this science began to actively develop, Rome fell. And behind the state, its science fell into decay. However, about a hundred stars have Latin names, although this does not guarantee that they were given names their scientists are from Rome.
Arab period
The fundamental work of the Arabs in the study of astronomy was the work of Ptolemy Almagest. They translated most of them into Arabic. Based on the religious beliefs of the Arabs, they replaced the names of some of the luminaries. Names were often given based on the location of the body in the constellation. So, many of them have names or parts of names meaning neck, leg or tail.
Table of Arabic names
| Arabic name | Meaning | Stars with Arabic names | Constellation |
| Ras | Head | Alpha Hercules | Hercules |
| Algenib | Side | Alpha Persei, Gamma Persei | Perseus |
| Menkib | Shoulder | Alpha Orionis, Alpha Pegasus, Beta Pegasus, Beta Aurigae, Zeta Persei, Phita Centauri |
Pegasus, Perseus, Orion, Centaurus, Auriga |
| Rigel | Leg | Alpha Centauri, Beta Orionis, Mu Virgo | Centaurus, Orion, Virgo |
| Rukba | Knee | Alpha Sagittarius, Delta Cassiopeia, Upsilon Cassiopeia, Omega Cygnus | Sagittarius, Cassiopeia, Swan |
| Sheat | Shin | Beta Pegasus, Delta Aquarii | Pegasus, Aquarius |
| Mirfak | Elbow | Alpha Persei, Capa Hercules, Lambda Ophiuchus, Phita and Mu Cassiopeia | Perseus, Ophiuchus, Cassiopeia, Hercules |
| Menkar | Nose | Alpha Ceti, Lambda Ceti, Upsilon Crow | Keith, Raven |
| Markab | That which moves | Alpha Pegasus, Tau Pegasus, Cape of Sails | Ship Argo, Pegasus |
Renaissance
Since the 16th century in Europe, antiquity has been revived, and with it science. Arabic names did not change, but Arabic-Latin hybrids often appeared.
New clusters of celestial bodies were practically not discovered, but old ones were supplemented with new objects. A significant event of that time was the release of the starry atlas “Uranometry”.
Its compiler was the amateur astronomer Johann Bayer (1603). On the atlas he painted an artistic image of the constellations.
And most importantly, he suggested principle of naming luminaries with the addition of letters of the Greek alphabet. The brightest body of the constellation will be called “Alpha”, the less bright “Beta” and so on until “Omega”. For example, the most bright Star Scorpio - Alpha Scorpii, less bright Beta Scorpii, then Gamma Scorpii, etc.
Nowadays
With the advent of powerful ones, a huge number of luminaries began to be discovered. Now they are not given beautiful names, but are simply assigned an index with a digital and alphabetic code. But it happens that celestial bodies are given personal names. They are called by names scientific discoverers, and now you can even buy the opportunity to name the luminary as you wish.
Important! The sun is not part of any constellation.
What are the constellations?
Initially, the figures were figures formed by bright luminaries. Nowadays scientists use them as landmarks of the celestial sphere.
The most famous constellations in alphabetical order:
- Andromeda. Located in the northern hemisphere of the celestial sphere.
- Twins. The brightest luminaries are Pollux and Castor. Zodiac sign.
- Big Dipper. Seven stars forming the image of a ladle.
- Big Dog. It has the brightest star in the sky - Sirius.
- Scales. Zodiac, consisting of 83 objects.
- Aquarius. Zodiac, with an asterism forming a jug.
- Auriga. Its most outstanding object is the Chapel.
- Wolf. Located in the southern hemisphere.
- Bootes. The brightest luminary is Arcturus.
- Veronica's hair. Consists of 64 visible objects.
- Crow. It is best seen in mid-latitudes.
- Hercules. Has 235 visible objects.
- Hydra. The most important luminary is Alphard.
- Pigeon. 71 bodies of the southern hemisphere.
- Hound Dogs. 57 visible objects.
- Virgo. Zodiacal, with the brightest body - Spica.
- Dolphin. Visible everywhere except Antarctica.
