Auriga Constellation: Facts, Myth, Star Map, Major Stars, Deep Sky Objects | Constellation Guide Constellation Guide Constellations: A Guide to the Night Sky Auriga Constellation Auriga constellation lies in the northern hemisphere. Its name means “the charioteer” in Latin. The constellation got this name because its major stars form a shape similar to that of the pointed helmet of a charioteer. Auriga was first catalogued by the Greek astronomer Ptolemy in the 2nd century. It contains Capella , the sixth brightest star in the sky. The constellation is also the site of the galactic anti-centre, the point in the sky opposite to the centre of the Milky Way Galaxy, which is located in the constellation Sagittarius , near the border with Scorpius . The nearest bright star to the galactic anti-centre is Alnath, Beta Tauri. Auriga contains a number of interesting deep sky objects, including the open star clusters Messier 36 , Messier 37 , and Messier 38 and the emission/reflection nebula IC 405 (the Flaming Star Nebula ).

FACTS, LOCATION & MAP Auriga is the 21st biggest constellation in the night sky, occupying 657 square degrees. It is located in the first quadrant of the northern hemisphere (NQ1) and can be seen at latitudes between +90° and -40°. The neighboring constellations are Camelopardalis , Gemini , Lynx , Perseus , and Taurus . Auriga contains three Messier objects – M36 (NGC 1960), M37 (NGC 2099), and M38 (NGC 1912) – and has eight stars with known planets. The brightest star in the constellation is Capella , Alpha Aurigae, which is also the sixth brightest star in the sky. There are two meteor showers associated with Auriga: the Alpha Aurigids and the Delta Aurigids. Auriga belongs to the Perseus family of constellations, together with Andromeda , Cassiopeia , Cepheus , Cetus , Lacerta , Pegasus , Perseus , and Triangulum .

Auriga Constellation Map, by IAU and Sky&Telescope magazine MYTH Auriga is usually depicted as a charioteer, holding the reins of a chariot with his right hand and carrying a goat and its two young on his left arm. Even though the image of the charioteer appears in Johann Bode’s Uranographia (1801), none of the stories Auriga is usually associated with have a goat in them. In mythology, Auriga is most frequently identified with Erichthonius, king of Athens and son of the fire god Hephaestus. Erichthonius was raised by the goddess Athena, who taught him many skills he wouldn’t have ordinarily learned. He was the first man to tame and harness four horses to a chariot, imitating the chariot of the Sun god. Zeus was impressed and later placed Erichthonius among the stars. Erichthonius is usually credited for the invention of the four-horse chariot, the quadriga. In another myth, Auriga represents Hephaestus himself, the lame god, who built the chariot so that he could travel anywhere he wanted, whenever he wanted, without difficulty.

In another popular myth, the charioteer is Myrtilus, son of Hermes, who served King Oenomaus of Pisa. Oenomaus had a beautiful daughter, Hippodamia, and was determined not to give her hand away to any of her suitors. He would challenge each of them to a chariot race. If he caught up with them before they arrived to Corinth, he would kill them. With Myrtilus driving the king’s chariot, none of Hippodamia’s suitors survived the race until Pelops, son of Tantalus, came to ask the king for his daughter’s hand. Hippodamia fell in love with Pelops at first sight and asked Myrtilus to let him win. The charioteer, who was himself in love with the king’s daughter, obeyed and tampered with the chariot’s wheels. During the race, the wheels fell off and King Oenomaus was thrown off the chariot and killed. Once Pelops had won the race, he cast his rival Myrtilus into the sea. Betrayed, Myrtilus cursed the house of Pelops before he drowned.

It was Myrtilus’ father Hermes who placed his son’s image among the stars. The star Capella , Alpha Aurigae, is associated with Amalthea, the goat who was foster-mother to Zeus. The name Capella is Roman and means “she-goat.” The star is located on the Charioteer’s left shoulder. MAJOR STARS IN AURIGA Capella – α Aurigae (Alpha Aurigae) Capella , Alpha Aurigae, is the brightest star in Auriga and the sixth brightest star in the sky. It is only 42.2 light years distant. The only two stars in the northern hemisphere that are brighter than Capella are Vega (Alpha Lyrae) in Lyra constellation and Arcturus (Alpha Boötis) in Boötes . Capella is a known source of X-rays. It is the closest first magnitude star to the north celestial pole. Capella consists of two binary pairs of stars; a pair of large, bright G-type giants in close orbit (about 100 million km) and a pair of small, cool red dwarfs, located about 10,000 AU from the first pair.

