Short stories about constellations for children. Astronomy for children in verses and pictures

Content:

Probably, there is no such person who would not peer into the night sky. It is simply mesmerizing, thousands of stars twinkle and glow: some are barely noticeable, others stand out brightly against a dark background. Thoughts involuntarily visit that at this time many other people look at the twinkling of the same stars. After all, they are located so far from the earth that they can be seen from all places. the globe.

For a long time, in the old days, people very often turned to the stars for help: they found their way home, determined the time for planting plants, set the weather for tomorrow, even guessed.

these are areas in the sky, which are visually divided into border segments, for the convenience of astrologers, and the inhabitants themselves. Even in the ancient world, constellations were called bright parts of the stars, visually connecting which formed star images.

The union of astrologers from various countries officially legalized 88 constellations. It is interesting that they were adopted in 1930, of which 48 are known from the time of Ptolemy in the 2nd century AD.

The names were given due to the fact that their appearance was closely associated with the appearance of true or fictional representatives of the fauna (Ursa Major, Lion, Dragon, etc.), with the famous characters of Greek legends (Andromeda, Perseus, etc.), with the names of certain subject objects that clearly defined the lines of connections of shining stars (Libra, Crown, Southern Cross, etc.).

Only 58 known star clusters contain the brightest stars (alpha) that have names.

In 13 star figures, the shining lights are called beta, the rest are identified only by Greek alphabetic letters.

The largest is the Hydra, its size is determined at 1303 degrees squared. And the smallest of them has the stellar composition of the Southern Cross, they have 68 square degrees.

The most famous from childhood is the Big Dipper (otherwise it is called the Big Dipper). It is visible from various places on the earth, its dimensions are slightly smaller than those of the Hydra, they are determined at 1280 degrees.

Big Dipper

Refers to the constellation of the celestial hemisphere of the northern side. The stars present on it (there are 7 of them) form the most famous image in the sky. Visually, a certain scoop is immediately noticeable, with their 2 luminaries on the extreme side of Dubhe and Merak indicate the direction of the familiar Polar Star to everyone. The most picturesque of them is Aliot, and the most famous is the Mizar (double) system. There is an opinion that whoever clearly sees and distinguishes these two stars has excellent eyesight.

In the location of the Bucket, 2 galaxies (spiral type) are observed: M81 and M101. They can be perfectly seen even in an amateur telescope.

M81 is significant in that it is very similar to our galaxy. Not far from it is the small Galaxy M82, where a huge explosion occurred many years ago (millions). Modern astrologers are interested in this event, because little by little it clarifies the history of the emergence and development of galactic systems.

On the territory allotted to this image, there is an even more interesting cosmic image - "Owl". She got her name for the strongest resemblance to her. It can be seen without problems in telescopic equipment of low power.

As described above, there are 2 galactic systems in the constellation.

• M81 is an amazing galactic spiral of the Sb type, its brightness is 6.9 m. Together with it, M82 is located, a system of an asymmetric configuration and, in comparison with its neighbor, is the weakest. Since the M81 Galaxy is the strongest, it deforms its neighbor with its gravity.

The Hubble space equipment makes it possible to thoroughly study 32 objects of a non-permanent type. Using the data obtained, it was possible to find out the remoteness to the Galaxy - this is 11 million light years.

• M101 – an Sc-type galaxy with a brightness of 7.9 m . If you conduct observations with small telescopes, you can clearly see its central part. Looking at the pictures taken by the largest devices, you can see that it is not symmetrical. The nucleus is as far as possible from the disk middle. The range to M101 is determined with the assistance of the Cepheids by the Hubble telescopic equipment and is summed up to about 24 million sv. years.

Historical studies

In 1603 there was a discovery historical significance. Astrologer from Germany, Johann Bayer, produced his space atlas "Uranometria", which maximally specified the location of stellar objects in the sky. He originally designated the stars with the letters of the Greek alphabet, this also included all 7 stellar components of the Big Dipper in the direction of the pattern from the west side to the east. At the same time, Bayer made his own adjustments to the rules, according to which the stellar brightness must correspond to the Greek alphabet. The most radiant of them is Alpha, the next in line is Beta, etc. The fundamental rules for the atlas were the data collected over the years by the scientist Tycho Brahe.

Ursa Major is one of the most popular and famous space objects, which is familiar to almost every person since childhood. It has a strong resemblance to a radiant bewitching ladle that can be perfectly contemplated without any effort from anywhere in the world and throughout the year. It is located close to the North Pole and is ranked among the latitudes of the north of clusters of stellar non-setting objects. This cluster of stars is named after the nymph Callisto.

Observations

The bear belongs to that group of space objects, their location is widely known and familiar to everyone. Indeed, people get to know him almost in the first place, due to the fact that the bear bucket in its appearance has a rather peculiar shape.

On the east side of it are the perfectly visible Perseus and Cassiopeia (mythical characters). The Giraffe, which is located next door, does not have bright lights; it is quite problematic to navigate through it. As if running after the she-bear, Bootes and his shining star Arcturus, located from the southeast.

The most convenient time for visibility is spring (March and April). The star cluster can be perfectly observed from all regions of Russia.

Mythology

Since ancient times, there has been a wonderful and beautiful story of the origin of the constellation. According to ancient legends, the constantly young goddess of hunting Artemis walked with a spear and sharp arrows along the mountain slopes and forests in the capture of prey. She was accompanied by faithful attendants. They were all amazingly beautiful, one better than the other, but the most beautiful and charming among them was a young girl named Callisto. Zeus (in myths, Jupiter) spotted a young beauty and was struck by her grace and youth. But the surrounding girls were strictly forbidden to enter into marriage relations and start families. However, Zeus came up with a cunning plan and took possession of a wonderful girl, taking the form of Artemis. Callisto had a wonderful son from Zeus, and they named him Arkadam, who grew up simply rapidly and turned into a beautiful and dexterous young man.

