About the Vega Star: Facts and Other Informaiton It rotates in less that one day, by comparison the Sun's rotational period is 27 days. The distance from the Sun, about 25 light years. It has a solar mass that is 2.3 to 3.1 times the Sun's mass The diameter of the star Vega is about 2.73 times the Sun's size. This is a near zero-magnitude star; it is visible to the naked eye. In Earth's northern sky, it is the third brightest star after Sirius A and Arcturus. It is fifth brightest star overall. The surface temperature is about 18,000°F at the poles and about 14,000°F at the equator. It is about 350 million years old but will run out of core fuel in 650 million years. It is a Class A (A0) white main sequence dwarf star. It runs on hydrogen like the Sun. It functions is a standard calibration star in optical astronomy ... this is to calibrate the color scale for stars.

It is sometimes called the "Harp" star because it is supposed to be the harp played by the ancient Greek musician, Orpheus. slide 2 of 5 Vega and Surrounding Space Objects Vega, with its high infrared radiation, has offered some interesting observations. Vega appears to have a surrounding disk of dust. The origin of this dust is likely to be from the collisions between objects in an orbiting debris disk. This is similar to the Kuiper Belt in the Solar System. For more information about the Kuiper Belt see the article: The Kuiper Belt . In fact, the term, Vega-like stars apply when stars display an infrared excess caused by dust emission. Furthermore, irregularities in Vega's disk tend to suggest the presence of a planet. Vega is also close to the solar apex. This is a direction in the galaxy toward which the Sun is moving; it is about 10° southwest of the star Vega. In contrast, there is an illusory path that the Sun appears to take through the constellations in the Zodiac. This is not the actual direction the Sun is taking. See also: The Constellations of The Zodiac .

slide 3 of 5 The Summer Triangle Three stars form a stellar right triangle making it one of the best landmarks in the August night sky. Vega is at one vertex, and it is located high above in the sky at the constellation's western-most point, and it appears as the brightest of the three. Then Deneb, to the east of Vega, appears the dimmest. Finally, Altair lies below to the south, and it forms the most distant point of this triad. These three stars belong to an unofficial star group that together link the constellations Lyra (Vega), Cygnus the Swan (Deneb), and Aquila the Eagle (Altair). Vega - Alpha Lyrae | Constellation Guide Constellation Guide Constellations: A Guide to the Night Sky Vega by admin Vega, Alpha Lyrae, is the brightest star in Lyra constellation and the fifth brightest star in the sky. Vega is only fainter than Sirius in Canis Major , Canopus in Carina , Alpha Centauri in Centaurus , and Arcturus in Boötes constellation . It is the second brightest star in the northern celestial hemisphere, with only Arcturus appearing brighter.

Vega can be seen from latitudes north of 51°S, but not from the southernmost parts of South America. For those living north of latitude 51°N, the star is circumpolar (it never sets below the horizon). Vega is one of the three stars that form a prominent summer asterism, the Summer Triangle , along with the bright stars Altair in Aquila constellation and Deneb in Cygnus . This artist’s concept illustrates an asteroid belt around the bright star Vega. Evidence for this warm ring of debris was found using NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope, and the European Space Agency’s Herschel Space Observatory, in which NASA plays an important role. Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech The star’s original name, Wega, was derived from a loose transliteration of wāqi‘, which means “falling” or “swooping” in Arabic and refers to “the falling or swooping eagle” or an-nasr al-wāqi‘. Lyra constellation was depicted as a falling eagle or vulture in ancient times in Egypt and India.

Curiously, this gives Vega a “bird” connection with the other two stars of the Summer Triangle , located in Aquila (the Eagle) and Cygnus (the Swan) constellations. FACTS Vega belongs to the spectral class A0 V, which means that it is a bluish white main sequence star that is still fusing hydrogen to helium in its core. The star will eventually evolve into a red giant and later become a white dwarf. Vega has an apparent magnitude of 0.03 and is approximately 25 light years distant from Earth and the solar sytem. It is 40 times more luminous than the Sun, and one of the most luminous stars in the vicinity of our solar system, along with Sirius and Arcturus , which are also nearby (8.6 and 37 light years distant respectively). This illustration compares the rapidly rotating Vega (left) to the smaller Sun (right). Image: RJHall at wikipedia.org Vega’s estimated age is 455 million years, which is about a tenth of the Sun’s age. It is, however, 2.1 times as massive and its lifespan will also be about a tenth of the Sun’s, roughly a billion years.