- The Dragon. Northern hemisphere, practically a pole.
- Unicorn. Located on the milky way.
- Altar. 60 visible stars.
- Painter. Includes 49 objects.
- Giraffe. Faintly visible in the northern hemisphere.
- Crane. The brightest is Alnair.
- Hare. 72 celestial bodies.
- Ophiuchus. The 13th sign of the zodiac, but not included in this list.
- Snake. 106 luminaries.
- Golden Fish. 32 objects visible to the naked eye.
- Indian. Faintly visible constellation.
- Cassiopeia. It's shaped like the letter "W".
- Keel. 206 objects.
- Whale. Located in the “water” zone of the sky.
- Capricorn. Zodiac, southern hemisphere.
- Compass. 43 visible luminaries.
- Stern. Located on the milky way.
- Swan. Located in the northern part.
- A lion. Zodiac, northern part.
- Flying fish. 31 objects.
- Lyra. The brightest luminary is Vega.
- Chanterelle. Dim.
- Ursa Minor. Located above the North Pole. It has the North Star.
- Small Horse. 14 luminaries
- Small Dog. Bright constellation.
- Microscope. South part.
- Fly. At the equator.
- Pump. Southern sky.
- Square. Passes through the Milky Way.
- Aries. Zodiacal, having bodies Mezarthim, Hamal and Sheratan.
- Octant. At the South Pole.
- Eagle. At the equator.
- Orion. Has a bright object - Rigel.
- Peacock. Southern Hemisphere.
- Sail. 195 luminaries of the southern hemisphere.
- Pegasus. South of Andromeda. Its brightest stars are Markab and Enif.
- Perseus. It was discovered by Ptolemy. The first object is Mirfak.
- Bake. Almost invisible.
- Bird of paradise. Located near the south pole.
- Cancer. Zodiac, faintly visible.
- Cutter. South part.
- Fish. A large constellation divided into two parts.
- Lynx. 92 visible luminaries.
- Northern Crown. Crown shape.
- Sextant. At the equator.
- Net. Consists of 22 objects.
- Scorpion. The first luminary is Antares.
- Sculptor. 55 celestial bodies.
- Sagittarius. Zodiac.
- Calf. Zodiac. Aldebaran is the brightest object.
- Triangle. 25 stars.
- Toucan. This is where the Small Magellanic Cloud is located.
- Phoenix. 63 luminaries.
- Chameleon. Small and dim.
- Centaurus. Its brightest star for us, Proxima Centauri, is the closest to the Sun.
- Cepheus. Has the shape of a triangle.
- Compass. Near Alpha Centauri.
- Watch. It has an elongated shape.
- Shield. Near the equator.
- Eridanus. Big constellation.
- South Hydra. 32 celestial bodies.
- Southern Crown. Dimly visible.
- Southern Fish. 43 objects.
- South Cross. In the form of a cross.
- Southern Triangle. Has the shape of a triangle.
- Lizard. No bright objects.
What are the constellations of the Zodiac?
Zodiac signs - constellations through which the earth passes through throughout the year, forming a conditional ring around the system. Interestingly, there are 12 accepted zodiac signs, although Ophiuchus, which is not considered a zodiac, is also located on this ring.
Attention! There are no constellations.
By and large, there are no figures at all made up of celestial bodies.
After all, when we look at the sky, we perceive it as plane in two dimensions, but the luminaries are located not on a plane, but in space, at a huge distance from each other.
They do not form any pattern.
Let's say that light from Proxima Centauri, closest to the Sun, reaches us in almost 4.3 years.
And from another object of the same star system, Omega Centauri, it reaches the earth in 16 thousand years. All divisions are quite arbitrary.
Constellations and stars - sky map, interesting facts
Names of stars and constellations
Conclusion
It is impossible to calculate a reliable number of celestial bodies in the Universe. You can't even get close to the exact number. Stars unite into galaxies. Our Milky Way galaxy alone numbers about 100,000,000,000. From Earth using the most powerful telescopes About 55,000,000,000 galaxies can be detected. With the advent of the Hubble telescope, which is in orbit around the Earth, scientists have discovered about 125,000,000,000 galaxies, each with billions, hundreds of billions of objects. What is clear is that there are at least a trillion trillion luminaries in the Universe, but this is only a small part of what is real.
