Perseus, named efter the greek meethological hero perseus, is a constellation in the northren sky. Positioned north of the ecliptic plane, the constellation of perseus was one of the original 48 constellations listed by ptolemy, and. Figure 1 shows all 48 constellations color coded so that the three decans match the colors of the associated zodiac constellation. For example, the maiden, infant, centaur and herdsman are all shown in light blue. This printable star map of the perseus constellation is made up of the stars mirphak and algol. Wikimedia commons has media related to perseus constellation. Perseus is the 24th largest in terms of size in the night sky. The myth of perseus tells how he was sent on a quest to bring back a gorgons head to king polydectes. In the winter sky of the northern hemisphere, perseus can be seen flanked by taurus, aries, andromeda and cassiopeia.
One of the larger constellations of the northern hemisphere. There are plenty of other interesting stars in perseus, too, including gamma persei giant yellow star, gorgonea tertia red giant, zeta persei blue super giant, nash orange giant, and more. Originally a beautiful maiden, medusa was transformed into a hideous monster by the goddess minerva. Fixed stars of alsufi late 15th century iran ink and gold on paper. It represents andromedas head in western mythology, however, the stars traditional arabic names alpheratz and sirrah, from the phrase surrat alfaras sometimes translated. The summer 2010 issue of the earth scientist, available in our online store, includes articles on rivers and snow, classroom planetariums, satellites and oceanography, handson astronomy, and global warming.
It is an a0p class binary star with an overall apparent visual magnitude of 2. In 2006, perseus became the location of the largest supernova on record when a star 100200 times more massive than the sun exploded. In greek mythology, andromeda was the daughter of cassiopeia and cepheus, the king of ethiopia. Instructions on using this constellation sky map on the above constellation map click on adjacent contellations to view them. The constellations we recognize today were first mapped by the ancient greeks, who arranged the stars into patterns for that purpose. When you find perseus, look for the constellations cassiopeia, cepheus and andromeda. The nereids felt insulted by this and complained to the sea god poseidon. Perseus gives name to one of the constellation families. It is one of the 48 ancient constellations listed by the 2ndcentury astronomer ptolemy, among the 88 modern constellations defined by the international astronomical union, it is located near several other constellations named after ancient greek legends surrounding perseus, including. He beheaded the gorgon medusa for polydectes and saved andromeda from the sea monster cetus. Constellation perseus the champion, is a northern constellation sitting above constellation taurus and below constellation cassiopeia, and between constellation andromeda and constellation auriga u. Poisonous snakes in libyan, persus turned atlas into a stone for refusing to show any hospitality the stone became a large mountain, and coral. Perseus constellation facts, mythology and how to find.
Perseus he was the son of jupiter and danae, and is best known for his killing of the gorgon medusa. The mythology of the constellation guide andromeda, page 1. People used them to relate stories of their beliefs, experiences, creation, or mythology. In classical greek mythology, perseus beheaded the snakeheaded medusa to save the princess andromeda from a nasty sea monster. The origin for this constellation is ancient, ptolemy named her for our western hemisphere over 2000 years ago. Perseus is a northern constellation which appears highest in the evening sky in the months around november. The gorgons were three sisters, only one of whom, medusa, was mortal. 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.
Folios from the kitab suwar alkawakib althabita book of the. Adopts the magnitude scale of hipparchus of nicaea c. Other constellations in the perseus group include andromeda, cassiopeia and pegasus. The two open clusters are right beside each other at magnitude 6. Andromeda is a bright constellation, visible all year round in the northern hemisphere circumpolar. Perseus was the son of the greek god zeus and the mortal princess danae. Stars shown for brighter than 6 limiting magnitude, star names labels shown for stars brighter than 4 limiting magnitude, bayerflamsteed code labels shown for stars brighter than 5 limiting magnitude. 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.
Book of the constellations of the fixed stars depict the constellation perseus. Perseus is a constellation in the northern sky, being named after the greek mythological hero perseus. The constellation perseus, the hero, can be seen in late summer and autumn in the northern hemisphere. If you have ever wondered why exactly are there such oddly named constellations as perseus and cepheus or why are there several fishes and a seamonster in the sky, then the mythology of the night sky, is the book to turn to.
