SCUTUM

The constellation Scutum, the shield, is located in the southern hemisphere of the sky. It
is visible in latitudes south of 74 degrees from June through August. It is a small
constellation, occupying 109 square degrees. This makes It the 5th smallest
constellation in the night sky. It is bordered by the constellations Aquila, Sagittarius and
Serpens Cauda.

There are no myths associated with Scutum. The name means “shield” in Latin. It was
introduced by Polish astronomer Johannes Hevelius in 1690. It was originally named
Scutum Sobiescianum and was drawn as the Coat of Arms of Scutum (John) Sobieskii,
king of Poland, in honor of his victory against the Turks in 1683. As the Turkish army
marched on Vienna in 1683, they were turned back at the gates of the city. Seven years
later, Scutum was created in honor of the king. The constellation first appeared in the
scientific journal Acta Eruditorum in August 1684. The name was eventually shortened
to Scutum, the shield.

The stars in Scutum are faint, but their shape does resemble that of a shield. The
brightest star in the constellation is Ionnina with a visual magnitude of 3.85. It is an
orange giant star located approximately 174 light years from Earth. The second
brightest star is Beta Scuti with a magnitude of only 4.22. It is a yellow giant star that
lies some 690 light years away from our solar system. The third brightest star is Delta
Scuti with a magnitude of 4.60. It is a yellow-white giant star that lies approximately 202
light years from our solar system.
Scutum contains two Messier objects. M11, also known as the Wild Duck Cluster, is an
open star cluster containing about 2,900 stars. It is one of the richest and most compact
open clusters known to exist. M26 is another open star cluster. It contains about 90
stars and is located about 5,000 light years from Earth. Both of these clusters can easily
be seen with a pair of binoculars. Scutum contains a number of other deep-sky objects
including star clusters and nebulas, but these can only be seen with large telescopes.

HISTORY
Scutum was named in 1684 by Polish astronomer Johannes Hevelius (Jan Heweliusz),
who originally named it Scutum Sobiescianum (Shield of Sobieski) to commemorate
the victory of the Christian forces led by Polish King John III Sobieski (Jan III Sobieski)
in the Battle of Vienna in 1683. Later, the name was shortened to Scutum.

Five bright stars of Scutum (α Sct, β Sct, δ Sct, ε Sct and η Sct) were previously known
as 1, 6, 2, 3, and 9 Aquilae respectively.

Coincidentally, the Chinese also associated these stars with battle armor, incorporating
them into the larger asterism known as Tien Pien, i.e., the Heavenly Casque (or
Helmet).

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CORONA AUSTRALIS
Corona Australis is a small, faint constellation in the
southern sky. Its name means “the southern crown” in
Latin. It is located between the
constellations Sagittarius and Scorpius.

Corona Australis is said to represent the crown worn by

the centaur represented by Sagittarius by some
sources, but the constellation is not really tied to any
particular myth. Sometimes it is also called Corona
Austrina.

Corona Australis was first catalogued by the Greek

astronomer Ptolemy in the 2nd century, along with the
constellation representing the northern crown, Corona
Borealis.

HISTORY
Corona Australis may have been recorded by ancient Mesopotamians in the MUL.APIN,
as a constellation called MA.GUR ("The Bark"). However, this constellation, adjacent to
SUHUR.MASH ("The Goat-Fish", modern Capricornus), may instead have been
modern Epsilon Sagittarii. As a part of the southern sky, MA.GUR was one of the fifteen
"stars of Ea".

In the 3rd century BC, the Greek didactic poet Aratus wrote of, but did not name the
constellation, instead calling the two crowns Στεφάνοι (Stephanoi). The Greek
astronomer Ptolemy described the constellation in the 2nd century AD, though with the
inclusion of Alpha Telescopii, since transferred to Telescopium. Ascribing 13 stars to the
constellation, he named it Στεφάνος νοτιος (Stephanos notios), "Southern Wreath",
while other authors associated it with either Sagittarius (having fallen off his head) or
Centaurus; with the former, it was called Corona Sagittarii. Similarly, the Romans called
Corona Australis the "Golden Crown of Sagittarius". It was known as Parvum
Coelum ("Canopy", "Little Sky") in the 5th century. The 18th-century French
astronomer Jérôme Lalande gave it the names Sertum Australe ("Southern
Garland") and Orbiculus Capitis, while German poet and author Philippus
Caesius called it Corolla ("Little Crown") or Spira Australis ("Southern Coil"), and linked
it with the Crown of Eternal Life from the New Testament. Seventeenth-century celestial
cartographer Julius Schiller linked it to the Diadem of Solomon. Sometimes, Corona
Australis was not the wreath of Sagittarius but arrows held in his hand.