The Capella system belongs to the Hyades moving group, a large group of stars that share a similar trajectory with the Hyades cluster , an open star cluster in the constellation Taurus . Capella marks the Charioteer’s left shoulder or the goat he is carrying. It represents Amalthea, the goat that suckled Zeus. Menkalinan – β Aurigae (Beta Aurigae) Menkalinan, Beta Aurigae, is a triple star system, 85 light years distant. The brightest two components are white A-type subgiant stars and the third star is a red dwarf. The two brighter stars in the system constitute an eclipsing spectroscopic binary with a magnitude varying between 1.85 and 1.93. Beta Aurigae is a stream member of the Ursa Major Moving Group (Collinder 285), a group of stars (that includes most of the bright stars in Ursa Major constellation ) believed to have a common origin that share common velocities in space.

The star’s traditional name, Menkalinan, comes from the Arabic phrase mankib ðī-l-‘inān which means “shoulder of the rein-holder.” Mahasim – θ Aurigae (Theta Aurigae) Theta Aurigae is a double star about 173 light years from Earth. The primary component is an Alpha-2 Canum Venaticorum type variable, a chemically peculiar star with a strong magnetic field and strong strontium, silicon, or chromium spectral lines. Theta Aurigae has a mean apparent magnitude of 2.65. The star’s traditional name, Mahasim, comes from the Arabic word for “wrist.” It is also sometimes called Bogardus. The brighter component in the system is a white A-type main sequence dwarf and the companion star is a yellow G-type main sequence dwarf. Theta Aurigae A has the apparent magnitude of 2.7 and Theta Aurigae B, 7.2. The binary star has an 11th magnitude optical companion 49 arcseconds away.

Kabdhilinan (Hassaleh) – ι Aurigae (Iota Aurigae) Iota Aurigae is known by several traditional names. Kabdhilinan (or Al Kab for short) comes from the Arabic phrase for “the ankle of the rein holder.” The star is also commonly referred to as Hassaleh. Hassaleh is an orange K-type bright giant approximately 512 light years distant. It has an apparent magnitude of 2.69. Almaaz – ε Aurigae (Epsilon Aurigae) Almaaz, Epsilon Aurigae, is another eclipsing binary star, composed of an F0 class supergiant, with a diameter 135 times that of the Sun, and an unusual companion, believed to be a large dark disk orbiting a binary star. More recent studies and observations from the Spitzer Space Telescope actually suggest that the main star is a post-asymptotic giant branch star, while the companion is a single B-class star inside a disk. The apparent magnitude of the system drops from 2.92 to 3.93 for about 66 days every 27 years.

Epsilon Aurigae is approximately 2,000 light years distant. The name Almaaz means “(billy) goat” in Arabic. Haedus II – η Aurigae (Eta Aurigae) Eta Aurigae is a blue-white B-type main sequence dwarf located about 219 light years away. It has an apparent magnitude of 3.18. In the constellation, the star represents one of the ‘kids’ of the goat ( Capella ) held by the Charioteer. Its traditional name is Haedus II (or Hoedus II) and it comes from the Latin word haedus, which means ‘kid.’ It is occasionally called Mahasim (“wrist”), a name it shares with Theta Aurigae. Sadatoni (Haedus) – ζ Aurigae (Zeta Aurigae) Zeta Aurigae is the other Haedus, or ‘kid’ held by the Charioteer. The star is also commonly called Sadatoni.

The name comes from the Arabic phrase for “the second arm (of the Charioteer).” Sadatoni is an eclipsing binary star 790 light years distant. It consists of a red supergiant and a B8 type companion. The system’s magnitude varies between 3.61 and 3.99 with a period of 972 days. Prijipati – δ Aurigae (Delta Aurigae) Prijipati, Delta Aurigae, is a binary star about 140 light years from Earth. It consists of an orange K-type giant and a companion star 115.4 arcseconds away. The primary star has an apparent magnitude of 3.72 and the companion, 9.7. In Indian astronomy, the star is called Prajapati, which means “the Lord of Creation” in Sanskrit. AE Aurigae The Flaming Star Nebula, photo: Hewholooks AE Aurigae is a runaway star (one moving through space at an extremely high velocity when compared to the neighboring stars), approximately 1,460 light years distant.

