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Lists Of Constellations
The following lists of constellations are available: * IAU designated constellations - a list of the current, or "modern", constellations. * Former constellations - a list of former constellations. * Chinese constellations - traditional Chinese astronomy constellations. * List of Nakshatras - sectors along the Moon's ecliptic. *IAU designated constellations by area - a list of constellations ranked by area. See also * Lists of astronomical objects This is a list of lists, grouped by type of astronomical object. Solar System * List of Solar System objects * List of gravitationally rounded objects of the Solar System * List of Solar System objects most distant from the Sun * List of So ... * Asterism (astronomy) {{DEFAULTSORT:Constellations ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Constellation
A constellation is an area on the celestial sphere in which a group of visible stars forms a perceived pattern or outline, typically representing an animal, mythological subject, or inanimate object. The origins of the earliest constellations likely go back to prehistory. People used them to relate stories of their beliefs, experiences, creation, or mythology. Different cultures and countries adopted their own constellations, some of which lasted into the early 20th century before today's constellations were internationally recognized. The recognition of constellations has changed significantly over time. Many changed in size or shape. Some became popular, only to drop into obscurity. Some were limited to a single culture or nation. The 48 traditional Western constellations are Greek. They are given in Aratus' work ''Phenomena'' and Ptolemy's '' Almagest'', though their origin probably predates these works by several centuries. Constellations in the far southern sky were ad ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
IAU Designated Constellations
In contemporary astronomy, 88 constellations are recognized by the International Astronomical Union (IAU). Each constellation is a region of the sky, bordered by arcs of right ascension Right ascension (abbreviated RA; symbol ) is the angular distance of a particular point measured eastward along the celestial equator from the Sun at the March equinox to the ( hour circle of the) point in question above the earth. When pair ... and declination. Together they cover the celestial sphere, with their boundaries adopted officially by the International Astronomical Union in 1928 and published in 1930. The ancient Sumerians, and later the Greek astronomy, Greeks (as recorded by Ptolemy), established most of the northern constellations in international use today. The constellations along the ecliptic are called the zodiac. When explorers mapped the stars of the southern skies, European astronomers proposed new constellations for that region, as well as ones to fill gaps betwe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Former Constellations
Former constellations are old historical Western constellations that for various reasons are no longer widely recognised or are not officially recognised by the International Astronomical Union (IAU). Prior to 1930, many of these defunct constellations were traditional in one or more countries or cultures. Some only lasted decades but others were referred to over many centuries. All are now recognised only for having classical or historical value. Many former constellations had complex Latinised names after objects, people, or mythological or zoological creatures. Others with unwieldy names were shortened for convenience. For example, Scutum Sobiescianum was reduced to Scutum, Mons Mensae to Mensa, and Apparatus Sculptoris to Sculptor. Some of the Northern Sky's former constellations were placed in the less populated regions between the traditional brighter constellations just to fill gaps. In the Southern Sky, new constellations were often created from about the 15th centu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese Constellations
Traditional Chinese astronomy has a system of dividing the celestial sphere into asterisms or constellations, known as "officials" ( Chinese ''xīng guān''). The Chinese asterisms are generally smaller than the constellations of Hellenistic tradition. The Song dynasty (13th-century) Suzhou planisphere shows a total of 283 asterisms, comprising a total of 1,565 individual stars. The asterisms are divided into four groups, the Twenty-Eight Mansions (, ''Èrshíbā Xiù'') along the ecliptic, and the Three Enclosures of the northern sky. The southern sky was added as a fifth group in the late Ming Dynasty based on European star charts, comprising an additional 23 asterisms. The Three Enclosures (, ''Sān Yuán'') include the Purple Forbidden Enclosure, which is centered on the north celestial pole and includes those stars which could be seen year-round,Needham, J.Astronomy in Ancient and Medieval China. ''Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London''. Ser ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of Nakshatras
In Hindu astronomy, there are 27 ''nakshatras'' , or sectors along the ecliptic. A list of them is first found in the ''Vedanga Jyotisha'', a text dated to the final centuries BCE. The ''Nakṣatra'' system predates the influence of Hellenistic astronomy on Vedic tradition, which became prevalent from about the 2nd century CE. There are various systems of enumerating the ''Nakṣatra''-s; although there are 27-28 days to a sidereal month, by custom only 27 days are used. The following list gives the corresponding regions of sky. Names of the months in Indian national calendar is related to the names of Nakshatras. Padas (quarters) The 27 Nakshatras cover 13°20’ of the ecliptic The ecliptic or ecliptic plane is the orbital plane of the Earth's orbit, Earth around the Sun. From the perspective of an observer on Earth, the Sun's movement around the celestial sphere over the course of a year traces out a path along the e ... each. Each Nakshatra is also divided into quarters ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
IAU Designated Constellations By Area
The International Astronomical Union (IAU) designates 88 constellations of stars. In the table below, they are ranked by the solid angle that they subtend in the sky, measured in square degrees and millisteradians. These solid angles depend on arbitrary boundaries between the constellations: the list below is based on constellation boundaries drawn up by Eugène Delporte in 1930 on behalf of the IAU and published in ''Délimitation scientifique des constellations'' (Cambridge University Press). Before Delporte's work, there was no standard list of the boundaries of each constellation. Delporte drew the boundaries along vertical and horizontal lines of right ascension and declination; however, he did so for the epoch B1875.0, which means that due to precession of the equinoxes, the borders on a modern star map (e.g., for epoch J2000) are already somewhat skewed and no longer perfectly vertical or horizontal. This skew will increase over the centuries to come. However, th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lists Of Astronomical Objects
This is a list of lists, grouped by type of astronomical object. Solar System * List of Solar System objects * List of gravitationally rounded objects of the Solar System * List of Solar System objects most distant from the Sun * List of Solar System objects by size * Lists of geological features of the Solar System * List of natural satellites (moons) * Lists of small Solar System bodies * Lists of comets * List of meteor showers ; Minor planets * List of minor planets ** List of exceptional asteroids ** List of minor planet moons ** List of damocloids ** List of centaurs (small Solar System bodies) ** List of trans-Neptunian objects ** List of unnumbered minor planets ** List of dwarf planets ** List of possible dwarf planets Exoplanets and brown dwarfs * Lists of planets * Lists of exoplanets ** List of largest exoplanets * List of brown dwarfs Stars * Lists of stars **List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs **List of brightest stars **List of hottest stars ** L ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