Constellations have accompanied people since ancient times: they were used to navigate the road, plan household work, and tell fortunes. Today people depend less on celestial bodies, but their study does not stop. continue to appear and amaze astronomy lovers.
- Previously, constellations were considered figures that form stars, but today they are areas of the celestial sphere with conventional boundaries and all celestial bodies on their territory. In 1930, the number of constellations was fixed at 88, of which 47 were described before our era, but the names and titles given to star figures in ancient times are still used today.
- The southern side of the sky began to be carefully studied with the beginning of the Great geographical discoveries, but the northern one was not ignored either. By the end of the 17th century, atlases of the starry sky were published with descriptions of 22 new constellations. On the map of the sky of the southern hemisphere, the Triangle, the Indian, the Bird of Paradise appeared, and the Giraffe, Shield, Sextant and other figures were highlighted above the northern side. The last figures to be formed were above the South Pole of the earth, and their names often contain the names of various devices - Clock, Pump, Telescope, Compass, Compass.
- In the list of Claudius Ptolemy, an astronomer of the 2nd century BC, there are 48 names of constellations, 47 of them have survived to this day. The lost cluster was called the Ship or Argo (the ship of the Hellas hero Jason, who obtained the Golden Fleece). In the 18th century, the Ship was divided into 4 smaller figures - Stern, Keel, Sail, Compass. On ancient star maps, the place of the Compass was taken by a mast.
- The static nature of stars is deceptive - without special instruments it is impossible to detect their movement relative to each other. Changes in location would become noticeable if a person had the opportunity to see the constellations after at least 26 thousand years.
- There are usually 12 zodiac signs - this distinction occurred more than 4.5 thousand years ago in Ancient Egypt. Today, astronomers have calculated that in the period from November 27 to December 17, another zodiac constellation, Ophiuchus, rises on the horizon.
- Hydra is considered the largest of the star figures, it occupies 3.16% of the starry sky and stretches in a long strip across a quarter of the sky, located in the northern and southern hemispheres.
- The brightest stars in the northern hemisphere belong to Orion, 209 of them are visible to the naked eye. The most interesting space objects in this part of the sky are the “Orion Belt” and the Orion Nebula.
- The brightest constellation in the southern sky and the smallest among all existing clusters is the Southern Cross.. Its four stars were used by sailors for orientation for several thousand years; the Romans called them the “Throne of the Emperor,” but the Cross was registered as an independent constellation only in 1589.
- Closest to solar system constellation – Pleiades, the flight to it is only 410 light years. The Pleiades consists of 3000 stars, among which 9 are especially bright. Scientists find their images on objects in different parts of the world, since many peoples in ancient times fervently revered the Pleiades.
- The least bright constellation is Table Mountain. It is located far in the south, in the region of Antarctica, and consists of 24 stars, the brightest of which reach only the fifth magnitude.
- The closest star to the Sun, Proxima, is located in the constellation Centaurus, but after 9 thousand years it will be replaced by Barnard's star from the constellation Ophiuchus. The distance from the Sun to Proxima is 4.2 light years, from Barnard's star - 6 light years.
- The oldest map of constellations dates back to the 2nd century BC. Created by Hipparchus of Nicaea, it became the basis for the work of astronomers of later times.
- Some astronomers tried to divide large constellations in order to get new ones, give them their own names, usually associated with the names of rulers and generals, and become famous. The clergy tried to replace pagan names with the names of saints. But these ideas did not take root, and except for the Shield, which was previously called the “Shield of Jan Sobieski”, in honor of the Polish military leader, none of the names survived.
- Since ancient Rus', the characteristic dipper of the Big Dipper has been associated with a horse. In the old days it was called “A Horse at a Jump,” and Ursa Minor was not considered a separate constellation - its stars formed a “rope” with which the horse was “tied” to the Polar Star - a joke.
