In 1922, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) defined all visible constellations located in the celestial sphere. Everything was systematized and a catalog of the Northern and Southern hemispheres of the starry sky was created. In total, there are currently 88 constellations, and only 47 of them are the most ancient, the existence of which is determined by time periods of several millennia. A separate list marked 12 zodiac constellations through which the sun passes during the year.
Almost all constellations of the Southern Hemisphere, as well as asterisms, have their own names, the source of which is mythology Ancient Greece. For example, the myth of how the goddess of hunting Artemis killed the young Orion and, in a fit of repentance, placed him among the stars. This is how the constellation Orion was born. A constellation Big Dog, located at the feet of Orion, is nothing more than a hunting dog that followed its master to heaven. in each constellation forms an approximately conventional contour of a mythological creature, Taurus or Scorpio, Virgo or Centaur.
The star map of the Southern Hemisphere contains many of the known constellations. Among them are the so-called useful asterisms. Similar to the Big Dipper, located in and pointing to the North Star, in the South there is a constellation of the Southern Cross, with which you can trace the direction to the pole of the south. Both constellations of the Southern Hemisphere have great value for nautical orientation, when the captain of the ship at night has to plot a course. The stars provide essential assistance in navigation and lead ocean-going ships on the right path.
Stars are bright and faint. The degree of illumination depends on several factors. The constellations of the Southern Hemisphere include both intense and subdued stars. The brightest star in the night sky is Sirius, which is part of the constellation Canis Major. Its age is about 235 million years, and Sirius is twice as massive as the Sun. The star has always been an idol in the night sky for people, they worshiped it, made sacrifices and expected auspiciousness, a good harvest and help in worldly affairs from Sirius. Many other stars of the Southern Hemisphere were marked with a halo of a deity, people believed in the miraculous abilities of night luminaries. And some constellations are even described in church books.
The zodiac constellation of the southern hemisphere of the sky, located between Aries and Gemini. Taurus includes a bright star - Aldebaran, but the location of two star clusters in it - Pleiades and Hyades - is especially noteworthy. The Pleiades consists of more than 500 stars, while the Hyades has 130. Taurus is one of the constellations rich in astrophysical processes throughout its history. In the 11th century AD. the constellation of Taurus was shaken by a supernova explosion, resulting in the formation of the so-called Crab Nebula with a pulsar, which is a source of powerful X-ray radiation and sends radio magnetic pulses. Many constellations in the Southern Hemisphere have the potential for stellar transformations. As a result, cosmic upheavals are inevitable.
Another constellation in the Southern Hemisphere is Pisces, located between Aries and Aquarius. Pisces is notable for the fact that a point passes through them. The constellation includes two large asterisms, the Northern Pisces, consisting of three stars, and the Crown of seven stars. also contains a story from ancient Greek mythology. When the mythical monster Typhon drove the frightened gods from Olympus to Egypt, Aphrodite, fleeing from horror, turned into a fish, and then turned into a fish and her son, Eros.
Many of us love look at the starry night sky, look for familiar constellations and imagine mysterious figures inside them. All these stars, except for the one that illuminates the Earth and gives it heat, are outside the solar system and seem very tiny, despite the fact that they are many times larger than any of its planets. What do they really look like? Take a closer look at them It is possible only with the help of very powerful equipment in Earth's orbit, and this information can be available to us on the Internet, we just need to search better.
What is a sky map? Its varieties
Star map- it can be interactive or in the form of an ordinary picture. This is an image showing the location of stars and constellations in the sky. The most optimal and easy to use is a star chart compiled in two projections, where the equatorial part of the sky is presented in a cylindrical projection, and the poles are in an azimuth projection. At the same time, due to some distortions, some of the constellations may occur both on the equatorial and pole projections, but this is not a big minus when working with this tool. This card is in free access on the Internet in quite good quality in jpeg resolution.