The wife of Zeus Hera was very jealous and, having learned that the faithful one was cheating on her, she sent a lot of curses to her rival and turned her into a huge and unsightly bear.

After a short amount of time, Arkad, the son, came across her while hunting and shot an arrow at her, not knowing that she was his mother. At this time, Zeus, zealously protecting his beloved from all misfortunes, at the decisive moment was able to beat aside a deadly arrow.

After the events that took place, Zeus turned his son into a small bear cub and placed him with his mother in outer space. And so they remained to shine in the sky with two constellations - the Lesser and the Great Bear. Not a single day goes by that at least one person does not turn his gaze upward and peer into the starry expanse in search of these famous images.

The big bear rotates around the pole and once a day, descends to the flat surface of the sea to drink and quench her thirst. Having drunk plenty of clean water, she again rises up, attracting enthusiastic human eyes.

Ursa Minor

Many different mythical stories and legends are associated with the appearance of this image. The small bucket is a space image of a small size, which is perfectly placed in the north side. Since ancient times, he was given an affectionate name - "bear cub". He was recognized by astrologers as early as the 2nd century by a Greek astronomer.

As a rule, the Little Dipper is depicted as a small bear cub with a large tail. There is an opinion that the tail therefore has long dimensions, that the baby, with its help, clings to the earth's pole.

The seven brightest stars in this cosmic figure form the shape of a ladle; at the end of the handle is the Polar Star. This texture is multi-star and it is located approximately at 430 St. years from the globe.

This luminary is the most popular and has excellent fame in many areas. It is considered a navigational star, because of its bright light and a certain location, lost sailors or hunters find their way home.

The Bedouins gave her the name "goat" and are perfectly used for night wanderings (the second star for orientation is the star Canopus).

Finding a constellation in the sky is pretty easy. Its stellar neighbors are Giraffe, Cepheus and Dragon. However, to find Ursa Minor, it is enough to know the location of Ursa Major. It is necessary to find two of its stars located on the edge, count five distances between them and you can find the North Star. The beginning of the “handle” begins with it, which is much smaller in comparison with a large bucket. She is not as bright as her older sister, but is clearly visible in the starry sky. In the Northern Hemisphere, you can see it all year round.

The pole is considered to be the center of the celestial sphere, which seems to be motionless to the earthly layman, but at this time all the stars revolve around. If a bright shining star is located nearby, then it can be a guide, its placement depends on the time of day. Depending on the movements of the earth, this point is always moving, but it is almost impossible to notice this on a secular scale. Today, the North Star is closest to the pole. In angular calculations, it departs from it by 40 arc minutes.

Major and minor constellations

Today, astronomers have fixed various constellations, large and small in size.

One of the list of large sizes is the Hydra. It occupies a significant volume of the sky and is calculated at 1302.84 degrees squared. So, due to its size, it got its name. It is a thin and very long line, occupying a quarter of the entire sky. The main location of Hydra is the south side of the equatorial strip. According to the characteristic stellar composition, the constellation is relatively dim. In its composition, only two shining luminaries are included, which can be seen without problems in the sky, these are Alphard and Gamma Hydra.

In addition, there is also a scattered cosmic concentration, called M48.

The next largest place belongs to Virgo. In terms of volume, it has minor differences from the Hydra.

One of the small in the starry sky is considered to be the Southern Cross. It is located in the southern hemisphere. It is recognized as a similarity of the Big Dipper from the north. Its volume is 68 0 . According to the ancient astrologers, in the past it was an integral part of the Centauri. However, in 1589 this constellation was recognized as separate. In stellar cross-content, even with an untrained eye, about 30 stellar units can be observed. In addition, there is a darkened nebula, which is called the Coal Sack. It is notable for the fact that it has the ability to form stars on its own.

Unique constellations

All figures in the starry sky and their original names are unique. Almost everyone has their own unique legend of education; extraordinary luminaries are included in the cosmic community. It is possible to add to them the cosmic images of the Toucan and the Golden Fish. In the star cluster of the latter, the Megellanic cloud of a huge size is located, and in the first of a small volume. They are truly unique.

The Large Cloud resembles a Segner circle in its appearance, while the Small Cloud resembles a boxer's projectile. According to their occupied territory in the sky, they are very large. Astronomy lovers notice their maximum relationship with the Milky Way. Of course, in terms of actual dimensions, they are much smaller than the famous star track. They seem to be part of the Milky Way, just slightly off to the side. It is worth noting that in their content, they are very similar to our Galaxy, and the clouds of constellations are the stars closest to the Earth.

A significant factor is that cloud clusters and our galactic system jointly circle around the same axis and this forms a triple system of stars. It is worth noting that each of this stellar trinity in its composition has a stellar concentration, nebula and other objects of space.

Twins

This figure is perfectly visible from all places in our country, because it soars quite high above the horizon. In the night sky, it clearly looms in a peculiar shape. On the northeast side of Orion, even with an untrained eye, 2 lines can be seen parallel to each other and the Gemini star string, however, the "parachute projectile" of the Aurigae can be seen on the northwest side. One of the best times to see this unique cosmic figure is during the first two winter months.

The sun sets in the Brethren's territorial domain on the twenty-first of June.

Gemini has been known to people since antiquity. In a cloudless night period in the sky in this flickering concentration, you can easily see about 70 figures along the stellar contours. The most shining of them are Castor and Pollux.

