It is located near several other constellations named after ancient greek legends surrounding. The mythology of the night sky is intended primarily for amateur astronomers who would like to know the mythology behind the names of constellations and planets. It is an a0p class binary star with an overall apparent visual magnitude of 2. Andromeda is one of the 48 constellations listed by the 2ndcentury grecoroman astronomer ptolemy and remains one of the 88 modern constellations. The 12 traditional signs of the zodiac occupy an 18 wide band of sky centred on the ecliptic plane, which is the path the sun, moon, and planets seem to travel in the sky. Guide to the constellations this is a wikipedia book, a collection of wikipedia articles that can be easily saved, imported by an external electronic rendering service, and ordered as a printed book. The constellation perseus occupies an area of 615 square degrees and contains three stars with known planets. Traditionally, the star algol is the most malevolent star of the heavens. There are several versions of how acrisius and perseus came to be in the same place at the same time, but in all of them, acrisius is accidentally killed by a discus thrown. Bible, where it is referred to in the book of job, thus giving it the name jobs star.
Perseus is a constellation located in the northern hemisphere that is visible during december. Beta persei algol is a notable ea type eclipsing binary, changing from 2. People used them to relate stories of their beliefs, experiences, creation, or mythology. Vergil aeneid 1 17 in latin, with adjustable running. How to find perseus night sky guide we the curious. Book 1 book 2 book 3 book 4 book 5 book 6 book 7 book 8 book 9 book 10 book 11 book 12 17 811 12 33 3449 5064 6575 7680 8191 92101 102123 1241 2141 142156 157179 180197 198207 208222 223253 254296 297304 3053 314324 325334 335342 343371 372386 387401 402409 410417 418440 441465 466493 494519 520543 544558. With the help of hermes wings and athenas shield, perseus killed medusa without looking at her. Jun 01, 2016 andromeda is one of the 48 constellations listed by the 2ndcentury grecoroman astronomer ptolemy and remains one of the 88 modern constellations. Perseus then saved his mother from marrying polydectes by turning the king and his court to stone with the head of medusa. Perseeus the constellation of perseus, the hero son of zeus, is best viewed in winter during the month of december. Go to a dark location and look in the darkest part of the sky, no matter what direction that is. To revive discussion, seek broader input via a forum such as the village pump.
Other constellations in the perseus group include andromeda, cassiopeia and pegasus. The constellation of perseus, the hero son of zeus, is best viewed in winter during the month of december. The best time will be after midnight on the night of august 12, but any night this week after midnight should be good. Some version of these constellations are found in traditions around the world, for this band around the celestial sphere includes the ecliptic, the apparent path of the sun through the year. But thou, 0 roman, learn with sovereign sway to rule the nations. Andromeda is among the 48 constellations that ptolemy, the secondcentury grecoroman astronomer listed and until now is recognized among the 88 constellations in existence. Very enjoyable, good reading, lots of information that was new to me, even though i have been teaching about the sky for a long time. Indeed because that your wish is known to me, great jupiter, reluctant i abandoned both turnus and the lands. In the back, it shows you a map of where to look in the sky to find each constellation, along with the time of year to look. It is one of the 48 ancient constellations listed by the 2ndcentury astronomer ptolemy, and among the 88 modern constellations defined by the international astronomical union iau. Perseus the breaker, two comets and the head of satan. Constellation perseusconstellation perseus named after.
In any case, betelgeuse is considered the 12thbrightest star in the sky. Perseus spans 28 degrees of the zodiac in the signs of taurus and gemini, and contains 12 named fixed stars. A few drops of medusas blood fell into the sea, mixed with the foam, and gave birth to pegasus, the flying horse, who later played a part in the story of another hero, bellerophon. Beta gruis is a red giant variable star with a minimum magnitude of 2. Perseus he was the son of jupiter and danae, and is best known for his killing of the gorgon medusa. The zodiac constellations are helpful in locating planets in the night sky since the planets wander in the zone of the zodiac. Perseus was a greek hero most famous for his slaying of medusa.
The gorgons were three sisters, only one of whom, medusa, was mortal. While perseus lies along the milky way, and offers many sparkling open clusters and diffuse nebulae, andromeda lies away from our galaxys plane. Star chart of constellations cassiopeia above and perseus below, with stars mirfak and algol labeled. The constellations andromeda and perseus, along with pegasus, casseopiea and cepheus, are richly intertwined in mythology, but are vastly divergent in the objects they present to amateur astronomers. Gk persei subsequently faded to magnitude 12 or, but had occasional outbursts of 2 to 3. Constellation perseus the champion, is a northern constellation sitting above constellation taurus and below constellation cassiopeia, and between constellation andromeda and constellation auriga u. The palace of the sun turns out to be made entirely of precious metals, and far superior to anything featured on mtvs cribs ovid tells us that what was most stupendously awesome, however, was the artwork on the doors. A constellation is an area on the celestial sphere in which a group of stars forms an imaginary outline or pattern, typically representing an animal, mythological person or creature, or an inanimate object the origins of the earliest constellations likely go back to prehistory. Constellation perseus astrology perseus constellation gives an intelligent, strong, bold. Aug 09, 2010 perseus is in the northeastern sky around midnight.