More accurate and professional - interactive constellation map, or as it is also called, an online star map. There are quite a few of these. The most famous and well-developed are Google Sky, Photopic Sky Survey. They allow not only to consider the general projection of the starry sky, but also to bring each of the stars and constellations closer, as well as to see those that are inaccessible even to telescopes located on Earth, not to say to the naked eye. They were compiled from numerous photographs taken by the telescope. Hubble in orbit. Also, there is another service - Google Earth, it combines Google Sky and Google map.
A bit of history
Star map of the northern hemisphere
Among the constellations of the northern hemisphere you can find such as Ursa Major and Minor(in the form of buckets). We are used to thinking that they consist of 7 stars each, but in fact this is not so, it’s just that the rest of the stars included in the bucket are very small, and therefore are not visible to us). Also, in the northern hemisphere, we can observe Cassiopeia (it is a zigzag of 6 large stars), the constellation Cepheus (a closed pentagon), Hercules, Draco, Andromeda, Perseus, Hounds Dogs (2 large stars at a short distance), Cygnus. And of course, the main landmark of all sailors and travelers is the polar star, which is at the head of Ursa Minor.
A very famous story is about how travelers, after having crossed the Equator and ended up in the Southern Hemisphere, lost sight of the North Star, thereby losing the right course. After all, the picture of the starry sky also changes with various movements on the planet Earth. Moreover, the picture of the starry sky changes for us with the onset of a new season, as the Earth moves in the orbit of the solar system.
Star map of the southern hemisphere
The constellations located on this part of the map are almost unknown to the inhabitants of the northern hemisphere of the Earth, they cannot be seen from here, just as you cannot see the constellations of the Northern Hemisphere when you are in the Southern. It is represented by such constellations as Sails, Carina, Centaurus, Wolf, Scorpio, Southern Triangle (it got its name because it has the shape isosceles triangle), Southern Hydra, Phoenix, Peacock, Sagittarius, Crane.
equatorial belt
In the equatorial belt, you can see the constellations that we met earlier in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. The following constellations are located at the equator:
- Aquarius
- Capricorn
- Sagittarius
- Twins
- Taurus
As you can see, all these constellations correspond to the horoscope (each person, depending on the time of his birth, refers himself to one or another group according to the horoscope, that is, to one or another constellation).
Interactive sky map
Now a little about access to the sky map in a more complex and accurate format. Programs that allow you to travel through the starry sky online, find the constellations and objects you need using the search, approach and move away from them, move in starry space, learn a new useful information and scientific data about the object. In order to find out additional information, such as the name, exact coordinates, the age of the star, belonging to any constellation, the average distance from the Earth, you just need to click on it with the mouse. In addition, you can get data about all photos and external articles about a given star. This information can be found on the property page.
In total, there are 88 constellations in the sky - quite a large number of. Not all of them are visible to the naked eye, but on interactive maps of the starry sky, you can get images of even the most distant planets from the solar system.
In addition to the most famous interactive star map resources, there are small online map sites that do not provide additional information, but only show a complete picture of the sky, and, accordingly, are easier to manage.
That vault of heaven that we see above us is called - only half of the entire sky, the northern hemisphere. But what can be observed in the sky of the southern hemisphere, hidden from us by the curvature of the earth's surface? What are the stars?
We already know most of them. For example, when the constellations Auriga and Perseus stand in the north, above the very edge of the sky, while under them, somewhere deep - under the edge of the sky, against the southern side of the earth, our brilliant ones are hiding: Orion, Large and Small Dog, a lion. On the contrary, in winter, when Orion flaunts on the southern side of the sky, at this time in the north at the edge of the sky stand Lyra and Swan, and below them, below the edge of the sky, against the underside of the globe are Eagle, Bootes, Virgo, Ophiuchus.