Castor is a system of maximum complexity, including 6 stellar objects, its remoteness from the solar system is 45 l. in the light dimension.

Pollux has the maximum dimensions and burns with the brightest yellow fire, is much colder than its counterpart and is located at a distance of 35 years from the solar system (in the light dimension). It is noted that its brightness is 35 times greater than the light coming from the Sun.

These luminaries are recognized as the main ones, they are approximately placed in relation to each other, and since ancient times people began to consider them as relatives, like brothers, who are united by strong and disinterested relationships.

In ancient Babylon, they were also personified as 2 inseparable brothers, and they were even given the name "shepherd and warrior." People were sure that they were helping sailors, and in Sparta they believed that they patronized gymnasts.

Legend

Since ancient times, there has been a beautiful legend about selfless fraternal friendship. The king of Sparta Tyndareus had a beautiful wife named Leda. She was very beautiful, which struck on the spot with her appearance and grace. Could not resist her charms and Zeus. But he was married to Hera, and she, in turn, patronized marriage and protected all women during the birth of children. Then Zeus, in order not to be exposed, took the form of a beautiful slender bird and rushed to his beloved. They had a mutual love, as a result of which 2 babies were born - the son Pollux and the daughter Helen (because of her there was a famous war in Troy).

From her legal husband Tyndareus, Leda had more children: a son, Castor, and a daughter, Clytemnestra.

Zeus gave eternal life to his blood heir Pollux, and his half-brother Castor was an ordinary person. The brothers grew up, gained fame, even participated in the historical journey for the Golden Fleece. They were always nearby, did not part, even decided to make their own sisters as their spouses. To achieve this goal, they stole two of his daughters from the ruler Leucippus, but this act did not pass for them free of charge.

As a result, as the parable says, Castor died at the hands of his own relative. Then Pollux, in order to always be with his beloved brother, persuaded his father to remove immortality from him. Zeus, although he categorically did not want this, yielded to the pleas of his son and the brothers began to live in the underworld. However, Zeus, so that people always remember the sincere friendship of the two brothers, wrapped them in shining stars. And in Greece they were revered as human intercessors.

The image of the cosmic Canis Major

From Russian places, it is best to monitor him in winter (December, January). However, in the regions of the north it is not visible all the time. It can be easily found if you navigate along Orion. The stars (3 pcs.), located on the sash, are directed to the southeast side, to the location of Sirius. It is quite problematic to make a mistake, because. it shines quite brightly. The dog is clearly visible in the cold time period, it is located quite close to the southern horizon. The constellation crosses the meridian at midnight, exactly at last days December and first January. However, here we are talking about the usual coincidence, Sirius crosses the main line of the south at New Year exactly at midnight.

In addition, it is believed that thanks to Sirius, the inhabitants of the North could enjoy the Indian summer, in the autumn month of September. This is explained simply, at this time, Sirius is parallel to the Sun, and its bright light prolongs the beautiful autumn days.

Sirius is the brightest of all. This luminary is close to the Earth, the seventh in terms of distance from the Sun.

It is considered one of the ancient selection of stars. According to the existing parable, the Dog is the living creature of Orion.

Mythology

For a long time there has been a legend about how the Virgin, Bootes and the Great Dog connected with each other. Dionysus, the god of wine, walked the earth. He visited all the places where people lived, treated them to wine and taught them how to grow grapes and make wine from them. A cheerful and noisy company visited all places, people greeted them hospitably. God generously rewarded everyone who gladly accepted him at home, and this turned out to be Icarius. He generously received the guests in his hospitable house. In parting, Dionysus left a vine to the friendly owner and explained how to use it. Over time, Icarius grew a beautiful plant and began to treat everyone with wine. One evening, he decided to let the shepherds taste the wine, who, having not tasted it before, concluded that it was poisoning. They killed him, took his body to distant mountain ranges and buried him in a crevice.

The daughter of Ikaria named Erigona has been searching for the missing parent for a long time. Once she went in search, taking with her the dog Myra. The dog showed her the mountainous places where they found the dead father. Full of grief and despair, the girl committed suicide next to the corpse of her father.

The god of wine, Dionysus, turned all three, father, daughter and their dog into constellations and placed them in the sky. Since that time, they have remained in the starry expanses, and people have given them names - Bootes, Virgo and Big Dog.

Libra is a star cluster considered of little interest. Bright lights are not observed in it, and it is quite difficult to form a curly image resembling scales from those present. The only star that can be seen with the naked eye is located on the lower right side, it has a slightly greenish tint. The first time it was mentioned before our era in the 1st century. For creation, a part of another constellation, Scorpio, was borrowed. The Romans called him Libra in the early period of the new era.

Due to the fact that there were often changes in connection with the name, its appearance was formed much later than the others. Initially, it was presented in the form of an altar, then it was seen as a lamp, which Scorpio clamped in his huge claws, only after he opened them, a new heavenly appearance was born in the sky - Libra.

If the figure of Libra appeared in the northern regions, this meant for people that the time had come for sowing. In Egypt, on the other hand, revealing meant not harvesting for the time being.

In Greece, the fair goddess Astrea lived, who, using scales, decided people's destinies. In one of the legends, it is said that the appearance of scales in the sky announced that people would live in strict observance of the laws.

Astrea's parents were Zeus and Themis (goddess of justice), by whose order she made fair decisions. She did this in the following way: she blindfolded herself, took equivalent scales in her hands in order to make impartial decisions, help the victims innocently, and severely punish thieves and deceivers. Zeus decided that his daughter's instrument of justice should be, as a symbol of honesty, placed in the starry sky.