- Star figures adorn the flags of New Zealand and Alaska. The four-star Southern Cross was adopted as part of the flag of Zealand in 1902. Alaska's flags feature the Big Dipper and the North Star.
A constellation is a section of the celestial sphere with all the celestial objects projected onto it from the point of view of an earthly observer.
The word "constellation" (from the Latin constellatio) means "a collection (or group) of stars." In ancient times, “constellations” were expressive groups of stars that helped to remember the pattern of the starry sky and, with its help, navigate in space and time. Each nation had its own traditions of dividing stars into constellations. The constellations used by modern astronomers mostly have names and include bright stars traditional for European culture.
For many centuries, the constellations did not have clearly defined boundaries; Usually on maps and star globes, constellations were separated by curved, intricate lines that did not have a standard position. Therefore, from the moment of the formation of the International Astronomical Union (IAU), one of its first tasks was the delimitation of the starry sky. At the 1st General Assembly of the IAU, held in 1922 in Rome, astronomers decided that it was time to finally divide the entire celestial sphere into parts with precisely defined boundaries and, by the way, put an end to any attempts to reshape the starry sky. In the names of the constellations, it was decided to adhere to the Latin names of the constellations. At the IAU general assemblies in 1925 and 1928, lists of constellations were adopted and the boundaries between most of them were approved. In 1930, on behalf of the IAU, Belgian astronomer Eugene Delporte published maps and detailed descriptions of the new boundaries of all 88 constellations. But even after this, some clarifications were still made, and only in 1935, by decision of the IAU, this work was completed.
There are 88 constellations officially recognized by the International Astronomical Union. They are all listed below in alphabetical order. Latin names and official abbreviations are also indicated.
The apparent area of a constellation is determined by the solid angle it occupies in the sky; it is usually indicated in square degrees. For comparison: the disks of the Moon or the Sun occupy an area of about 0.2 square meters in the sky. degrees, and the area of the entire celestial sphere is about 41253 square meters. hail
Ancient constellations. People's first ideas about the starry sky came to us from the pre-literate period of history: they were preserved in material cultural monuments. Archaeologists and astronomers have found that the most ancient asterisms - characteristic groups of bright stars - were identified by man in the sky back in the Stone Age, more than 15 thousand years ago. Some researchers believe that the first celestial images appeared simultaneously with the birth of the first drawings embodied in rock paintings, when the development of the left (logical) hemisphere of the human brain made it possible to identify an object with its flat image.
CONSTELLATIONS IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER OF RUSSIAN NAMES
| Russian name | Latin name | Designation | Right ascension | Declension | Area, sq. hail | Number of visible stars |
| Andromeda | Andromeda | And | 1 | +40 | 722 | 100 |
| Twins | Gemini | Gem | 7 | +20 | 514 | 70 |