Corona Australis has been associated with the myth

of Bacchus and Stimula. Jupiter had impregnated Stimula, causing Juno to become
jealous. Juno convinced Stimula to ask Jupiter to appear in his full splendor, which the
mortal woman could not handle, causing her to burn. After Bacchus, Stimula's unborn
child, became an adult and the god of wine, he honored his deceased mother by placing
a wreath in the sky.

In Chinese astronomy, the stars of Corona Australis are located within the Black
Tortoise of the North (北方玄武, Běi Fāng Xuán Wǔ). The constellation itself was known
as ti'en pieh ("Heavenly Turtle") and during the Western Zhou period, marked the
beginning of winter. However, precession over time has meant that the "Heavenly
River" (Milky Way) became the more accurate marker to the ancient Chinese and hence
supplanted the turtle in this role.[75] Arabic names for Corona Australis include Al
Ķubbah "the Tortoise", Al Ĥibā "the Tent" or Al Udḥā al Na'ām "the Ostrich Nest".It was
later given the name Al Iklīl al Janūbiyyah, which the European
authors Chilmead, Riccioli and Caesius transliterated as Alachil Elgenubi, Elkleil
Elgenubi and Aladil Algenubi respectively.

The ǀXam speaking San people of South Africa knew the constellation as ≠nabbe ta
!nu "house of branches"—owned originally by the Dassie (rock hyrax), and the star
pattern depicting people sitting in a semicircle around a fire.

The indigenous Boorong people of northwestern Victoria saw it as Won, a boomerang

thrown by Totyarguil (Altair). The Aranda people of Central Australia saw Corona
Australis as a coolamon carrying a baby, which was accidentally dropped to earth by a
group of sky-women dancing in the Milky Way. The impact of the coolamon
created Gosses Bluff crater, 175 km west of Alice Springs. The Torres Strait
Islanders saw Corona Australis as part of a larger constellation encompassing part of
Sagittarius and the tip of Scorpius's tail; the Pleiades and Orion were also associated.
This constellation was Tagai's canoe, crewed by the Pleiades, called the Usiam, and
Orion, called the Seg. The myth of Tagai says that he was in charge of this canoe, but
his crewmen consumed all of the supplies onboard without asking permission. Enraged,
Tagai bound the Usiam with a rope and tied them to the side of the boat, then threw
them overboard. Scorpius's tail represents a suckerfish, while Eta Sagittarii and Theta
Coronae Australis mark the bottom of the canoe. On the island of Futuna, the figure of
Corona Australis was called Tanuma and in the Tuamotus, it was called Na Kaua-ki-
Tonga.
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ORION
Orion constellation is one of the brightest
and best known constellations in the night
sky. It lies on the celestial equator.

Orion has been known since ancient

times. The constellation is also known as
the Hunter, as it is associated with one in
Greek mythology. It represents the
mythical hunter Orion, who is often
depicted in star maps as either facing the
charge of Taurus, the bull, pursuing
the Pleiades sisters, represented by the
famous open cluster, or chasing after the
hare (constellation Lepus) with his two hunting dogs, represented by the nearby
constellations Canis Major and Canis Minor.

The constellation Orion contains two of the ten brightest stars in the sky – Rigel (Beta
Orionis) and Betelgeuse (Alpha Orionis) – a number of famous nebulae – the Orion
Nebula (Messier 42), De Mairan’s Nebula (Messier 43) and the Horsehead Nebula,
among others – the well-known Trapezium Cluster, and one of the most prominent
asterisms in the night sky – Orion’s Belt.

HISTORY
Orion is a character from Greek mythology, a giant hunter who was placed in the stars
by Zeus upon his death. In the night sky Orion was perceived by ancient Greeks as
defending himself against the nearby constellation of Taurus the bull.

In one version of the myth Orion was the son of Poseidon, the Greek God of the sea,
from whom he inherited an ability to walk on water. Orion walked across the sea to the
island of Chios where he attacked the daughter of the island ruler in a drunken rage.
Orion was blinded by the ruler in an act of retaliation but was later healed by Helios, the
Greek personification of the sun. Orion later became arrogant with his great hunting
abilities and vowed to kill every creature on the planet. The Goddess of the Earth, Gaia,
responded by sending a giant scorpion to destroy him. In the ensuing battle Orion was
killed and both he and the scorpion were placed amongst the stars.
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