About the constellations in the night sky

In a typical constellation diagram, the constellation indicated by the arrow is Cassiopeia.

In order to identify the stars easily, people divided several regions according to their natural distribution in the sky. Different sizes. Each region is called a constellation. Connect the bright stars in the same constellation with lines to form various figures. In shape, they are similar to animals and utensils. There are nearly 6,000 stars visible to the naked eye, each of which can be classified as a unique constellation. Each constellation can be identified by the shape of the bright star inside. Basically, dividing stars into constellations is a random process. Different civilizations have different constellations made up of different stars-although some constellations made up of more conspicuous stars are roughly the same in different civilizations, such as Orion and Scorpio. The International Astronomical Union divides the sky into 88 official constellations with precise boundaries, so that every star in the sky belongs to a specific constellation. Most of these official constellations are based on the ancient Greek traditional constellations handed down from the Middle Ages. Constellations play an important role in astronomy; Astrology also uses the image of the zodiac, but it does not use real scientific methods. Astrology is generally regarded as pseudoscience.

Modern constellation determination

1928 The International Astronomical Union officially announced 88 constellations commonly used in the world. At the same time, it is based on the vernal equinox and equator of 1875. According to the different positions of the 88 constellations on the celestial sphere and the appearance of the stars, they are divided into five regions, namely, the Northern Celestial Constellation (5), the Polaris Constellation (40 ~ 90, 19), the Twelve Constellations (12 constellation near the ecliptic on the celestial sphere) and the Zodiac Constellation (19). The 88 constellations of the whole day are:

Northern Sky Constellation (5): Ursa minor (closest to the north celestial pole), Ursa major, Cassiopeia, Draco and Cepheus.

Polaris constellation (19): Scorpio, Andromeda, Lupo, Auriga, Canis major, Foxes, Cygnus minor, Perseus, Shepherd, Pentecost, Backrow, Corona Nordica, Tmall, Lyra, Dolphin, Pegasus, Triangle.

Zodiac (12): Cancer, Aries, Gemini, Aquarius, Virgo, Leo, Taurus, Pisces, Capricorn, Scorpio, Libra and Sagittarius.

Twelve constellations (10): Sagittarius, Canine, Eagle, Ophiuchus, Ophiuchus, Sextant, Ophiuchus, Unicorn, Orion and Whale.

Southern Constellation (***42): Temple of Heaven, Picture Frame, Fly, Mountain Case, India, Tian Yan, Flying Fish, Long Ruler, Swordfish, Clock, Rhododendron, Southern Triangle, Compass, Dragonfly, Telescope, Hydra and Southern Cross (1999).