| Big Dipper | Ursa Major | UMa | 11 | +50 | 1280 | 125 |
| Big Dog | Canis Major | CMa | 7 | -20 | 380 | 80 |
| Scales | Libra | Lib | 15 | -15 | 538 | 50 |
| Aquarius | Aqr | Aqr | 23 | -15 | 980 | 90 |
| Auriga | Auriga | Aur | 6 | +40 | 657 | 90 |
| Wolf | Lupus | Lup | 15 | -45 | 334 | 70 |
| Bootes | Boots | Boo | 15 | +30 | 907 | 90 |
| Veronica's hair | Coma Berenices | Com | 13 | +20 | 386 | 50 |
| Crow | Corvus | Crv | 12 | -20 | 184 | 15 |
| Hercules | Hercules | Her | 17 | +30 | 1225 | 140 |
| Hydra | Hydra | Hya | 10 | -20 | 1303 | 130 |
| Pigeon | Columba | Col | 6 | -35 | 270 | 40 |
| Hound Dogs | Canes Venatici | CVn | 13 | +40 | 465 | 30 |
| Virgo | Virgo | Vir | 13 | 0 | 1294 | 85 |
| Dolphin | Delphinus | Del | 21 | +10 | 189 | 30 |
| The Dragon | Draco | Dra | 17 | +65 | 1083 | 80 |
| Unicorn | Monoceros | Mon | 7 | -5 | 482 | 85 |
| Altar | Ara | Ara | 17 | -55 | 237 | 30 |
| Painter | Pictor | Pic | 6 | -55 | 247 | 30 |
| Giraffe | Camelopardalis | Cam | 6 | +70 | 757 | 50 |
| Crane | Grus | Gru | 22 | -45 | 366 | 30 |
| Hare | Lepus | Lep | 6 | -20 | 290 | 40 |
| Ophiuchus | Ophiuchus | Oph | 17 | 0 | 948 | 100 |
| Snake | Serpens | Ser | 16 | +10 | 429 | 60 |
| Golden Fish | Dorado | Dor | 5 | -65 | 179 | 20 |
| Indus | Ind | 21 | -55 | 249 | 20 | |
| Cassiopeia | Cassiopeia | Cas | 1 | +60 | 598 | 90 |
| Centaur (Centaurus) | Centaurus | Cen | 13 | -50 | 1060 | 150 |
| Keel | Carina | Car | 9 | -60 | 494 | 110 |
| Whale | Cetus | Set | 2 | -10 | 1231 | 100 |
| Capricorn | Capricornus | Cap | 21 | -20 | 414 | 50 |
| Compass | Pyxis | Pyx | 9 | -30 | 221 | 25 |
| Stern | Puppis | Pup | 8 | -40 | 673 | 140 |
| Swan | Cygnus | Cyg | 21 | +40 | 604 | 150 |
| a lion | Leo | Leo | 11 | +15 | 947 | 70 |
| Flying fish | Volans | Vol | 8 | -70 | 141 | 20 |
| Lyra | Lyra | Lyr | 19 | 40 | 286 | 45 |
| Chanterelle | Vulpecula | Vul | 20 | +25 | 268 | 45 |
| Ursa Minor | Ursa Minor | UMi | 15 | +70 | 256 | 20 |
| Small Horse | Equuleus | Equ | 21 | +10 | 72 | 10 |
| Little Leo | Leo Minor | LMi | 10 | +35 | 232 | 20 |
| Small Dog | Canis Minor | CMi | 8 | +5 | 183 | 20 |
| Microscope | Microscopium | Mic | 21 | -35 | 210 | 20 |
| Fly | Musca | Mus | 12 | -70 | 138 | 30 |
| Pump | Antlia | Ant | 10 | -35 | 239 | 20 |
| Square | Nor | Norma | 16 | -50 | 165 | 20 |
| Aries | Aries | Ari | 3 | +20 | 441 | 50 |
| Octant | Octans | Oct | 22 | -85 | 291 | 35 |
| Eagle | Aquila | Aql | 20 | +5 | 652 | 70 |
| Orion | Orion | Ori | 5 | +5 | 594 | 120 |
| Peacock | Pavo | Pav | 20 | -65 | 378 | 45 |
| Sail | Vela | Vel | 9 | -50 | 500 | 110 |
| Pegasus | Pegasus | Peg | 22 | +20 | 1121 | 100 |
| Perseus | Perseus | Per | 3 | +45 | 615 | 90 |
| v | Fornax | For | 3 | -30 | 398 | 35 |
| Birds of Paradise | Apus | Aps | 16 | -75 | 206 | 20 |
| Cancer | Cancer | Cnc | 9 | +20 | 506 | 60 |
| Cutter | Caelum | Cae | 5 | -40 | 125 | 10 |
| Fish | Pisces | Psc | 1 | +15 | 889 | 75 |
| Lynx | Lynx | Lyn | 8 | +45 | 549 | 60 |
| Northern Crown | Corona Borealis | CrB | 16 | +30 | 179 | 20 |
| Sextant | Sextans | Sex | 10 | 0 | 314 | 25 |
| Net | Reticulum | Ret | 4 | -60 | 114 | 15 |
| Scorpion | Scorpius | Sco | 17 | -40 | 497 | 100 |
| Sculptor | Sculptor | Scl | 0 | -30 | 475 | 30 |
| Table Mountain | Mensa | Men | 5 | -80 | 153 | 15 |
| Arrow | Sagitta | Sge | 20 | +10 | 80 | 20 |
| Sagittarius | Sagittarius | Sgr | 19 | -25 | 867 | 115 |
| Telescope | Telescopium | Tel | 19 | -50 | 252 | 30 |