It is a blue O-type main sequence dwarf and an Orion type variable (a star with eruptive, irregular variations in luminosity, usually associated with a nebula). Its luminosity varies between 5.78 and 6.08. Along with Mu Columbae and 53 Arietis, AE Aurigae is suspected to have been ejected when two binary star groups collided. The collision presumably occurred in the Trapezium Cluster , located in the Orion Nebula ( Messier 42 ), about two million years ago. AE Aurigae lights the Flaming Star Nebula (IC 405, Caldwell 31, SH 2-229), an emission/reflection nebula with a magnitude of 6.0. The Flaming Star Nebula is located near Iota Aurigae. Other notable stars: Al Hurr or λ Aurigae (Lambda Aurigae) is a double star, approximately 41.2 light years distant. It consists of a G-type subgiant and a companion star with a magnitude of 13.4, that lies 29 arcseconds away.

The system also has two optical companions 42 and 146 arcseconds away from the primary star. The star’s name comes from the Arabic word for “the fawn.” Messier 36 (NGC 1960), Atlas Image mosaic courtesy of 2MASS/UMass/IPAC-Caltech/NASA/NSF. γ Aurigae (Gamma Aurigae) is now known as Beta Tauri and belongs to the constellation Taurus . The star’s traditional name is El Nath or Elnath. It is the nearest bright star to the galactic anti-centre. DEEP SKY OBJECTS IN AURIGA Messier 36 (M36, NGC 1960) Messier 36 is a bright open cluster located in the southern region of Auriga. It was first discovered by the Italian astronomer Giovanni Batista Hodierna in the 17th century, then rediscovered by Le Gentil about a century later, and finally included by Charles Messier in his catalogue in 1764. M36 contains at least 60 stars and has an apparent magnitude of 6.3.

The brightest members of the cluster are B2 type stars with an apparent magnitude of 9. M36 is approximately 4,100 light years distant and about 14 light years in diameter. It resembles Messier 45 ( the Pleiades ) in Taurus , but is too distant to appear as conspicuous in the night sky. The estimated age of M36 is 25 million years. The cluster does not contain any evolved red giant stars. Messier 37 (NGC 2099), Atlas Image mosaic courtesy of 2MASS/UMass/IPAC-Caltech/NASA/NSF. Messier 37 (M37, NGC 2099) Messier 37 is another bright open star cluster in Auriga. It was discovered along with M36 and M38 by Giovanni Hodierna. The cluster is between 3,600 and 4,700 light years from Earth and contains some 500 stars, about 150 of which are brighter than magnitude 12.5. M37 contains about a dozen red giants and its estimated age is 300 million years.

The hottest main sequence star in the cluster is of spectral type B9V. The cluster has an apparent magnitude of 5.6 and is 24 light years in diameter. It is the brightest of the three clusters discovered by Hodierna. Messier 38 (M38, NGC 1912) Messier 38 lies only 2.5 degrees northwest of M36. It is an open cluster, approximately 4,200 light years distant. Like M36 and M37, it was originally discovered by the Italian astronomer Giovanni Batista Hodierna in the 17th century and then independently discovered again by the French astronomer Le Gentil in 1749. Charles Messier later included the cluster, along with M36 and M37, in his catalogue in 1764. Messier 38 (NGC 1912), Atlas Image mosaic courtesy of 2MASS/UMass/IPAC-Caltech/NASA/NSF. The brightest stars in M38 form an oblique cross, or the letter Pi.

The brightest member is a G0 class yellow giant with an apparent magnitude of 7.9, which at that distance translates into a luminosity 900 times that of the Sun. The cluster is about 25 light years (20′) in diameter. Its estimated age is 220 million years. The Flaming Star Nebula (IC 405) The Flaming Star Nebula, also known by the designations IC 405, SH 2-229, and Caldwell 31, can be seen near the open cluster M38, the star Iota Aurigae, or the emission nebula IC 410. IC 405 and IC 410, photo: Oliver Stein The Flaming Star Nebula is an emission/reflection nebula that surrounds the star AE Aurigae. It lies 1,500 light years from Earth and has an apparent magnitude of 6.0. IC 410 IC 410 is an emission nebula, one that slightly resembles the Rosette Nebula in the constellation Monoceros . The nebula surrounds the open cluster NGC 1893.