Perseus constellation perseus, named after the greek mythological hero perseus, is a constellation in the northern sky. Perseus looks likes an inverted y and contains two of the most beautiful open clusters which sit side by side. Alsufis book of the images of the fixed stars and its. It has around 27 times our suns radius, 16 times its mass, and about 47,000 times its luminosity. While perseus lies along the milky way, and offers many sparkling open clusters and diffuse nebulae, andromeda lies away from our galaxys plane, and lets. It is prominent from dark sites, having 16 stars of fourth magnitude or brighter. Perseus is near several constellations whose names derive from the adventures of the greek hero, known as the perseus group. The perseus family is a group of 9 constellations composed of cassiopeia, cepheus, andromeda, perseus, pegasus, cetus, auriga, lacerta, and triangulum. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of the iliad and what it means. However, only two of these are prominent from lightpolluted locations. The figure of perseus is thought to hold the head of medusa in his hand the star beta per representing her evil eye. In the third century bc eratosthenes compiled a handbook of astral mythology in which the constellations were associated with athena seized the writhing serpent and hurled it into the sky, and fixed it to the.
Constellation families are collections of constellations sharing some defining characteristic, such as proximity on the celestial sphere, common historical origin, or common mythological theme. The galactic equator is crossing our field of view, whereas in these fields pointing so far away from the galactic center, the star fields are not very dense. Myth about andromeda and perseus windows to the universe. Beta gruis is a red giant variable star with a minimum magnitude of 2. The constellations grus, pavo, phoenix and tucana are collectively known as the southern birds. Perseus grandfather, acrisius, the king of argos, was warned by an oracle that he would be killed by his grandson.
From east to west this constellation extends from roughly ra4h 50m to ra1h 30m. 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. The constellation depicting perseus lies in a prominent part of the milky way, which is perhaps why aratus termed him duststained. The constellations brightest star, alpha persei, is a bit brighter. Download free version pdf format my safe download promise. The sky is not divided up equally between the constellations. Five stars are listed as nebulous and six stars are listed as reddish.
The stars latin name in the 16th century was caput larvae. And alpheratz, sirrah is the brightest star in this constellation. Its the center from which the annual perseid meteor shower, a midsummer spectacle. Constellation perseus astrology perseus constellation gives an intelligent, strong, bold. This makes it the 24th largest constellation in the night sky. The constellation was named after the mythical hero perseus. In the western tradition, most of the northern constellations stem from ptolemys list in the almagest which in turn has roots that go back to mesopotamian astronomy, and most of the far southern. It is home to the perseid meteor shower which peaks around august 9 and can produce up to 60100 meteors per hour.
The constellation cassiopeia is m or wshaped, ascending in the northeast on northern hemisphere autumn evenings. Star map with constellations of andromeda, perseus, and. The constellations brightest star, alpha gruis, is also known as alnair and appears as a 1. Star map with constellations of andromeda, perseus, and triangulum created published published 1776. List three natural phenomena created on perseus return trip from the bloody head of medusa. He was, alongside cadmus and bellerophon, the greatest greek hero and slayer of monsters before the days of heracles. This unaided eye constellation sky map has the following limits. Acrisius locked his daughter danae in a dungeon to prevent her bearing a child. 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. Perseus has been recognized as a constellation for at least 2,000 years. It is located near several other constellations named after ancient greek legends surrounding perseus.
Perseus spans 28 degrees of the zodiac in the signs of taurus and gemini, and contains 12 named fixed stars. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. The constellation perseus can be seen in late summer and autumn in the northern. Cassiopeia and perseus in northeast on autumn evenings earthsky.
A couple of interesting deep sky objectscan be seen in perseus. Perseus is a constellation in the northern hemisphere. Andromeda is one of the 48 constellations listed by the 2ndcentury grecoroman astronomer ptolemy and remains one of the 88 modern constellations. Andromeda, aries, auriga, camelopardalis, cassiopeia, taurus, triangulum. Perseus is a constellation in the northern sky, being named after the greek mythological hero. It is prominent from dark sites, having 16 stars of. 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. The characters in his story are represented by six constellations that occupy a substantial part of the sky. It is visible at latitudes between 90 degrees and 35 degrees. Andromedas mother claimed that they were more beautiful than the sea nymphs, the nereids. The little dumbbell and california nebulae are located within the perseus constellation.
Perseus is a constellation located in the northern hemisphere that is visible during december. It was first charted by the greek astronomer ptolemy in the 2nd century. 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. 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 constellation is one of the original constellations that was devised by the ancient. This is the list of notable stars in the constellation perseus, sorted by decreasing brightness. 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. Constellation perseus the constellations on sea and sky. Perseus constellation simple english wikipedia, the.
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