| Taurus | Taurus | Tau | 4 | +15 | 797 | 125 |
| Triangle | Triangulum | v | 2 | +30 | 132 | 15 |
| Toucan | Tucana | Tuc | 0 | -65 | 295 | 25 |
| Phoenix | Phoenix | Phe | 1 | -50 | 469 | 40 |
| Chameleon | Chamaeleon | Cha | 11 | -80 | 132 | 20 |
| Cepheus | Cepheus | Cep | 22 | +70 | 588 | 60 |
| Compass | Circinus | Cir | 15 | -60 | 93 | 20 |
| Watch | Horologium | Hor | 3 | -60 | 249 | 20 |
| Bowl | Crater | Crt | 11 | -15 | 282 | 20 |
| Shield | Scutum | Sct | 19 | -10 | 109 | 20 |
| Eridanus | Eridanus | Eri | 3 | -20 | 1138 | 100 |
| South Hydra | Hydrus | Hyi | 2 | -75 | 243 | 20 |
| Southern Crown | Corona Australia | CrA | 19 | -40 | 128 | 25 |
| Southern Fish | Piscis Austrinus | PsA | 22 | -30 | 245 | 25 |
| South Cross | Crux | Cru | 12 | -60 | 68 | 30 |
| Southern Triangle | Triangulum Australe | TaA | 16 | -65 | 110 | 20 |
| Lizard | Lacerta | Lac | 22 | +45 | 201 | 35 |
Canceled constellations
· α, β, ε and η of the Argo ship became α, β, ε and η of the Keel,
· γ and δ of the Argo Ship became γ and δ Sails, v · ζ of the Argo Ship became ζ Stern, etc.
The constellation was used by Bartsch, who published it in his celestial charts of 1642. Bartsch, however, believed that the constellation depicted a bee, and in the description indicated that it depicted one of the bees mentioned in the biblical story of Samson killing a lion. Present in “Uranography” by Jan Hevelius.
constellation, introduced by Jan Hevelius in 1690 in the celestial atlas “Uranography”. It has not been accepted by the astronomical community and is not included in the list of modern constellations. In Hevelia's atlas, he depicted the three-headed dragon-like dog Kerberus, married by the mighty hand of Hercules (constellation Hercules). Now included in the constellation Hercules. The constellation Turtle (lat. Testudo) occurs three times in different eras in the history of astronomy.
· In antiquity, the constellation Lyra was sometimes called the Turtle. This is connected with the famous Greek myth of Hermes, which tells how this god, while still an infant, first made a lyre from a tortoise shell.
· In the mid-18th century, the English naturalist John Hill proposed a number of new constellations, including the Turtle. The constellation has never been used. (See Jonah Hill's constellations.)
· Finally, in 1844, Admiral of the English Royal Navy William Henry Smith, cartographer and astronomer, member of the Royal Astronomical Society, published the work “Cycle of Celestial Objects”, in the first part devoted to general astronomy. The constellation Turtle is mentioned there. However, it is unknown whether Smith was the true author of this constellation. The constellation was located between Pisces and Cetus in the so-called “sea” part of the sky. It was probably this sea turtle, which recalls the author’s naval service. The constellation did not last long.
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To planetarium lecture-goers who craned their necks to see the stars projected above their heads, I used to repeat: “If you can’t see the Big Dipper overhead, don’t worry. sees".
Ancient people divided the sky into imaginary figures, such as Ursa Major, Cygnus, Perseus and Andromeda. Each figure corresponded to a certain configuration of stars. Although, to be honest, for most people Andromeda does not at all resemble the silhouette of a chained girl or anything else like that (Fig. 1.2).
Rice. 1.2. Is Andromeda chained?
