What is the Southern Constellation?

What are the main constellations in the northern sky and the southern sky?

Starry Sky in Four Seasons-A Guide to Stargazing in Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter!

1. starry sky on a spring night

Observers of different geographical latitudes can see different starry sky. The farther south they go, the more stars they see in the southern sky. Sanya, Hainan Island, China, has a geographical latitude close to 18, where you can see all the stars north of-72 declination. The geographical latitude of Beijing is around 40, and only stars with declination greater than-50 can be seen.

Because the earth rotates and revolves at the same time, it forms the seasonal variation of the starry sky. At the same time in different seasons, the constellations in the sky are different. Therefore, people often divide the starry sky into four seasons according to the four seasons: spring, summer, autumn and winter.

Pppp But it must be pointed out that the so-called starry sky in four seasons refers to the starry sky at dusk in each season. In fact, you can see almost all the constellations overnight in any season, if you are willing to stay up late.

Starry sky in spring night

The Big Dipper hanging high in the northern night sky is the most familiar star. Learn to recognize the constellation of spring and start with it. The Big Dipper is a part of Ursa major. It consists of five bright second-class stars and two third-class stars in the shape of a spoon, just like an ancient vessel for holding wine, hence its name. As for the name Beidou, it is also different from the six stars in Nandou. The six stars in Nandou are also arranged in a barrel shape on Sagittarius, hanging low in the summer night sky.

Pppp The Big Dipper is equivalent to the waist and tail of Ursa major. Four of them make up the bucket spoon and the other three make up the bucket handle, as shown in Figure 39. At dusk in spring, the big dipper of the Big Dipper points to the east.

Connect a straight line between Tian Xuan and Shu Tian at the front of the Big Dipper, extend the distance by five times, and you will meet a bright second-class star, which is the North Star. This is the easiest way to find Polaris. Therefore, Tian Xuan and Shu Tian are also called "finger stars". Because the Big Dipper revolves around the North Star constantly, and its height and position change from time to time, you should practice finding the North Star quickly through the Big Dipper at any time.

The bucket handle part of the Big Dipper is slightly curved. If you stretch out along the arc of the three stars on the bucket handle, you will meet an orange-red bright star, which belongs to Capricorn and is named plantain in Chinese. Capricorn is a big constellation, but it is difficult to identify because of its scattered structure. However, it is not difficult to find it through the Big Dipper.

If you continue along this arc, you will meet another star with blue and white brilliance near the ecliptic. The Chinese name of this star is Jiaokou, and its bright and clear brilliance has been impressive since ancient times. Jiaokou is the main star of Virgo, clear but not cold, beautiful but not gorgeous, just like a dignified and delicate girl. In ancient constellation books, Virgo appeared as a goddess.

Virgo is a scattered star and can be identified in stages. Learn to recognize the corners first, and then gradually get familiar with Virgo from part to whole through frequent observation.

A white star like 1 is shining brightly in the sky to the west of Arcturus. This is the main star of Leo, and its Chinese name is Xuanyuan XIV. Like Arcturus, it belongs to one of the nine planets for navigation. Besides Xuanyuan XIV, Leo also includes two second-class stars and four third-class stars, which is an easily recognizable constellation.

In addition to the above, the constellations you can see in the Spring Festival Evening include Cancer, Ophiuchus and Raven. But these constellations are not easy to identify. Among them, Ophiuchus is regarded as a long snake arrangement. When the snakehead rises due south, the snakehead has not completely crossed the eastern horizon.

2. Starry sky in summer night

It is best to learn to recognize the summer constellation from Scorpio, which shines near the southern horizon. Scorpio is a powerful constellation, consisting of 1 burning 1 equal star, 3 second-class stars and 10 third-class stars. It is the most magnificent constellation on the ecliptic.

Scorpio is the most famous of all the constellations. A long string of stars on the lower left constitutes a curly scorpion tail, and on the upper right is a scorpion head composed of several stars, with two poisonous needles on the side of the head. Except for a round waist and a face that looks like a scorpion with claws, it won't make people have a second imagination. I am in the heart of the scorpion with the ancient antares (also known as fire). At night, when you see the bright Scorpio in the southern night sky, it will tell you that the long summer has arrived.

In the summer night sky, the exceptionally bright Milky Way is particularly eye-catching, but the brightest part of the Milky Way is still Scorpio and Sagittarius in the east.

Sagittarius doesn't have such a bright star as 1, but it has two second-class stars and eight third-class stars. Although their arrangement is relatively compact and difficult for beginners to find, Sagittarius is a famous constellation in astronomy.