Myths related to Libra

There are many legends and stories about Libra. According to one of many, the emperor ancient rome August was distinguished by a very fair and honest character. He showed concern for people and performed lawful and just actions for them. His grateful subjects decided that the name of their ruler lived forever, and placed a constellation in the sky, which he received by giving a simple and weighty name - Libra. A place was found for him in the gap between Scorpio and Virgo. To carry out their plan, they needed to remove some spatial part from Scorpio. Thanks to this, Libra appeared in the sky, which still reminds of Augustus as the most honest and just ruler.

According to other legendary events, Themis and Zeus strictly observed the rule of law on the mountain of the gods. Themis made sure that justice and honesty reigned everywhere. According to legend, Themis sat in the chair of Zeus and kept a strict control over lawlessness. She was actively assisted by her daughters - in translation, their names meant Justice, Law and Peace. Themis monitored human life and informed Zeus about all unfair deeds discovered.

Sometimes she herself descended to people from her throne and walked the whole world, holding scales in her hands. They were magical and measured human actions, dividing them into fair and lawless. If violations of the law were discovered, then Themis appeared before people with a ball with which she pierced the hearts of cruel, evil and deceitful people.

According to legend, Zeus wrapped the scales in a star image and placed them in the endless sky as a symbol of justice.

Aquarius

This figure is located between Slaves and Capricorn and is recognized as one of the ancient ones. The dazzling star is called Sadalsuud, which means "the happiest of the lucky."

It can be observed in the regions of Russia, from the central and southern sides, but it is rather problematic to find it in a sky full of stars. The most favorable time for this is August and September. Among the representatives of Greece and the Arabs, the constellation had completely different names, but they meant one thing - melting in ice.

The name goes very far to the homeland of the global flood, these are the territories of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers. In astrological records, rivers flow from a huge vessel held in the hands of Aquarius. The eleventh month in a row was called the curse of water. According to the Sumerians, the constellation is located in the very center of the celestial sea and therefore always indicated future rains. It has always been compared to a god who warned the people about the coming flood.

In Egypt, Aquarius in the heavenly territory could only be observed when the amount of water in the Nile reached its maximum. There was a belief that during this period the god of water turned a huge vessel of water towards the Nile.

Auriga

It is located near the polar region of the sky. People have known it since ancient times. The most shining star in it is the Chapel - forked, yellow. Due to the fact that it has a yellow color, it was recognized as an analogue of the Sun. In a thorough study, it was found that the similarity with it is observed in yellow color and temperature. There are many different stories and legends about this constellation, but in all atlases and maps it is constant and depicted as a Charioteer, a goat sits on his shoulder, and he holds two kids in his hand. But we should not forget that in ancient times people looked at him as a man grazing a herd, where two goats and their mother goat walked.

As for the goat, which was located on his powerful shoulder, it was believed that it was she who nursed Zeus with milk, and he, in turn, who became a god, did not forget about her and attached her to the sky in the form of a bright and beautiful star.

Each constellation has its own history of origin and an interesting, fascinating and beautiful myth.

Pleshakov had a good idea - to create an atlas for children, by which it is easy to determine the stars and constellations. Our teachers picked up this idea and created their own key atlas, which is even more informative and visual.

What are constellations?

If you raise your eyes to the sky on a clear night, you can see a lot of sparkling lights of various sizes, which, like a scattering of diamonds, adorn the sky. These lights are called stars. Some of them seem to be collected in clusters and after a long examination they can be divided into certain groups. These groups are called "constellations". Some of them may resemble the shape of a bucket or the intricate outlines of animals, however, in many ways, this is just a figment of the imagination.

For many centuries, astronomers tried to study such clusters of stars and gave them mystical properties. People tried to systematize them and find a common pattern, and so the constellations appeared. For a long time, the constellations were carefully studied, some were broken into smaller ones, and they ceased to exist, and some were simply corrected after clarification. For example, the constellation Argo was divided into smaller constellations: Compass, Carina, Sail, Korma.

The history of the origin of the names of the constellations is also very interesting. To facilitate memorization, they were given names united by one element or a literary work. For example, it was noticed that during heavy rains the Sun rises from the side of certain constellations, which were given the following names: Capricorn, Whale, Aquarius, the constellation of Pisces.

In order to bring all the constellations to a certain classification, in 1930, at a meeting of the International Astronomical Union, a decision was made to officially register 88 constellations. According to the accepted decision, the constellations do not consist of groups of stars, but are sections of the starry sky.

What are the constellations?

Constellations differ in the number and brightness of the stars that make up its composition. Allocate 30 most noticeable groups of stars. The largest constellation in terms of area is Ursa Major. It consists of 7 bright and 118 stars visible to the naked eye.

The smallest constellation located in the southern hemisphere is called the Southern Cross and cannot be seen with the naked eye. It consists of 5 bright and 25 less visible stars.

Little Horse is the smallest constellation northern hemisphere and consists of 10 faint stars that can be seen with the naked eye.

The most beautiful and brightest constellation is Orion. It consists of 120 stars visible to the naked eye and 7 of them are very bright.

All constellations are conventionally divided into those located in the southern or northern hemisphere. Those who live in the southern hemisphere of the Earth cannot see the clusters of stars located in the northern hemisphere and vice versa. Of the 88 constellations, 48 ​​are in the southern hemisphere and 31 are in the northern. The remaining 9 groups of stars are located in both hemispheres. The northern hemisphere is easy to identify by the North Star, which always shines very brightly in the sky. She is the extreme star on the handle of the Ursa Minor bucket.

