ScienceMaster - JumpStart - Constellations


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JumpStart - Space Science
Constellations

I know of nightly star-groups the assemblage
And those that bring to men winter and summer,
Bright dynasts, as they pride them in the aether -
Stars, when they wither, and the uprisings of them.
- Aeschylus, Agamemnon, 4-5

The random arrangement of the stars visible to the naked eye has remained essentially unchanged since the time of the first written records. One of the earliest complete lists we have was compiled in about 120 BC by the Greek astronomer Hipparchus, and all the stars that he described can be found, with the same brightness and in practically the same place, in our skies today.

The Big Dipper
One of the easiest to find groups of stars, the Big Dipper is not a constellation, but rather a part of the constellation Ursa Major. These non-constellation but familiar groups of stars are called asterisms.

The whole sky has been arbitrarily divided into eighty-eight areas, which differ greatly in size and shape. Each area is a "constellation," or group of stars, and was thought to represent a mythical or semi-mythical being. Over half the constellations were recognized and mentioned by Hipparchus (and by Ptolemy, whose star catalogue came down to us through the Moslem scholars as the "Almagest"). The remaining constellations lie in the Southern Hemisphere and were not named until the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

Few of the groups of stars that form constellations look much like the objects they represent. Much imagination is needed to see the "pictures" seen by those gazing at the skies so many years ago.

As the earth moves around the sun in its yearly cycle, the sun appears to "move" through the constellations. The path is known as the ecliptic. The constellations along the ecliptic were given special significance, and became known as the "signs of the zodiac".

In antiquity the beginning of the year was reckoned from the start of spring, called the vernal equinox. The vernal equinox and the autumnal equinox are the two days each year when day and night are equal in length. The constellation through which the sun is passing at the time of vernal equinox changes slowly with the centuries, and therefore the stars associated with the season of spring also change slowly. In the time of Hipparchus the sun was in Aries at the time of vernal equinox; today it is in Pisces, but will soon move into Aquarius (hence we are now at the "dawning of the age of Aquarius"). From tablets found in the Euphrates valley, we find they started the year when the sun was in the constellation Taurus, the "Bull in Front". If the sun was in Taurus at vernal equinox when the constellation was named, the date would have been about 2450 BC!

Read More At:

Constellation Stories
by The Hawaiian Astronomical Society

Constellations & Their Stars
by The University of Wisconsin - Madison

Star Myths
by ALEXANDRIA on the Web

Stars and Star of the Week
University of Illinois

NAMES OF THE CONSTELLATIONS

Andromeda And Andromeda

Antlia Ant The Air Pump

Apus Aps The Bird of Paradise

Aquarius Aqr The Water-Carrier

Aquila Aql The Eagle

Ara Ara The Altar

Aries Ari The Ram

Auriga Aur The Charioteer

Bootes Boo The Herdsman

Caelum Cae The Graving Tool

Camelopardalis Cam The Giraffe

Cancer Cnc The Crab

Canes Venatici CVn The Hunting Dogs

Canis Major CMa The Great Dog

Canis Minor CMi The Little Dog

Capricornus Cap The Goat

Carina Car The Keel

Cassiopeia Cas Cassiopeia

Centaurus Cen The Centaur

Cepheus Cep Cepheus

Cetus Cet The Whale

Chamaeleon Cha The Chameleon

Circinus Cir The Pair of Compasses

Columba Col The Dove

Coma Berenices Com Berenice's Hair

Corona Australis CrA The Sourthern Crown

Corona Borealis CrB The Northern Crown

Corvus Crv The Crow

Crater Crt The Goblet

Crux Cru The Cross

Cygnus Cyg The Swan

Delphinus Del The Dolphin

Dorado Dor The Swordfish

Draco Dra The Dragon

Equuleus Equ The Little Horse

Eridanus Eri The River Eridanus

Fornax For The Furnace

Gemini Gem The Twins

Grus Gru The Crane

Hercules Her Hercules

Horologium Hor The Clock

Hydra Hya The Sea-Serpent

Hydrus Hya The Water-Snake

Indus Ind The Indian

Lacerta Lac The Lizard

Leo Leo The Lion

Leo Minor LMi The Little Lion

Lepus Lep The Hare

Libra Lib The Scales

Lupus Lup The Wolf

Lynx Lyn The Lynx

Lyra Lyr The Lyre

Mensa Men The Table (Mountain)

Microscopium Mic The Microscope

Monoceros Mon The Unicorn

Musca Mus The Fly

Norma Nor The Ruler

Octans Oct The Octant

Ophiuchus Oph The Serpent-Bearer

Orion Ori Orion, the Hunter

Pavo Pav The Peacock

Pegasus Peg Pegagus, the Winged Horse

Perseus Per Perseus

Phoenix Phe The Phoenix

Pictor Pic The Easel

Pisces Psc The Fishes

Piscis Austrinus PsA The Southern Fish

Puppis Psc The Fishes

Pyxis Pyx The Mariner's Compass

Reticulum Ret The Net

Sagitta Sge The Arrow

Sagittarius Sgr The Archer

Scorpio Sco The Scorpion

Sculptor Scl The Sculptor's Tools

Scutum Sct The Shield

Serpens Ser The Serpent

Sextans Sex The Sextant

Taurus Tau The Bull

Telescopium Tel The Telescope

Triangulum Tri The Triangle

Triangulum Australe TrA The Southern Triangle

Tucana Tuc The Toucan

Ursa Major UMa The Great Bear (Big Dipper)

Ursa Minor UMi The Little Bear (Little Dipper)

Vela Vel The Sails

Virgo Vir The Virgin

Volans Vol The Flying Fish

Vulpecula Vul The Fox

*NASA's MSFC and Liftoff
URL: http://liftoff.msfc.nasa.gov/academy/universe/constellation.html

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JumpStart - Space Science Constellations I know of nightly star-groups the assemblage And those that bring to men winter and summer, Bright dynasts, as they pride them in the aether - Stars, when they wither, and the uprisings of them. - Aeschylus, Agamemnon, 4-5

JumpStart - Space Science
Constellations

I know of nightly star-groups the assemblage
And those that bring to men winter and summer,
Bright dynasts, as they pride them in the aether -
Stars, when they wither, and the uprisings of them.
- Aeschylus, Agamemnon, 4-5