These constellations, as you remember, occupy the entire southern side of the sky, at the time when they rise in our sky. So we've seen half of that mysterious sky, which for us is, as it were, “under the ground”. We have not seen only one-fourth of the entire celestial space, precisely that part that is located under the edge of the sky in the south. To see this quarter of the sky and its stars, one must go there, to the south, reach "to the edge of the sky" and look further down.
Of course, there is no edge of the Earth, because the Earth is a sphere, there is no edge of the sky, because the sky is an infinite space that surrounds the Earth from all sides. But there is an end visible us the sky, and this edge is exactly where we see it. For example, in winter evening the edge of the sky in the south is under Sirius, where one of the lower stars of the Great Canis sparkles low, low.
Instead of reasoning, let's go on our imaginary journey to the south. - Do not forget that we are traveling on a winter evening, when Charioteer, Taurus, Orion, Sirius are burning on the southern side of the sky. - We travel, for example, from St. Petersburg directly to the south, and with the speed of thought.
Here we are in Crimea. We look up. - Ba!
big dog
In the Southern Hemisphere, the view of the starry sky changes to opposite when compared with the North. The movement of stars here occurs from right to left, and although the Sun rises in the east, the east point itself is located on the right, in place of the west.
Canis Major is one of the brightest, albeit small, constellations located in the southern hemisphere of the sky. In the constellation is the brightest star (after the Sun) - the blue-white Sirius, whose magnitude is -1.43.
Translated from the Greek seirios means "brightly burning." The brightness of the star can be explained by two factors: firstly, the small distance to the star (only 8.6 light years) and its luminosity, which is 23 times greater than that of the Sun.
Wolf
Wolf is a constellation in the Southern Hemisphere, lying on the edge of the Milky Way. On a clear and moonless night, about 70 stars can be seen in the constellation with the naked eye, but only ten of them are brighter than the fourth magnitude. Two of them are visible from the territory of Russia.
Crow
Raven is a small and very beautiful constellation in the southern hemisphere of the sky. Its stars form an irregular quadrangle southwest of Virgo. However, in this figure it is rather difficult to see a bird, which was depicted in ancient atlases at the site of this constellation. In total, on a clear moonless night in Raven, you can see about 30 stars with the naked eye.
Hydra
Hydra is one of the longest constellations located in the southern hemisphere of the sky. The brightest star is Alphard (alpha Hydra), has magnitude 2.0 magnitude. This red variable star is 30 parsecs away from Earth. Another variable is the long period star R Hydra; located next to the star near the Hydra. It resembles the star of the World of Whales: its maximum brightness reaches 3.0 ", the minimum is 10.9", which makes this star invisible to the naked eye. The period of change in its brightness is more than a year, almost 390 days.
Pigeon
Pigeon - small constellation southern hemisphere of the sky. At good conditions Visibility on a clear and moonless night in the constellation can be seen with the naked eye about 40 stars. Of these, the two most bright stars have brilliance Z and two - 4. The rest are at the border of visibility with the naked eye. Dove stars do not form any characteristic geometric figure.
Unicorn
Unicorn is an equatorial constellation in the southern hemisphere. On a clear and moonless night, up to 85 stars can be seen in the constellation with the naked eye, but mostly these are faint stars. Only the five brightest are of magnitude 4 and 5. The stars of the Unicorn do not form any characteristic geometric figure and do not have their own names. A very interesting star is T Unicorn, which is a long-period Cepheid. Its brilliance changes from 5.6 to 6.6 in 27 days.
Beyond the Equator: A Star Map of the Southern Hemisphere
If, after living all your life in the Northern Hemisphere, you suddenly find yourself on the other side of the equator - for example, in Australia, South Africa or New Zealand, the starry sky above your head on a clear night will seem unusual and even strange to you. After careful study, you will understand that the whole thing lies in a completely different arrangement of night luminaries in the sky. However, they are grouped in the same way into easily recognizable constellations - unchanging guiding signs for travelers and navigators.