Due to the fact that the Earth revolves around the Sun, which does not allow seeing some constellations, the seasons change and the position of this luminary in the sky changes. For example, in winter, the position of our planet in the circumsolar orbit is opposite to that in summer. Therefore, only certain constellations can be seen at any time of the year. For example, in the summer, a triangle formed by the stars Altair, Vega and Deneb can be seen in the night sky. In winter, there is an opportunity to admire the infinitely beautiful constellation Orion. Therefore, sometimes they say: autumn constellations, winter, summer or spring constellations.

The constellations are best seen in the summer and it is advisable to observe them in open space, outside the city. Some stars can be seen with the naked eye, while others may require a telescope. The constellations Ursa Major and Ursa Minor, as well as Cassiopeia, are best seen. In autumn and winter, the constellations Taurus and Orion are clearly visible.

Bright constellations that are visible in Russia

The most beautiful constellations of the northern hemisphere visible in Russia include: Orion, Ursa Major, Taurus, Canis Major, Canis Minor.

If you peer into their location and give free rein to your imagination, you can see a hunting scene, which, like an ancient fresco, has been depicted in the sky for more than two thousand years. The brave hunter Orion is always depicted surrounded by animals. Taurus runs to his right, and the hunter swings a club at him. At the feet of Orion is the faithful Great and Lesser Dogs.

Constellation Orion

This is the largest and most colorful constellation. It is clearly visible in autumn and winter. Orion can be seen over the entire territory of Russia. The arrangement of its stars resembles the outlines of a person.

The history of the formation of this constellation originates from the ancient Greek myths. According to them, Orion was a brave and strong hunter, the son of Poseidon and the nymph Emvriala. He often hunted with Artemis, but one day, for defeating her during a hunt, he was hit by an arrow of the goddess and died. After his death, he was turned into a constellation.

The brightest star in Orion is Rigel. It is 25 thousand times brighter than the Sun and 33 times its size. This star has a bluish-white glow and is considered supergiant. However, despite such an impressive size, it is much smaller than Betelgeuse.

Betelgeuse adorns Orion's right shoulder. It is 450 times the diameter of the Sun, and if you put it in the place of our luminary, then this star will take the place of four planets before Mars. Betelgeuse shines 14,000 times brighter than the Sun.

The constellation Orion also includes a nebula and asterisms.

Constellation Taurus

Another large and unimaginably beautiful constellation of the northern hemisphere is Taurus. It is located northwest of Orion and lies between the constellations Aries and Gemini. Not far from Taurus are such constellations as: Charioteer, Keith, Perseus, Eridanus.

This constellation in mid-latitudes can be observed throughout almost the entire year, with the exception of the second half of spring and early summer.

The history of the constellation goes back to ancient myths. They talk about Zeus, who turned into a calf in order to kidnap the goddess Europa and bring her to the island of Crete. This constellation was first described by Eudoxus, a mathematician who lived long before our era.

Aldebaran is the brightest star not only in this constellation, but also in other 12 groups of stars. It is located on the head of Taurus and used to be called the "eye". Aldebaran is 38 times the diameter of the Sun and 150 times brighter. This star is located at a distance of 62 light years from us.

The second brightest star in the constellation is Nat or El Nat (bull horns). It is located near the Auriga. It is 700 times brighter than the Sun and 4.5 times larger than it.

Within the constellation are two incredibly beautiful open clusters of stars Hyades and Pleiades.

The age of the Hyades is 650 million years. They can be easily found in the starry sky thanks to Aldebaran, which is perfectly visible among them. They include about 200 stars.

The Pleiades got their name from the nine parts. Seven of them are named after the seven sisters of Ancient Greece (Pleiades), and two more are named after their parents. The Pleiades are very visible in winter. They include about 1000 stellar bodies.

An equally interesting formation in the constellation of Taurus is the Crab Nebula. It was formed after a supernova explosion in 1054 and was discovered in 1731. The distance of the nebula from the Earth is 6500 light years, and its diameter is about 11 light years. years.

This constellation belongs to the Orion family and borders on the constellations Orion, Unicorn, Canis Minor, Hare.

The constellation Canis Major was first discovered by Ptolemy in the second century.

There is a myth that Big Dog used to be Lelap. It was a very fast dog that could catch up with any prey. Once he chased a fox, which was not inferior to him in speed. The outcome of the race was a foregone conclusion, and Zeus turned both animals to stone. He placed the dog in heaven.

Constellation big dog very visible in winter. The brightest star not only in this, but in all other constellations is Sirius. It has a bluish luster and is located quite close to Earth, at a distance of 8.6 light years. In terms of brightness in our solar system, it is surpassed by Jupiter, Venus, and the Moon. The light from Sirius reaches the Earth after 9 years, and it is 24 times stronger than the sun. This star has a satellite called "Puppy".

Sirius is associated with the formation of such a thing as "Vacation". The fact is that this star appeared in the sky during the summer heat. Since Sirius in Greek is called "canis", the Greeks began to call this period holidays.

Constellation Canis Minor

Small Dog borders on such constellations as: Unicorn, Hydra, Cancer, Gemini. This constellation represents the animal that, along with Canis Major, follows the hunter Orion.

The history of the formation of this constellation, if you rely on myths, is very interesting. According to them, the Small Dog is Mera, the dog of Ikaria. This man was taught to make wine by Dionysus and this drink turned out to be very strong. One day his guests decided that Ikaria decided to poison them and killed him. The mayor was very sad for the owner and soon died. Zeus placed it in the form of a constellation in the starry sky.

This constellation is best observed in January and February.

The brightest stars in this constellation are Portion and Gomeisa. Portion is 11.4 light-years from Earth. It is somewhat brighter and hotter than the Sun, but physically differs little from it.