Ptolemy described perseus and 47 other constellations in the second century. Perseus contains a number of stars brighter than magnitude 4. Constellations are formed of bright stars which appear close to each other on the sky, but are really far apart in space. The constellation s brightest star, alpha gruis, is also known as alnair and appears as a 1.
This page is currently inactive and is retained for historical reference. Cassiopeia and perseus in northeast on autumn evenings earthsky. Dec 12, 2001 the constellations offers a lot of information, good star stories, especially for teaching beginning astronomy classes. Originally a beautiful maiden, medusa was transformed into a hideous monster by the goddess minerva. Or trace with pointed wand the cycled heaven, and hail the constellations as they rise. The constellation perseus is located next to andromeda, the constellation that represents his wife. In ancient times, people thought that the sun, moon, and stars were gods. In classical greek mythology, perseus beheaded the snakeheaded medusa to save the princess andromeda from a nasty sea monster. The mythology of the night sky meet your next favorite book.
Pages in category perseus constellation the following 148 pages are in this category, out of 148 total. Located north of the celestial equator, it is named for andromeda, daughter of cassiopeia, in the greek myth, who was chained to a rock to be eaten by the sea monster cetus. The characters in his story are represented by six constellations that occupy a substantial part of the sky. Constellation perseus the constellations on sea and sky. Greek mythology is full of heroes, but the greatest of them all was perseus. Basic information about andromeda andromeda mythology andromeda constellation. Perseus has been recognized as a constellation for at least 2,000 years. Dec 16, 2008 positioned north of the ecliptic plane, the constellation of perseus was one of the original 48 constellations listed by ptolemy, and endures as one of the 88 modern constellations. The 88 modern constellations contain 30 inanimate objects, 23 animals, 15 people 12 men and 3 women, 10 water creatures, 9 birds, and 1 insect.
Perseus is in the northeastern sky around midnight. Perseus was the son of the greek god zeus and the mortal princess danae. Leo, virgo, libra, scorpius, sagittarius, capricornus, aquarius, pisces, aries, taurus, gemini, and cancer. Zodiac constellations zodiac is a greek word meaning pertaining to animals, with the zodiac constellations included in the overall list of 88 constellations. The constellations grus, pavo, phoenix and tucana are collectively known as the southern birds. Now even the messenger of the gods, sent by jupiter himself. Perseus is a constellation in the northern sky, being named after the greek mythological hero perseus. Perseus, constellation in the northern sky at about 4 hours right ascension and 40 north in declination.
Most of the constellations with which we are familiar come from ancient. The constellation perseus can be seen in late summer and autumn in the northern. I had never heard of some of the constellations listed. Perseus constellation lies in the northern sky, next to andromeda. The shapes you see all depend on your point of view. Many societies saw patterns among the stars with gods and goddesses or stories from their culture. Great book that tells the stories of the constellations. Its the center from which the annual perseid meteor shower, a midsummer spectacle in the northern hemisphere, radiates. Perseus is near several constellations whose names derive from the adventures of the greek hero, known as the perseus group. In 2006, perseus became the location of the largest supernova on record when a star 100200 times more massive than the sun exploded. Where to look in skythe zodiac constellations lie in a band along the ecliptic that is best viewed when due south of you. The zodiac is a group of 12 constellations through which the ecliptic and the apparent motion of the sun pass throughout the year. The myth of perseus tells how he was sent on a quest to bring back a gorgons head to king polydectes. This was a rather complex task, as anyone who saw her hideous face would be turned immediately to stonethe gorgons, according to bulfinch, were monstrous females with huge teeth like those of swine, brazen claws, and snaky hair bulfinchs.
It includes the famous constellations of leo, virgo, libra, scorpius, sagittarius, capricornus, aquarius, pisces, aries, taurus, gemini, and cancer. The second brightest star is algol with a magnitude of 2. Perseus ngc869 and ngc884 make up the famous double cluster, a related pair of star clusters that form one of the richest sights in the sky for small telescopes. The origins of the earliest constellations likely go back to prehistory. A constellation is an area on the celestial sphere in which a group of stars forms an imaginary outline or pattern, typically representing an animal, mythological person or creature, or an inanimate object. Either the page is no longer relevant or consensus on its purpose has become unclear.