Sagittarius is also called Sagittarius. In ancient constellation books, Sagittarius was depicted as a monster with a human upper body and a horse lower body, with a full bow and arrow aimed at Scorpio in the west. We observe the stars in Sagittarius today, and we will never come up with such a monster shape anyway. The rich imagination of the ancients really makes today's people sigh.

The six stars from the right side of Sagittarius to the upper end of the bow are arranged in a spoon shape, which is called Nandou Six Stars. Although the six stars in Nandou are not as famous and brilliant as the Big Dipper, they still have the beautiful shape of the seven tails of the Big Dipper.

The Milky Way extends from the east side of Scorpio to the north, across the sky, with a momentum of pounds. On the way to the extension, just in the middle of the eastern horizon, two stars as crystal white as 1 face each other across the milky way. Among them, the bright star on the east bank of the Milky Way is the Altair of Aquila, which is the cowherd in China folklore who expects to meet the Weaver Girl on the seventh day. The higher star on the west bank of the Milky Way is Vega in Lyra, which is beyond the reach of the cowherd and lovesick to the extreme.

Altair and Vega have their own obvious characteristics, even if they happen to appear in the cracks of the clouds, it is not difficult to identify them. Let's talk about identifying Altair first. There is a dark star on each side of Altair, and the three stars are almost in a straight line, which is the most obvious sign to identify Altair.

Then look at Vega. On the east side of Vega, there are two small stars, which form a regular triangle with Vega. These are Vega's two maids. Legend has it that the Weaver Maid is Ji Zi, the Emperor of Heaven, and it is quite in line with her identity to be followed by two maids in Ji Zi.

Walking up the Milky Way from Aquila, there is a white star of 1 near our heads. This bright star is called Tianjin IV, with bright eyes and white teeth, and it is gorgeous in Cygnus. If you look carefully, Cygnus looks like a big cross, Tianjin IV is at the top of the cross, and the foot of the cross faces the eagle. This cross is called the Northern Cross, which corresponds to the Southern Cross in the southern sky. However, the Northern Cross is not as attractive and famous as the Southern Cross.

If the foot of the cross is regarded as Bai Niao's head and neck, and the crossbar of the cross is regarded as wings, Tianjin is the tail of a bird. Some dim dark stars gathered around the crossbar form the wings of a bird, which looks like a big white bird spreading its wings over the Milky Way on a moonless night, hence the name Cygnus.

According to the folklore in China, when it rains on the night of Qiaoqi Festival, the Cowherd will fly across the Milky Way in a big bird to meet the Weaver Girl, and Cygnus should be the lucky bird of an adult beauty.

In addition to the above-mentioned constellations, you can also see the small and exquisite northern crown and big constellations such as the five immortals and snakes. However, these four constellations are not prominent enough and will be recognized in the second phase.

Celestial constellation is one of the zodiac signs, but it is also a dim small constellation, so it will be recognized later.

3. Starry sky in autumn night

Learning to recognize the constellation of autumn night, it is best to start with Cassiopeia shining in the northeast galaxy. Cassiopeia is composed of three second-class stars and two third-class stars, showing a W shape. Because of its unique shape, it is easy to recognize, and it will never be forgotten after the first meeting.

Knowing Cassiopeia makes it easy to find Polaris. The method is to connect the two stars on both sides of W respectively, extend the connecting line to the intersection point, then connect it with the star in the center of W with the lead of the intersection point A, and then extend it forward by about 5 times to get the position of the North Pole star. See figure 43.

Other constellations in autumn night are not as easy to recognize as Cassiopeia. Half of Perseus invades the Milky Way, much like the shape of a person with his right hand clenched and his thumb and forefinger open. This shape is abstract and needs to be observed repeatedly to remember.

Andromeda is the daughter of Cassiopeia and Cepheus in Greek mythology. Andromeda, Cassiopeia and Perseus are arranged in a regular triangle, which can be used as identification clues.

To the southwest of Andromeda is Pegasus. Pegasus is a big constellation, but it is not easy to identify because it lacks a bright star that can be the dominant star.

The second-class star 1 at the western end of Andromeda and the three third-class stars on the eastern side of Pegasus roughly form a square, which is called Pegasus square or Pegasus quadrilateral. This quadrilateral is quite large. If the full moon is arranged on its side, it can accommodate about three full moons. It is obvious that such a huge square is not easy to escape our sight, so if we find this square through Andromeda, we can track it and recognize Pegasus.

Cassiopeia is adjacent to Cepheus in the west. Cepheus is shaped like a chess piece, so it is relatively easy to identify.