It is approximately 2,200 light years distant and has an apparent visual magnitude of 13. Astronomy Close-up on constellation Auriga the Charioteer | Constellations | EarthSky Star clusters in Auriga Auriga carrying the goat and kids depicted in Urania's Mirror, a set of constellation cards published in London c.1825. Via Wikipedia The bright star Capella. Auriga’s brightest star is called Capella . It’s a golden star, somewhat similar to our sun. In fact, if you could get some distance away from our solar system – light-years away – you might see our sun much as we see Capella. Capella is located at one corner of the constellation Auriga. Capella marks the Charioteer’s left shoulder. An asterism called The Kids. If you’re unsure whether you’ve identified Capella, you can always look nearby for a small triangle of stars. Capella is sometimes called the Goat Star, and this little triangle is known as The Kids. Other stars in Auriga. Menkalinan, the second-brightest star in Auriga, marks the Charioteer’s right shoulder.

Also, notice the star Elnath at the southern tip of Auriga. This star used to belong both to Auriga, where it was known as the heel of the Charioteer, and to the constellation Taurus, where it represented the tip of the Bull’s northern horn. In the last century, though, the International Astronomical Union decreed that this star shall belong only to Taurus! Star clusters in Auriga. In a dark sky, using binoculars, you can spot some easy-to-see star clusters within Auriga: M36, M37 and M38. This constellation and its brightest star Capella – and all that Auriga has to offer – are easy to identify in the northeast by mid to late evening. If you don’t see them, try looking a bit later at night – especially if you live in the southern U.S. Auriga, via the International Astronomical Union Bottom line: From the Northern Hemisphere latitudes, look for the beautiful star Capella and its constellation Auriga the Charioteer.

Star Lore of the Constellations: Auriga the Charioteer 22N 45N Auriga is depicted by a charioteer who holds a goat in his left arm and some suckling kids in his lap. The chariot is not shown but is represented by the reins held in his right hand. This strange mythological mix is very ancient and believed to be of Mesopotamian origin. [1] Latin authors claim it represents the lame son of Vulcan and Minerva who invented the chariot as a means of transportation. The goat in his arms was described by Aratus as "the holy Goat which, as legend tells, gave the breast to Zeus". This is Amalthea, (also linked to the myth of Capricorn ), which not only nurtured Zeus but protected him through the aegis (literally 'goat-skin') that constituted his cloak and shield. Manilius treats the figures as separate constellations, describing the Charioteer as a skilled, enthusiastic, and reckless driver, racing across the heavens with his spirited team of horses.

[2] The main star of the group is in the body of the goat: the 1st magnitude white star Capella 'the Little She-Goat' which is the 6th brightest star in the sky. In classical times it was noted for its association with floods and storms. Pliny referred to its as 'the Rainy Goat-starre' whilst Aratus spoke of how the goat often saw men 'storm-tossed' at sea. Ptolemy reports all the bright stars of Auriga to be of the nature of Mars and Mercury, but it is possible that he was thinking only of the figure of the Charioteer, and did not intend this association to extend to Capella. Other authors claim that Capella is of the nature of Mercury and the Moon, which does seem more fitting to the traits described by its influence. [3] In his description of the nanny goat, Manilius wrote: She gave the Thunderer sound nourishment, satisfying with her own milk the infant's hungry body, and giving him therewith sufficient strength to wield his bolts. Of the Goat are born anxious minds and trembling hearts which start at every noise and are apt to flutter at the slightest cause.

In born in them too is a longing to explore the unknown, even as goats seek fresh shrubs on mountain slopes and rejoice as they browse, to move ever further afield. [4] Lilly followed this description quite closely adding that Capella: ...begets in the minds of men a curiosity together with much carefulness and fearfulness; such would know all things, and itch after novelties. [5] Modern authors also note the Mercurial influence. In their book Fixed Stars and their Interpretation, Ebertin and Hoffman claim it bestows "a love of learning, studiousness and interest in research", whilst Robson repeats a similar description to Lilly. [6] On the body of the Charioteer, Menkalinan 'The Rein-holder', is the most prominent star. This is a 2nd magnitude binary star, bright yellow in colour, positioned on the right shoulder of Auriga. Its astrological influence seems in keeping with the reckless image of the Charioteer portrayed by Manilius, and with the Mars-Mercury nature ascribed to it by Ptolemy.