Each cluster covers more than 12 degree of sky, with ngc869 being the brighter and richer of the pair. Positioned north of the ecliptic plane, the constellation of perseus was one of the original 48 constellations listed by ptolemy, and endures as one of the 88 modern constellations. Ross exton of the live science team shows you how to find the constellation, along with algol the demon star. Relating the twelve tribes of israel to the twelve zodiac constellations helps unravel the mystery of the lords sacred calendars. Perseus was the son of danae, daughter of king acrisius. Perseus saw the beautiful maiden in distress, like a true champion he went to her aid. Each has some background regarding who named them and some of the legends surrounding each. Perseus, angered by the king, took out medusas head and turned him into a stone. The story of perseus take a look at the story of how perseus slew medusa, the mother of pegasus, and rescued andromeda, the daughter of cepheus and cassiopeia, from the sea monster cetus. The two open clusters are right beside each other at magnitude 6. Jan 01, 2011 the mythology of the night sky is intended primarily for amateur astronomers who would like to know the mythology behind the names of constellations and planets. Perseus is one of the oldest constellations, having been cataloged by the greek.
The mythology of the constellation guide andromeda, page 1. In the 19th century, the constellation was known as perseus et caput medusae perseus and the head of medusa. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. The constellation s brightest star, alpha persei, is a bit brighter.
Constellation perseus astrology perseus constellation. Perseus looks likes an inverted y and contains two of the most beautiful open clusters which sit side by side. Positioned north of the ecliptic plane, the constellation of perseus was. Perseus had many types of variable stars, many of which are too small to notice. The author recounts the legends connected with many constellations, including aquarius, aries, cancer, orion, and others. Andromeda was one of the original 48 constellations formulated by ptolemy in his 2ndcentury almagest, in which it was defined as a specific pattern of stars. This fascinating narrative recounts the history of astronomy and, with more than 100 fullcolor illustrations, it shows readers how to find the planets and constellations in the night sky. It is one of the 48 listed by the 2ndcentury astronomer ptolemy,1 and among the 88 modern constellations defined by the international astronomical union iau. Basic information about andromeda andromeda mythology andromeda constellation position stars in the andromeda. The annual perseid meteor shower peaks around august 12 or. Bullinger in his fascinating book the witness of the stars, tells us about the meaning of the constellations of the zodiac, and the stars that comprise them. Constellation perseusconstellation perseus named after the.
Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of the aeneid and what it means. Perseus is one of the oldest constellations, having been cataloged by the greek astronomer ptolemy in the second century, and it has more than one attraction for stargazers. On his way home, perseus came across the monster, cetus, getting ready to eat andromeda. Destined to become the great grandfather of the famous hercules, perseus had a rough start in life. The boundary of the perseus constellation contains 7 stars that host known exoplanets. Folios from the kitab suwar alkawakib althabita book of the constellations of the fixed stars of alsufi late 15th century iran ink and gold on paper. This beautifully illustrated book helps readers navigate their way around the night sky as they learn the significance of heavenly bodies. It represents andromedas head in western mythology, however, the stars traditional arabic names alpheratz and sirrah, from the phrase surrat alfaras sometimes translated. It is home to the perseid meteor shower which peaks around august 9 and can produce up to 60100 meteors per hour. If anyone looked at medusas face they would turn to stone. Today, its called perseus the hero or simply perseus per.
Discover the secrets in the stars 1 by kerrod, robin isbn. This is the list of notable stars in the constellation perseus, sorted by decreasing brightness. Perseus is a constellation in the northern sky, being named after the greek mythological hero. And alpheratz, sirrah is the brightest star in this constellation. The origin for this constellation is ancient, ptolemy named her for our western hemisphere over 2000 years ago. It deals with the 48 constellations identified by the ancient greek astronomer ptolemy, as well as all the planets of our solar system and their moons, which are named after roman gods. There, vulcan, the god of fire and technology, had created a picture of the world through metalworking. The constellation depicting perseus lies in a prominent part of the milky way, which is perhaps why aratus termed him duststained. The constellation perseus represents the greek hero perseus in the sky and is one of the six constellations associated with the myth of perseus. Perseus the hero perseus celestial atlas by alexander jamieson 1822.
Perseus grandfather, acrisius, the king of argos, was warned by an oracle that he would be killed by his grandson. Myths about constellations windows to the universe. Several of the neighboring constellations perseus, cassiopeia, cetus, and cepheus also represent characters in the perseus myth. There is a strong hebrew tradition that each of the twelve tribes of israel was associated with one of the twelve constellations of the zodiac. Perseus constellation perseus, named after the greek mythological hero perseus, is a constellation in the northern sky.
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