In autumn night, the southern starry sky is lonely and desolate, Scorpio sinks, and people are trapped in the southwest horizon. Although Capricorn, Aquarius, Pisces, Aries and other constellations on the ecliptic stand next to each other, they are all dim and difficult to see their true colors. So for beginners, the next step is to make friends with them.

However, in the darkness, there is an impressive star that stands out from the crowd and stands alone at the low altitude in the south. It is the north master of South Aquarius. Teacher Bei Luo is dazzling, like a beautiful white gem embedded in the dark sky, because there are no bright stars in the surrounding area, so it is clear at a glance. When you see that after school in the evening, Beiluo Normal School has risen in the southern sky, indicating that autumn is already deep. In the eyes of some people who are good at sadness, seeing the prosperous starry sky in the past, only one cold star is left in self-pity, which may cause the sad mood of "the weather is as cold as clear autumn and the red line of melancholy declines". p

4. Starry sky in winter night

Winter is the most lively season in the starry sky in a year, and the constellations compete with each other, as if a hero's party were held in the world of stars. Let's start with Orion in the southern sky. The magnificent Orion has been famous for its three bright stars arranged in the center since ancient times. This famous Betelgeuse showed their existence before the name Capricorn appeared. People all over the world worship and value it as a symbol of victory and glory. Because Samsung is so striking and unforgettable, it is easy to identify Orion.

On the east and west sides of Betelgeuse, there are two roughly symmetrical bright stars (1), a red star in the east (1) is called Betelgeuse, and a blue star in the west (1) is called Betelgeuse. The surface temperature of Betelgeuse is about 12000, and its radius is about 50 times that of the sun, which is very huge, but it can only be regarded as a dwarf compared with Betelgeuse. The temperature of Betelgeuse is only 3000, but its radius is at least 700 times that of the sun and at most 1000 times, so it should be called a superstar. Betelgeuse shrinks and expands irregularly.

In the southwest of Betelgeuse, there are three smaller stars winking at you. This is Xiao Samsung. Please observe these three little stars carefully on a clear moonless night (without binoculars). You will find that the star in the middle is different from the ordinary star. It doesn't have a sharp outline, but it is like a fog spot, and fuzzy light permeates all around. This is the famous Orion nebula. Orion is the name of a brave hunter. In the ancient star map, we can see a burly Orion with a stick and a shield in his hand; With a sword hanging around his waist, he is welcoming the fierce Taurus from the north.

Extending the connection of Betelgeuse to the north by about 8 times, I met an orange star, 1, which is the fifth star of Taurus. Bi Suwu constitutes the right eye of Taurus. Near Bi Suwu, a dozen dim stars and Bi Suwu together form a V-shape, which is the famous Bi Xingqun, which is one of the 28 ancient places in China. Not far from Bixing Cluster, six or seven mixed stars form another cluster, named Pleiades Cluster, also called Six-Star Seven Sisters Cluster. People with good eyesight can see nine stars.

Please note that all the stars in the Pleiades are blue and white. In the cold days of winter, the Pleiades cluster emits cold light near our heads, which is even more chilling. Some people say that the cold in winter is released by these stars. Do you believe it or not?

Looking east from Taurus, two first-class bright stars are affectionately attached side by side, which set each other off. A particularly bright 1 star in the south is called Beihe III, and the one in the north is a second-class star, called Beihe II. According to Greek mythology, Borax (Latin name of Behe III) and Caster (Behe II) are twins born by Zeus and the goddess Rita, hence the name Gemini.

Auriga is located in the north of Taurus, and its leader is the second star of gold. There are several small stars in the southwest of Capella. They form a slender triangle. They are reliable references to Capella.

Extending from the lead of Orion Betelgeuse to the southeast for about seven times, you will meet the brightest star in the whole day, which is called Sirius. Blue light is reminiscent of a wolf's eyes shining in the dark, hence its name. Sirius is the brightest star in the sky. The only brighter stars are Venus (called the evening star and the morning star) and Jupiter, and Mars is sometimes brighter than it.

Sirius belongs to Canis Canis, and correspondingly, there is a small dog in the south of Gemini. Canis canis really small. Besides the coach, 1, there are other stars who burn the midnight oil, Nanhe, and only the third-class stars, 1, are waving flags and shouting. According to Greek mythology, big dogs and small dogs are hounds following Orion.

In addition, the constellations that can be seen in the winter sky are Bojiang, Celestial, Tian Ge, Tail and Sailfish. But these constellations are obscure and dim, so let's take a look.

The starry sky is like a book, which is often displayed in front of us. Whoever knows how to read it can gain infinite knowledge from it.