Its beneficial attributes, judging by Manilius's text, are that it denotes a love of speed, agility and dexterity, and that it gives good navigational skills. With regard to driving it gives "virtuosity in all that is connected to such pursuits", suggesting a modern association with cars and motor bikes, as well as with racing and horses in general". [7] However, Ebertin and Hoffman argue that it needs to be in really good aspect to promise any kind of beneficial influence; George Noonan suggested danger through "excess pleasure seeking", and Robson believes it to cause "ruin, disgrace and frequently violent death". Auriga is a large constellation to the north of Taurus. El Nath, the tip of the northern horn of the bull, forms the base of a pentagon of stars which marks the constellation. Best time to view is in the late autumn months. The Sun crosses Capella around 12th June and Menkalinan around 20th June each year.

Notes & References: Star Constellation Facts: Auriga Home Star Constellations Star Constellation Facts: Auriga Star Constellation Facts: Auriga April 18, 2015 Peter Christoforou Star Constellations 0 Auriga is a beautiful pentagonal constellation that is almost circumpolar, making it visible most of the year round in the northern hemisphere, but best seen throughout autumn and winter. “The Charioteer”, as it is also known, occupies 657 square degrees of celestial sphere north of Orion , making it the 21st largest constellation in the night sky. It also contains the 6th brightest star in the night sky, Capella, just 42.2 light years away, as well as a number of fine star clusters, including M36, M37 and M38. Perseus Family of Constellations Auriga belongs to the Perseus family of constellations, along with Andromeda, Cassiopeia, Cepheus, Cetus, Lacerta, Pegasus, Perseus and Triangulum.

Mythology Auriga is most frequently depicted as a charioteer holding the reins of a chariot in his right hand while carrying a she-goat and two kids on his left arm. Of the several myths associated with Auriga, the most celebrated story concerns Erichthonius, a King of Athens and the son of the god Hephaestus, who was raised by Athena and taught many skills, including the art of taming, then harnessing four horses to a single chariot, in imitation of the Sun God’s four-horse chariot. This impressed Zeus so much that he found a place for Erichthonius amongst the stars, and later tradition came to acknowledge Erichthonius as the inventor of the quadriga, which is a special chariot drawn by four horses. However, a simpler variation on the chariot theme in the mythology of Auriga has it that the lame god Hephaestus, built the chariot for himself to enable him to travel without difficulty whenever he so desired. Principal Stars Auriga is a fairly bright constellation, and five of its stars are second magnitude or brighter, including Capella, the sixth brightness star in the night sky, which has a visual magnitude of 0.08.

In the northern skies, just Vega in the constellation Lyra, and Arcturus in Boötes are more luminous, although The “Goat Star”, as Auriga is also known, is actually a multiple system with a binary pair of stars in close orbit, while a pair of smaller red dwarfs orbit them around 10,000 AU away. The Capella multiple system also forms part of the The Hyades Stream, a big grouping of moving stars that follow a trajectory close to that of the Hyades open star cluster in Taurus. In classical depictions, Capella forms “The Charioteer’s” left shoulder, and it represents the goat that suckled Zeus, Amalthea. Others stars of interest include Menkalinan (Beta Aurigae), a triple star system 85 light years distant; Mahasim (Theta Aurigae), a double star about 173 light years from Earth; Almaaz (Epsilon Aurigae), an eclipsing binary star; and Sadatoni (Zeta Aurigae), another eclipsing binary star 790 light years away.

Deep Sky Objects M36 (NGC 1960) is a open star clusters in the southern part of the constellation containing at least 60 stars, estimated to be only 25 million years old. It is about 4,100 light-years away, and approximately 14 light-years in diameter. M37 (NGC 2099) is the brightest open star cluster in Auriga, 4,511 light-years away and containing around 500 stars roughly 400 million years old. M38 is the third of these fine star clusters, 4,200 light-years away, and containing around 100 stars of about magnitude 10 and lower. The cluster is about 220 million years old, with its brightest stars forming a prominent oblique cross, or Greek letter Pi. Meteor Showers Two meteor showers are connected with Auriga, the first being the Alpha Aurigids, a minor and unreliable shower that occurs primarily in the month of September, with the comet Kiess (C/1911 N1) as the source.