Gomeisa is visible to the naked eye and glows with a blue-white light.

Constellation Ursa Major

Ursa Major, shaped like a bucket, is one of the three largest constellations. It is mentioned in the writings of Homer and in the Bible. This constellation is very well studied and is of great importance in many religions.

It borders on such constellations as: Waterfall, Leo, Hounds Dogs, Dragon, Lynx.

According to ancient Greek myths, Ursa Major is associated with Callisto, a beautiful nymph and beloved of Zeus. His wife Hera turned Callisto into a bear as punishment. One day, this bear stumbled upon Hera and their son, Arkas, with Zeus. To avoid tragedy, Zeus turned his son and nymph into constellations.

The big bucket is formed by seven stars. The most striking of them are three: Dubhe, Alkaid, Aliot.

Dubhe is a red giant and points to the North Star. It is located 120 light years from Earth.

Alkaid, the third brightest star in the constellation, expresses the end of the tail of Ursa Major. It is located at a distance of 100 light years from Earth.

Alioth is the brightest star in the constellation. She represents the tail. Because of its brightness, it is used in navigation. Alioth shines 108 times brighter than the Sun.

These constellations are the brightest and most beautiful in the northern hemisphere. They can be perfectly seen with the naked eye on an autumn or frosty winter night. The legends of their formation allow fantasy to run wild and imagine how the mighty hunter Orion, together with his faithful dogs, runs after prey, while Taurus and Ursa Major are watching him carefully.

Russia is located in the northern hemisphere, and in this part of the sky we manage to see only a few of all the constellations that exist in the sky. Depending on the season, only their position in the sky changes.

The night skies are always eye-catching, but most of all you want to keep your eyes on them when the sky is strewn with stars.

A large number of them are grouped into certain constellations that have their own names. Each of them got its name thanks to a fascinating legend.

To independently distinguish between star clusters, you can use a special astrological chart that will help you recognize the signs of the Zodiacs.

The list of constellations in alphabetical order will tell you how many popular groups of celestial bodies there are in the Universe.

Any large-scale event or adventure, as well as the origin of their names, is associated with myths and legends.

The names of celestial bodies are also inextricably linked with myths, according to which one can learn their history. The shapes of all the constellations gave rise to the name.

The way a person observes the stars does not mean at all that this is how they are located in the sky: each star is at a great distance from each other.

A few myths about the origin will help to understand their names:

1. Cassiopeia. The story tells how the proud wife of Cepheus, the ruler of Ethiopia, boasted to the sea nymphs of her beauty and the beauty of her daughter.

   In response, they asked Poseidon to punish her. Ethiopia was attacked - Poseidon sent a huge monster; Cepheus and Cassiopeia, not knowing how to save Ethiopia, sent their daughter to her death.

   Andromeda was saved by Perseus, and they eventually got married. This is how Cassiopeia, Perseus, Andromeda, Cepheus, Pegasus and Kit were formed.

2. Veronica's hair. The interesting name of the constellation in the sky was obtained due to an equally interesting myth.

   Tales say that the Egyptian queen Veronica, sending her husband to war, swore to the gods that she would give up her beautiful hair.

   And so she had to do when her husband returned home unharmed.

3. Ursa Minor and Ursa Major. The story tells how the princess Callisto was fascinated by the beauty of Zeus.

   His wife Hera found out about this and turned her into a clumsy Bear. The grown-up son of lovers Arkad, once met this bear in the forest, wanted to kill her.

   However, Zeus stopped him. Then Arkad raised his mother to heaven, making her a constellation. For Ursa Minor, Arkad presented his beloved dog to his mother.

Such interesting legends surprise with their fabulousness: having found the constellations in the sky from a photo, you can find confirmation of some myths.

List of constellations alphabetically and photo

Almost all the names were given in honor of the mythological heroes of Ancient Greece, animals, significant objects of our time.

Astronomers often named clusters of celestial bodies according to the shape they represent.

Note! The sky map is strewn with hundreds of stars, with the help of its photo you can easily find the required constellation if you go outside on a clear night.

Thanks to the names, modern scientists can better understand the way of life and the type of thinking of people who lived before us.

Consider a selection of names in alphabetical order with photographs:

Name	Total number of stars	The number of stars visible to man
Andromeda	54	3
Big Dipper	71	6
Big Dog	56	5
Bootes	53	2
Crow	11	0
Hercules	85	0
Hydra	71	1
Dolphin	11	0
Unicorn	36	0
Painter	15	0
Ophiuchus	55	2
Indian	13	0
Swan	79	3
Small Horse	5	0
Pump	9	0
Eagle	47	1
Peacock	28	1
Lynx	31	0
Grid	11	0
Telescope	17	0
Phoenix	27	1
Chameleon	13	0
Compass	10	0
Bowl	11	0
Shield	9	0
Southern Triangle	12	1
Lizard	23	0

How to find the constellation of your zodiac sign on the sky map

Many children and adults are concerned about the question of how to find their own constellation in the sky? To do this, you can use a special map of the starry sky.

The space is conditionally divided into the southern and northern hemispheres, each of which contains certain clusters of stars:

• Aries of stars looks like a tick, symbolizing the creature's horns.
• Taurus is made up of 14 clearly visible stars: it looks like two separate constellations.
• Gemini really look like figures of two little men in the sky.
• The constellation Cancer resembles a triangle, from which a strip departs.
• Leo is considered the brightest constellation, the figurine really resembles the silhouette of an animal.
• Virgo is considered the largest sign, it resembles a disproportionate rectangle with 4 stripes.
• Scales look like a triangle with rays extending from it.
• Scorpio contains 17 stars, in the sky the constellation resembles a fork.
• 14 bright stars are shown in the sky of Sagittarius - it looks like a complex composition of celestial bodies.
• Winter Capricorn can be recognized by its characteristic heart-shaped cluster.
• Aquarius is a set of rays.
• At the point of the Pisces Zodiac on Earth, the day of the vernal equinox comes - it looks like an incomplete triangle.