The constellations of the southern hemisphere received their modern titles much later than, say, Ursa Major or Orion: the ancient Greeks, who systematized most of the groups of stars we know, did not cross the equator, so in this case this role fell to the lot of European sailors, who in the 17th-18th centuries headed for India and South America.
Name of constellations
In total, there are 88 constellations on the stellar sphere visible from Earth (all of them were finally approved by the International Astronomical Union in 1930); 40 of them shine over the Southern Hemisphere. Some of the constellations received names rooted in ancient Greek mythology: Centaur, Phoenix, Scorpion. Other names were taken from scientific and marine terminology or simply from everyday life - for example, Microscope, Bake, Net, Octant.
There are no medium-sized constellations among the constellations of the Southern Hemisphere: they are either small, compact groups of stars, or vast, stretching across an impressive area of \u200b\u200bthe celestial sphere. Yes, famous South Cross- a very small constellation, consisting of only four stars, which, nevertheless, are among the brightest in the night sky. Hydra, on the contrary, consists of 19 stars and dominates one of the relatively star-empty sectors, stretching along the southern horizon from the constellation Libra to the constellation Cancer. Now it is the largest of the groups of stars, although until 1930 the constellation was still distinguished in the sky of the Southern Hemisphere Argo. However, astronomers came to the conclusion that Argo is too bulky and difficult to distinguish, so four new constellations arose in its place: Keel, Sail, Compass and Stern.
South subpolar zone
As well as in the Northern Hemisphere, the southern stars during the night due to the rotation of the Earth around its axis slowly move across the sky. However, there is no such a convenient “pointer” as the Polar Star familiar to us, and the imaginary point of the South Pole of the world is located in the sky in the constellation Octant.
South subpolar zone- this is the region of the celestial sphere, located within 40º from the South Pole of the world; the stars related to it at any time of the night and year are not hidden behind the horizon. (In fact, they do not leave the sky even during the day, only their brilliance is naturally eclipsed by the radiance of the Sun; in the equatorial regions they rise from the horizon in the east and slowly move west during the night.)
The groups of stars that are completely included in the Southern Subpolar Zone include the constellations of the Southern Cross, Chameleon, flies, Southern Triangle, Peacock, Hours, flying fish other.
Low on the horizon
Many constellations in the Southern Hemisphere appear in the sky only at certain times of the year - just as they do in the Northern Hemisphere. This phenomenon due to the combination of the tilt of the earth's axis with the movement of our planet in orbit around the sun. For example, Keel and Chalice it is best to observe in the spring when they rise high enough above the horizon. Libra and the Southern Cross - in summer, the constellations Phoenix and Capricorn- autumn, and Eridani and Kita- in winter.
Such a cycle not only gives us the opportunity to determine what time of year or hour of the night it is, but also helps astronomers a lot: having shifted in the sky, the stars can take a more advantageous position for observations - or, conversely, leaving the field of view of telescopes, free the desired area of \u200b\u200bthe celestial spheres.
Galaxy and nebulae
One of the most spectacular sights in a clear night sky is a jagged streak transparent light, stretching obliquely across the celestial sphere. This is Milky Way - our galaxy, the light of an uncountable number of stars that reaches us for tens of thousands, or even millions of years. And although this huge formation has the shape of a spiral disk (at the end of one of the branches of which is solar system), for us it remains a stripe, since we look at it from the side. The Milky Way is equally visible in both hemispheres, but its brightest section is in the southern constellation Sagittarius.
Located so many light years away from us (63,240 AU or 9.463 x 10 12 km), all these luminaries, of course, cannot be distinguished with the naked eye - just like the stars of other galaxies located even further away. However, these galaxies themselves can sometimes be seen without special optics: these are, in particular, carina nebula and Orion Nebula located in constellations of the same name. Besides, powerful telescopes at least a little, but they bring our neighbors in the Universe closer to us - it is known, for example, that the galaxy NGC 2997, located in the constellation Pump, like ours, is a gas and dust formation pierced by myriads of stars.
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