However, intervals between showers can extend over many years, with showers observed only in 1935, (the year of its discovery), and then only again in the years 1986, 1994, 2007. The second more reliable shower meteor shower is the Delta Aurigids, which can be seen from September 22 to October 23 with the maximum occurring between Oct 6 and Oct 15. Auriga, the Charioteer Constellation | Kibin Auriga, the Charioteer Constellation Already a member? Login here Pages: 3 This preview is partially blurred. Sign up to view the full document. Sign Up & Access Essays Already a member? Login here End of preview Upgrade to view the full document This is an unformatted preview.

Sign up to view the full document End of preview Upgrade to view the full document Auriga the Charioteer is the last of the autumn constellations with a right ascension of six hours and a declination of 4173 degrees Auriga is an ancient Northern Hemisphere constellation featuring one of the brightest stars in the sky Capella Auriga is usually shown as a charioteer the young Auriga wields a whip in one hand and holds a goat Capella and her twothree kids in the other To find Auriga first locate Orion Taurus is to the right west and just above these two much higher in the sky you will see Capella While this star marks roughly the mid-point of the constellation north to south most of the more interesting aspects of the constellation are found to the south of the star all the way down to El Nath the second brightest star gamma Auriga which is actually shared with Taurus and also known as beta Taurus Aurigas stars are fairly bright five are second magnitude or brighter Alpha Auriga Capella is the sixth brightness star at a visual magnitude of 008 The star is 435 light years away and is about ten times the size of our Sun Capellas visual magnitude is really the combined brightness of

 the primary star and another star that revolves every 104 days This star is also known as Menkalina The star name derives from the Arabic name Al Mankib dhil Inan The Shoulder of the One Who Holds the Reins that is The Shoulder of the Charioteer Several open clusters are found in Auriga Each contains about 100 stars and is about 2700 light years away The main part of Auriga is a five-sided figure of first second third magnitude stars The Charioteer has two strange variable stars Epsilon is usually a third magnitude star then once every twenty-seven years it undergoes an eclipse dimming by almost a magnitude for nearly two years The next scheduled eclipse is in the late summer of 2010 The @Kibin is a lifesaver for my essay right now!!

- Sandra Slivka, student @ UC Berkeley Wow, this is the best essay help I've ever received! - Camvu Pham, student @ U of M If I'd known about @Kibin in college, I would have gotten much more sleep - Jen Soust, alumni @ UCLA Auriga Constellation - Universe Guide Home / Facts / Constellations Auriga Constellation Auriga (Pronounciation:Or-rye-ga, Abbrev:Aur) is a constellation, one of 88 constellations that the night sky is divided into. The sky is not divided up equally between the constellations. Auriga takes up 657.438 sq. degrees of the night sky which equates to 1.59% of the night sky. The constellation gets its name as it name means The Charioteer . The constellation is one of the original constellations that was devised by the Ancient Greco-Egyptian astronomer Ptolemy who lived between 90 A.D. and 168 A.D. Auriga is a northern hemispheric constellation which means it can't be seen easily or at all from the southern hemisphere.

The brightest star in Auriga is Capella . There are 4 Extrasolar Planets (Exoplanets) detailed on this site. Legend of the constellation The Romans referred to it as Erichthonius, son of Minerva and Vulcan. The Greeks equivalence of the parents were Athena and Hephaestus. The son invented the four-horse chariot. Meteor Showers There are 25 Meteor Showers that occur during the year within this constellation based on information gathered from Adam Mickiewicz University (Poland) . The ones listed as the ones I've been able to find a date range for. For others if you have the time, you can visit the AMU site, obtains the SL value then use IMO tables to calculate the date. A lot of the Meteor Showers are weak and you need to do a lot of stargazing to spot them.

Name 'Charioteer' Constellation Rides Through February's Skies 'Charioteer' Constellation Rides Through February's Skies By Joe Rao, SPACE.com Skywatching Columnist | February 11, 2013 05:03pm ET MORE This sky map for February 2013 shows where to look for the constellation Auriga (the Charioteer). Credit: Dave Brody/SPACE.com (visualization with Starry Night software) The celestial version of Ben Hur is wheeling a course high over our heads between 8 and 8:30 p.m. local time this week: Auriga, the Charioteer. Depending how you look at Auriga, he can be visualized either as a kite or as a pentagon of five stars. The constellation's highlights include the golden-yellow star Capella , the second-brightest star currently above the horizon, and a row of three clusters of stars that are readily visible with only the slightest optical aid. A Star Pattern to Get Your Goat Capella is Latin for “she-goat,” for a rather unusual reason.