To discover the most popular constellations on your own, go outside on a clear night and try to find the Big Dipper - you can try to identify other clusters of stars from it.

Important! In different regions of residence, you can detect the glow of stars in varying degrees of power.

The symbols of the Zodiacs used today in horoscopes do not correspond to their real shape in the sky.

Tales of the constellation Orion

The surrounding world is filled with a large number of mysteries, legends and tales. Many of them tell about the origin of clusters of stars.

One of the most interesting series of fairy tales are stories about the constellation Orion.

This group of stars represents one of the most beautiful constellations in the southern hemisphere of the sky.

There are several tales about this cluster of celestial bodies:

1. Orion was the son of Poseidon in mythology: according to legend, he was able to defeat all the animals, for which Hera sent a Scorpio to him.

   Orion died from the bite of a creature in an unequal struggle for the heart of Princess Merope.

   According to legend, a person will never be able to see two constellations in the sky at the same time - Orion and Scorpio.

2. South American Indians also have a favorite tale about Orion. It speaks of three brothers, two of whom were single.

   One of the unmarried brothers was more beautiful than the other, it seemed to him that the relative was jealous.

   Because of this, the handsome man killed his brother. His soul went to heaven and became the constellation of Orion.

Such fairy tales can be told to kids to acquaint them with the culture of different peoples. How many constellations, so many legends exist in the world.

To enjoy the beauty of the night sky, it is not necessary to know all the mythology for sure.

Useful video

Even ancient people united the stars in our sky into constellations. In ancient times, when the true nature of the celestial bodies was unknown, the inhabitants assigned the characteristic "patterns" of the stars to the outlines of some animals or objects. In the future, the stars and constellations were overgrown with legends and myths.

Starry sky maps

Today there are 88 constellations. Many of them are quite remarkable (Orion, Cassiopeia, Ursa) and contain many interesting objects available not only to professional astronomers and amateurs, but also to ordinary people. On the pages of this section, we will tell you about the most interesting objects in the constellations, their location, we will provide a lot of photos and entertaining video recordings.

List of sky constellations in alphabetical order

Russian name	Latin name	Reduction	Square (square degrees)	Number of stars brighter 6.0m
	Andromeda	And	722	100
	Gemini	Gem	514	70
	Ursa Major	UMa	1280	125
	Canis Major	CMa	380	80
	Libra	Lib	538	50
	Aquarius	Aqr	980	90
	Auriga	Aur	657	90
	Lupus	loop	334	70
	boots	Boo	907	90
	Coma Berenices	Com	386	50
	Corvus	crv	184	15
	Hercules	Her	1225	140
	Hydra	Hya	1303	130
	Columba	Col	270	40
	Canes Venatici	CVn	465	30
	Virgo	Vir	1294	95
	Delphinus	Del	189	30
	Draco	Dra	1083	80
	Monoceros	Mon	482	85
	Ara	Ara	237	30
	Pictor	Pic	247	30
	camelopardalis	Cam	757	50
	Grus	Gru	366	30
	Lepus	Lep	290	40
	Ophiuchus	Oh	948	100
	Serpens	Ser	637	60
	Dorado	Dor	179	20
	Indian	Ind	294	20
	Cassiopeia	Cas	598	90
	carina	car	494	110
	Cetus	Set	1231	100
	Capricornus	Cap	414	50
	Pyxis	Pyx	221	25
	Puppies	Pup	673	140
	Cygnus	Cyg	804	150
	Leo	Leo	947	70
	Volans	Vol	141	20
	Lyra	Lyr	286	45
	Vulpecula	Vul	268	45
	Ursa Minor	UMi	256	20
	Equuleus	Equ	72	10
	Leo Minor	LMi	232	20
	Canis Minor	CMi	183	20
	microscopium	Mic	210	20
	Musca	Mus	138	30
	Antlia	Ant	239	20
	Norma	Nor	165	20
	Aries	Ari	441	50
	Octans	Oct	291	35
	Aquila	Aql	652	70
	Orion	Ori	594	120
	Pavo	pav	378	45
	Vela	Vel	500	110
	Pegasus	peg	1121	100
	Perseus	Per	615	90
	Fornax	For	398	35
	Apus	Aps	206	20
	Cancer	cnc	506	60
	Caelum	Cae	125	10
	Pisces	psc	889	75
	Lynx	Lyn	545	60
	Corona Borealis	CrB	179	20
	Sextans	sex	314	25
	Reticulum	Ret	114	15
	Scorpius	sco	497	100
	sculptor	scl	475	30
	Mensa	Men	153	15
	Sagitta	Sge	80	20
	Sagittarius	Sgr	867	115
	Telescopium	Tel	252	30
	Taurus	Tau	797	125
	Triangulum	Tri	132	15
	Tucana	Tuc	295	25
	Phoenix	Phe	469	40
	Chamaeleon	Cha	132	20
	Centaurus	Cen	1060	150
	Cepheus	cep	588	60
	Circinus	cir	93	20
	Horologium	Hor	249	20
	crater	crt	282	20
	Scutum	Sct	109	20
	Eridanus	Eri	1138	100
Thanks to the observations of astronomers, it turned out that the location of the stars gradually changes over time. Accurate measurements of these changes require many hundreds and thousands of years. The night sky creates the appearance of an innumerable number of celestial bodies, randomly arranged in order to each other, which often draw constellations in the sky. More than 3 thousand stars are visible in the visible part of the sky, and 6000 in the entire sky. Visible location The constellation Cygnus from the atlas of Johann Bayer "Uranometry" 1603 The location of dim stars can be determined by finding bright ones, and thus, find the required constellation. Since ancient times, in order to make it easier to find constellations, bright stars have been combined into groups. These constellations received the names of animals (Scorpio, Ursa Major, etc.), were named after the heroes of Greek myths (Perseus, Andromeda, etc.), or simple names of objects (Libra, Arrow, Northern Crown, etc.). Since the 18th century, some of the brightest stars in each constellation have been named by the letters of the Greek alphabet. In addition, about 130 brightly luminous stars were named after themselves. After some time, astronomers designated them with numbers that are currently used for stars of low brightness. Since 1922, some large constellations have been divided into small ones, and instead of groups of constellations, they began to be considered sections of the starry sky. At the moment, there are 88 separate areas in the sky, called constellations. Observation For several hours of observing the night sky, you can see how the celestial sphere, which includes the luminaries, as a whole, smoothly rotates around an invisible axis. This movement is called diurnal. The movement of the stars is from left to right. The Moon and the Sun, as well as the stars, rise in the east, rise to their maximum height in the southern part, and set on the horizon of the western side. Observing the rising and setting of these luminaries, it is found that, unlike the stars, corresponding to different days of the year, they rise in the east at different points and set in the west at different points. In December, the Sun rises in the southeast and sets in the southwest. Over time, the points of west and sunrise shift towards the horizon of the north side. Accordingly, the Sun rises higher above the horizon at noon every day, the length of the day becomes longer, and the length of the night decreases. The movement of celestial objects through the constellations According to the observations made, it can be seen that the Moon is not always in the same constellation, but moves from one to another, moving from west to east by 13 degrees per day. In the sky, the moon makes a full circle in 27.32 days, passing through 12 constellations. The Sun makes a similar path as the Moon, however, the speed of the Sun is 1 degree per day and the entire path takes a year. zodiac constellations The names of the constellations through which the Sun and the Moon pass have received the names of the zodiacs (Pisces, Capricorn, Virgo, Libra, Sagittarius, Scorpio, Leo, Aquarius, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Aries). The first three constellations of the Sun pass in the spring, the next three in the summer, and the next in the same way. Only six months later, those constellations in which the Sun is now located become visible. Popular science film "Secrets of the Universe - Constellations"

