Constellation

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Ten things you may not know about Wikipedia Jump to: navigation, search This article is about the star grouping. For other uses, see Constellation (disambiguation).

/wi i/!mage:"rion#constellation#map.png

/wi i/!mage:"rion#constellation#map.png

/wi i/!mage:"rion#constellation#map.png/wi i/!mage:"rion#constellation#map.png"rion is a remar able constellation, visible $rom most places on the globe at one time or another during the %ear. The constellation o$ "rion is the area outlined in the dashed %ellow line. "rion contains a stri ing and well& nown star pattern that has the $orm o$ a hunter.

/wi i/!mage:"rion'()*.+pg/wi i/!mage:"rion'()*.+pg /wi i/!mage:"rion'()*.+pg/wi i/!mage:"rion'()*.+pg,hoto o$ the $amiliar constellation "rion. - constellation is a group o$ stars that are connected together to $orm a $igure or picture. The term is also traditionall% and less $ormall% used to mean an% group o$ stars visibl% related to each other, i$ the% are considered as a $i.ed con$iguration or pattern in a particular culture. /ome well& nown constellations contain stri ing and $amiliar patterns o$ bright stars. *.amples are "rion (containing a $igure o$ a hunter), 0eo (containing bright stars outlining the $orm o$ a lion), /corpius (a scorpion), and Cru. (a cross). The !nternational -stronomical 1nion (!-1) divides the s % into 22 o$$icial constellations3'4 with e.act boundaries, so that ever% direction or place in the s % belongs within one constellation. !n the northern celestial hemisphere, these are mostl% based upon the constellations o$ the ancient 5ree tradition, passed down through the 6iddle -ges, and contains the signs o$ the 7odiac. The sun appears to pass through the '8 constellations o$ the 7odiac (plus "phiuchus) and ancient 5ree astronomers believed the% had a special signi$icance.3 citation needed4 The constellation boundaries were drawn up b% *ug9ne :elporte in ';<=, and he drew them along vertical and hori7ontal lines o$ right ascension and declination. >owever, he did so $or the epoch ?'2)@.=, the era when ?en+amin -. 5ould made the proposal on which :elporte based his wor . The conseAuence o$ the earl% date is that due to precession o$ the eAuino.es, the borders on a modern star map (eg, $or epoch J8===) are alread% somewhat s ewed and no longer per$ectl% vertical or hori7ontal. This s ew will increase over the %ears and centuries to come. !n three&dimensional space, most o$ the stars we see have little or no relation to one another, but can appear to be grouped on the celestial sphere o$ the night s %. - star pattern ma% be widel% nown but ma% not be recogni7ed b% the !nternational -stronomical 1nionB such a pattern o$ stars is called an asterism. -n e.ample is the grouping called the Big Dipper (Corth -merica) or the ,lough (1D). The stars in a constellation or asterism rarel% have an% astroph%sical relationship to each otherB the% +ust happen to appear close together in the s % as viewed $rom *arth and t%picall% lie man% light&%ears apart in space. >owever, one e.ception to this is the 1rsa 6a+or moving group. The grouping o$ stars into constellations is essentiall% arbitrar%, and di$$erent cultures have had di$$erent constellations, although a $ew o$ the more obvious ones tend to recur $reAuentl%, e.g., "rion and /corpius. The $irst ancient 5ree wor s which dealt with the constellations were boo s o$ star m%ths. The oldest o$ these was a poem composed b% >esiod in circa the eighth centur% ?C*, o$ which onl% $ragments survive. The% now that this constellation are superstitious. The most complete e.tant wor s dealing with the m%thical origins o$ the constellations are b% the >ellenistic writer termed pseudo&*ratosthenes and an earl% Eoman writer st%led pseudo&>%ginus.

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3hide4 ' :ar cloud constellations 8 Chinese constellations < !ndian constellations F Constellation names and star designations @ /ee also G Ee$erences ) *.ternal lin s

[edit] Dark cloud constellations

6embers o$ the !nca civili7ation identi$ied various dar areas in the 6il % Ha% as animals, and associated their appearance with the seasonal rains. These areas are commonl% re$erred to b% modern researchers as dark cloud constellations384 or dar nebula.

[edit] Chinese constellations

Main article: Chinese constellation
Chinese constellations are di$$erent $rom the Hestern constellations, due to the independent development o$ ancient Chinese astronom%. -ncient Chinese s %watchers divided their night s % in a di$$erent wa%, but there are also similarities. The Chinese counterpart o$ the '8 western 7odiac constellations are the 82 IJiuI () or ImansionsI (a literal translation). Encountered in China,these constellations were thousands of years old,a popular constellation,Aries,is a Chinese constellation.

[edit] Indian constellations

!n >indu/Kedic astronom% Eashi means constellation. -ccordingl% in a Celestial Lodiac, there are '8 Eashis altogether comprising '8 Ca shatras.

Main article: Nakshatra

[edit] Constellation names and star designations

-ll modern constellation names are 0atin proper names or words, and some stars are named using the genitive, or sometimes the ablative o$ the constellation in which the% are $ound. These are $ormed b% using the usual rules o$ 0atin grammar, and $or those un$amiliar with that language the $orm o$ the genitive is sometimes unpredictable and must be memori7ed. /ome e.amples include: -ries M -rietisB Taurus M TauriB 5emini M 5eminorumB Kirgo M KirginisB 0ibra M 0ibraeB ,isces M ,isciumB 0epus M 0eporis. !n addition, all constellation names have a standard three&letter abbreviation assigned b% the !nternational -stronomical 1nionB $or e.ample, -ries becomes -ri, ,isces becomes ,sc, /agittarius becomes /gr and 1rsa 6a+or becomes 16a 3'4. !denti$ication o$ stars within a given constellation includes use o$ ?a%er designations such as -lpha Centauri, Flamsteed designations such as G' C%gni, and variable star designations such as EE 0%rae. >owever, man% $ainter stars will +ust be given a catalog number designation (in each o$ various star catalogs) that does not incorporate the constellation name. FreAuentl%, the abbreviated $orm o$ the constellation name is used in the star designation, e.g. -lpha Cen, G' C%g, EE 0%r. For more in$ormation about star names, see star designations and the list o$ stars b% constellation.

[edit] See also

Chinese constellation Former constellations

0ist o$ constellations 0ist o$ constellations b% area 0ist o$ stars b% constellation >istor% o$ the constellations

[edit] References
'. 8. !an Eidpath. Constellation names, abbreviations and si7es. Eetrieved on 8==)&'=&=@. The !ncan Kiew o$ the Cight / %