Auriga is a constellation in which the old pictures and meanings of the star names have been hopelessly mixed from two antique conceptions. According to the most ancient legend, Auriga was a goat herder and patron of shepherds and all who tend flocks. Yet the Greeks and Romans made him a famed trainer of horses and the inventor of the four-horse chariot. [ Skywatching Events in February 2013 ] The confusion in concepts is reflected in the ancient allegorical pictures and star names. Auriga is represented holding a whip in one hand in deference to the charioteer story, but in the other arm next to Capella are three tiny stars, known as The Kids. One of the Kids, Epsilon Aurigae, is a star apparently surrounded by a massive opaque disk of dust that every 27 years noticeably dims the star’s light, as it did just a couple of years ago. In his classic guidebook, “The Stars: A New Way to See Them” (Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston), Hans A.

Rey (1898-1977) drew Auriga as a tough-looking man with a jutting chin and a pug nose, ". . . as befits the driver of a war cart." Capella is 16 times as wide as our sun and 174 times as luminous, and it's located 42 light-years away. Of all the bright first-magnitude stars, Capella is the nearest to the sky's north pole, and it's visible at some hour of the night throughout the year across much of the 48 contiguous United States. Lying 46 degrees north of the celestial equator, Capella can pass directly overhead for anyone living at that latitude north of the terrestrial equator (say, Houlton, Maine or Geneva, Switzerland). And for anyone living at points north of latitude 44 degrees (for example, Minneapolis, Minn., or Bologna, Italy), Capella will appear to graze the northern horizon, but will not go below it. It’s interesting to note that Capella is really a multiple-star system .

A smaller star orbits just 70 million miles (113 million kilometers) from Capella, while two tiny companion stars orbit the main pair nearly 1 trillion miles (1.6 trillion km) away. A scale model of this system would show the main pair as two globes 13 and 7 inches (33 and 18 centimeters) in diameter and 10 feet (3 meters) apart, while the two tiny companions would each be 0.7 inch (1.8 cm) in diameter, 420 feet (128 m) apart, and 21 miles (34 km) from the main pair! Suburbs of the Milky Way As noted earlier, the Auriga constellation can be visualized as a kite, but older star atlases show it attached to a second-magnitude star that goes by the name of El Nath, which actually officially belongs to the constellation Taurus (the Bull). El Nath goes by the name Beta Tauri when it is considered as the tip of one of the Bull’s horns. Yet at one time it also went by Gamma Aurigae, marking the heel of the Charioteer.

With our evenings free of any bright moonlight this week, we can see the Milky Way spread across our sky. On a clear night, away from city lights, use binoculars to sweep along the entire Milky Way. The narrow winter Milky Way crosses the center of Auriga, making this whole region grand for binocular or telescopic sky sweeping. [ Stunning Photos of Our Milky Way Galaxy ] Dust off your spiral arms and fatten up your bulge — it's time to tap into your inner galaxy to test your smarts about the Milky Way. Our home in space is a strange and wondrous place that scientists are still trying to figure out. See what you know! Start Over | More Quizzes If we think as the Milky Way as an overview of our galaxy, during the winter we are looking out toward the suburbs of our own city of stars. "Downtown" would be looking toward Sagittarius.

The direction diametrically opposite "downtown" is several degrees to the east of the star El Nath; we can call this part of the Milky Way "the suburbs." While much of the excitement of exploring the Milky Way occurs in the summertime sky, we can see some remarkable objects in the winter as well, including several beautiful galactic star clusters within Auriga. Three of these clusters — M36, M37, and M38 — look quite similar in binoculars, appearing as hazy gray glows lurking in a field rich with tiny stars. A more careful look, however, reveals differences among them. M36 in the middle of the row is smaller and more concentrated than the other two. M37 and M38 are sized about equally, but M37 is brighter. All three clusters are roughly the same distance from the sun, in the range of 4,000 to 4,500 light years. Their estimated ages, however, differ widely, from 25 million years for M36 to 220 million for M38 and 300 million for M37.