Today the sky is divided into 88 constellations, which include all visible stars. The International Astronomical Union, the highest governing body in astronomy, defines the boundaries of constellations so that there is a clear distinction as to which constellation each star belongs to. Previously, sky maps were drawn by different astronomers who did not adhere to common standards. But it doesn't have to be that way. When you read that the Tarantula Nebula is located in the Dorado constellation (details in Chapter 12), you know that you need to look for it in the Dorado constellation, located in the Southern Hemisphere.
The largest constellation is Hydra, and the smallest is the Southern Cross. There is actually a Northern Cross, but you won't find it in the list of constellations because it is an asterism in the constellation Cygnus. There is general agreement on the names of the constellations, but there is no agreement on what each name means. For example, some astronomers call the constellation Doradus "Swordfish", but I am in favor of rejecting this name. And the constellation Serpens is divided into two disconnected parts located on both sides of the constellation Ophiuchus - the Head of the Serpent (Serpens Caput) and the Tail of the Serpent (Serpens Cauda).
Individual stars in a constellation are usually not connected in any way, they just appear to be located nearby from Earth. Some stars may be located relatively close to Earth, while others may be at much greater distances. But for an observer from Earth they form a certain pattern.
As a rule, all the bright stars in a constellation were assigned a Greek letter by the ancient Greeks or astronomers of later times. The brightest star in any constellation is usually called "alpha" (the first letter of the Greek alphabet). The second brightest star is called "beta" (the second letter of the Greek alphabet), etc.
That's why Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky - which is in the constellation Canis Major - is called Alpha Canis Majoris. (Astronomers add endings to names to get the Latin genitive case. What can you do, scientists have always loved Latin.) In Table. 1.1 shows a list of letters of the Greek alphabet in order - the names of the letters and their corresponding symbols.
But if you look at the constellations today, it becomes clear that the order of brightness of the stars does not always exactly correspond to the Greek letters indicated on the star map. These exceptions are caused by the following.
Letters were assigned based on naked eye observations, which are not very accurate.
Many minor constellations and constellations of the Southern Hemisphere were mapped not in time Ancient Greece, but much later, so the previous rules were not always followed.
Many centuries after the ancient Greeks, the brightness of some stars changed.
An example is the constellation Vulpecula, in which only one star is assigned a Greek letter (alpha).
Astronomers don't have special names, such as Sirius, for each star in the constellation Canis Major, so they simply name them with Greek letters or other symbols. In fact, there are constellations in which there is not a single named star. (Do not “buy” advertising that offers to name a star for a certain amount of money. The International Astronomical Union does not recognize “purchased” star names.) In other constellations, the stars were assigned Greek letters, but it turned out that there were more than 24 easily distinguishable stars in them, and there were not enough Greek letters. Therefore, astronomers have assigned numbers and letters of the Latin alphabet to many stars: for example, 236 Cygni, b Vulpeculae, HR 1516, etc. There are even stars called RU Lupi and SX Sex (honestly, I mean that I didn’t make it up at all). But like any other stars, they can be identified not by their names, but by their position in the sky (indicated in astronomical tables), brightness, color and other characteristics.
If you look in a star atlas, you will see that individual stars in the constellation are not marked as d. When in some astronomical magazine you read about a star that is proposed in the list of objects to observe, then most likely it will not be mentioned either as Alpha Canis Majoris, not even as Cma; "Cma" is an abbreviation of Canis Majoris. Abbreviated designations of constellations are given in table. 1.2.
Because alpha is not always the brightest star in a constellation, another term is needed to describe the "high" status of the brightest star. This term - lucida(lucida). Lucida Canis Majoris - Sirius (in in this case- just 46 Leo Minoris.
In table 1.2 lists 88 constellations, their brightest stars and the magnitudes of the latter. Magnitude is a measure of the brightness of a star. (We'll talk about magnitudes a little later in the section "Smaller is Brighter: What is Magnitude.") If a constellation's lucida coincides with its alpha and it has a name, I'll just give it. For example, the brightest star in the constellation Auriga is Capella, aka
Identifying stars would be much easier if, like conference delegates, they had little name tags that could be seen through a telescope.