Constellations have been accompanying a person since ancient times: they were guided along the way, planned chores, guessed. Today, people are less dependent on celestial bodies, but their study does not stop. continue to appear and amaze astronomy lovers.

1. Previously, constellations were considered figures that form stars, but today these are sections of the celestial sphere with conditional boundaries and all celestial bodies on their territory. In 1930, the number of constellations was fixed - 88, of which 47 were described before our era, but the names and names given to star figures in antiquity are still used.
2. The southern side of the firmament began to be carefully studied with the beginning of the Great geographical discoveries, but the northern side was not left without attention. By the end of the 17th century, atlases of the starry sky were published with descriptions of 22 new constellations. A Triangle, an Indian, a Bird of Paradise appeared on the map of the sky of the southern hemisphere, a Giraffe, a Shield, a Sextant and other figures were highlighted above the northern side. The last figures were formed over the South Pole of the earth and their names often contain the names of different devices - Clock, Pump, Telescope, Compass, Compass.

   2

3. 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 hero of Hellas Jason, who obtained the Golden Fleece). In the 18th century, the Ship was divided into 4 smaller figures - Stern, Kiel, Sail, Compass. On ancient star charts, the place of the Compass was occupied by a mast.

   3
   

4. The static nature of the 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.

   4
   

5. Zodiac signs are usually distinguished by 12 - 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.

   5
   

6. Hydra is considered the largest of the stellar figures., it occupies 3.16% of the starry sky and stretches over a quarter of the sky in a long strip, located in the northern and southern hemispheres.

   6
   

7. The brightest stars in the northern hemisphere belong to Orion, 209 of which are visible to the naked eye. The most interesting space objects of this section of the sky are the “Orion Belt” and the Orion Nebula.
8. The brightest constellation in the southern sky and the smallest of 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 as an independent constellation the Cross was registered only in 1589.
9. The closest to solar system constellation - Pleiades, fly to it only 410 light years. The Pleiades consists of 3000 stars, among which 9 are particularly bright. Scientists find their images on objects in different parts of the world, since many peoples in ancient times ardently revered the Pleiades.

   9
   

10. The constellation with the lowest brightness is Table Mountain. It is located far to the south, in the region of Antarctica, and consists of 24 stars, the brightest of which reach only the fifth magnitude.

    10
    

11. The star closest to the Sun, Proxima, is 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.

    11
    

12. The most ancient map constellations dates back to the 2nd century BC. Created by Hipparchus of Nicaea, it became the basis for the work of astronomers of a later time.

    12

13. 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 apart from the Shield, which was previously called the "Shield of Jan Sobieski", in honor of the Polish commander, none of the names survived.
14. FROM ancient Russia the characteristic bucket of Ursa Major was associated with a horse. In the old days, it was called "Horse on a joke", 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.

    14
    

15. Star figures adorn the flags of New Zealand and Alaska. The four-star Southern Cross was adopted as part of the Zeeland flag in 1902. The flags of Alaska are decorated with the Big Dipper and the North Star.

    15
    

We hope you enjoyed the selection of pictures - Interesting Facts about constellations (15 photos) online of good quality. Please leave your opinion in the comments! Every opinion matters to us.