Another binocular highlight nearby is a pattern known to some as the Leaping Minnow, a little group of 5th- and 6th-magnitude stars. (In astronomy, lower magnitudes signify relatively brighter objects. For comparison, Venus' magnitude is around -5.) Joe Rao serves as an instructor and guest lecturer at New York's Hayden Planetarium. He writes about astronomy for The New York Times and other publications, and he is also an on-camera meteorologist for News 12 Westchester, New York. Follow SPACE.com on Twitter @Spacedotcom . We're also on Facebook & Google+ . Capella is 2 golden stars | Brightest Stars | EarthSky Double star system Capella. Image via Atlas of the Universe Science of star Capella. Like so many stars that appear single to the eye, Capella actually consists of two stars. Capella A and Capella B, as they’re called, are similar to each other, both roughly 10 times the sun’s diameter. They emit about 80 and 50 times more overall light than the sun, respectively. Another component to this system, a binary of small red stars, orbits about a light-year away.

Capella A and B are both yellow giant stars at the end of their normal lifetimes. Each being more than two and a half times more massive than the sun, the two components of Capella likely are also younger. This is because more massive stars have higher internal pressures, which causes them to burn their nuclear fuel faster and to have shorter lifespans. The stars of Capella are in a transitional period from the smaller, hotter stars they once were, to the cooler and larger red giants they must ultimately become in their final phase. However, for now, their surface temperatures are similar to that of the sun, and so they share its spectral type of G. The two stars we see as Capella mark the 6th brightest star in our sky. Astronomers measure the combined magnitude of this system as 0.08. Capella’s constellation Auriga, via EarthSky Facebook friend Dennis Chabot. Look for Capella in the Northern Hemisphere winter. How to find Capella in the night sky. From mid-latitudes of the U.S. and Europe, Capella is far enough to the north to be seen at some time of the night all year round.

For us in the Northern Hemisphere, it’s best in winter, when you’ll find golden Capella high overhead before bedtime. Capella is the brightest star in a five-sided star pattern, which we know as the constellation Auriga the Charioteer. Capella is the Latin word for ‘nanny goat,’ and this lovely star is often called the Goat Star. Here is the key to knowing you’ve found Capella. Near it, you’ll find a tiny asterism – a noticeable pattern on the sky’s dome – consisting of three fainter stars. This little triangle of stars is approriately called the Kids, and it makes Capella instantly recognizable. The star El Nath originally was part of the constellation Auriga, too. Now El Nath marks the tip of one of horns of the constellation Taurus the Bull. Still, including El Nath, you can see a large misshapen pentagon of stars in Capella’s part of the sky. The shape is difficult to reconcile with the idea of a man driving a chariot, but it is a noticeable pattern and easy to find. Some people use the Big Dipper to locate Capella. The two bowl stars – Megrez and Dubhe – more or less point toward Capella.

It’s a long hop, though, in the direction opposite of the Big Dipper handle. Constellation Auriga as depicted in a set of constellation cards published in London c.1825. Image via Wikimedia Commons Capella in history and mythology. For such a large constellation with such a bright star, the mythology of Auriga and Capella is sparse. The constellation has been associated with the Greek sea god Posideon (the Roman god Neptune). Other stories say Auriga represents Erichthonius, the ancient lame king of Athens who invented the horse-drawn chariot. Auriga seems to have been associated with shepherds and flocks, so the title of nanny goat — or ‘she goat’ — for Capella is reasonable. However, neither Capella nor its constellation Auriga figures prominently in any major mythological stories from Greek or Roman culture. Richard Hinkley Allen, in his famed Star Names, says that the ancient Arabs called the star Capella by a name that meant ‘The Driver’ and implies that this star was seen as a shepherd driving a flock across the sky.

The flock might have been the nearby star cluster Pleiades, although – instead of sheep or goats – early Arabian stargazers saw this pattern composed of camels. Capella was also apparently important in ancient Egypt. It appears on the Denderah Zodiac as a mummified cat. Interestingly, in China, Capella and four other stars of Auriga were known as the Five Chariots. The other four stars are Beta, Theta, Kappa and Gamma (El Nath, which is now Beta Tauri). Bottom line: We see Capella as the brightest star in the constellation Auriga the Charioteer. How to find Capella, a word about the science of this star, and its role in history and mythology. Capella’s position is RA: 5h 16m 41.4s, Dec: +45° 59′ 53″.

Question: Which star constellation is ‘the charioteer’?
Answer: Auriga