To a hypothetical observer in the Vega system, the Sun would appear as a dim star with a magnitude of 4.3, located in the direction of Columba constellation . Not counting the Sun, Vega was the first star to be photographed and have its spectrum recorded. It was photographed on July 17, 1850 by John Adams Whiple and William Bond at the Harvard College Observatory. The star’s spectrum was first photographed in August 1872 by Henry Draper. Astronomers have discovered what appears to be a large asteroid belt around the bright star Vega, as illustrated here at left in brown. The ring of warm, rocky debris was detected using NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope, and the European Space Agency’s Herschel Space Observatory, in which NASA plays an important role. In this diagram, the Vega system, which was already known to have a cooler outer belt of comets (orange), is compared to our solar system with its asteroid and Kuiper belts. The relative size of our solar system compared to Vega is illustrated by the small drawing in the middle. On the right, our solar system is scaled up four times. The comparison illustrates that both systems have inner and outer belts with similar proportions.

The gap between the inner and outer debris belts in both systems works out to a ratio of about 1-to-10, with the outer belt 10 times farther away from its host star than the inner belt. Astronomers think that the gap in the Vega system may be filled with planets, as is the case in our solar system. Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech Among other firsts, Vega was the first solitary main-sequence star other than the Sun known to emit X-rays, and the first star known to have a disk of dust in its orbit. Vega shows occasional low-amplitude pulsations and variations in luminosity, and it is a suspected Delta Scuti variable. These stars, also known as dwarf Cepheids, show variations in luminosity as a result of both radial and non-radial pulsations of their surface. Vega is also a very fast spinner, rotating at a speed of up to 236.2 km/s at the equator, or 87.6 percent of the velocity that would cause it to start breaking up.

As a result of centrifugal forces, the star’s equatorial region is bulging outward and the temperature of its photosphere is higher at the poles than at the equator. The star’s radius around the equator is 19 percent larger than its polar radius. The poles are also significantly brighter than the equatorial region. As we see Vega almost exactly pole-on, the star’s visual magnitude is higher when observed from Earth. If we saw it along the plane of the equator, the star’s luminosity would be roughly half the apparent luminosity as seen from the pole. NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope recently captured these images of the star Vega, located 25 light years away in the constellation Lyra. Spitzer was able to detect the heat radiation from the cloud of dust around the star and found that the debris disk is much larger than previously thought. This side-by-side comparison, taken by Spitzer’s multiband imaging photometer, shows the warm infrared glows from dust particles orbiting the star at wavelengths of 24 microns (on the left in blue) and 70 microns (on the right in red). Both images show a very large, circular and smooth debris disk.

The disk radius extends to at least 815 astronomical units. (One astronomical unit is the distance from Earth to the Sun, which is 150-million kilometers or 93-million miles). Scientists compared the surface brightness of the disk in the infrared wavelengths to determine the temperature distribution of the disk and then refer the corresponding particle size in the disk. Most of the particles in the disk are only a few microns in size, or 100 times smaller than a grain of Earth sand. These fine dust particles originate from collisions of embryonic planets near the star at a radius of approximately 90 astronomical units, and are then blown away by Vega’s intense radiation. The mass and short lifetime of these small particles indicate that the disk detected by Spitzer is the aftermath of a large and relatively recent collision, involving bodies perhaps as big as the planet Pluto. Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/K.

Su (University of Arizona) Our solar system is moving in Vega’s direction, at a speed of 12 miles per second, and Vega will become the brightest star in the sky in about 210,000 years, and its apparent magnitude will reach a peak at -0.81 in roughly 290,000 years. Once it reaches that point, it will be the brightest star seen from Earth for approximately 270,000 years. Vega has a circumstellar disk of dust in its orbit, and irregularities observed in the disk indicate that there is at least one planet orbiting the star, with a size comparable to that of Jupiter. Vega was the nearest star to the North Celestial Pole around 12,000 BCE and will take over as the northern pole star again around the year 13,727. The star is associated with the Lyrid meteor shower , which peaks around April 21-22 every year. The shower is also known as the Alpha Lyrids because the meteor trails appear to originate in the direction of Vega. The meteor shower, however, is not physically associated with the star or Lyra constellation .

It really originates from debris left by the comet C/1861 G1 Thatcher. Vega – Alpha Lyrae Location: 18h 36m 56.33635s (right ascension), +38°47’01.2802” (declination) Spectral class: A0 V Fixed Star Vega, Constellation Lyra 1154 Total Shares Vega is the principal star of Constellation Lyra. The harp is found between 10º – 29º Capricorn. It is from these stars that give the Zodiac sign of the goat its aspirations, the urge to rise above mediocrity and the need to be seen in the right places with the right people. This area of the sky craves high status and wants to influence. Constellation Lyra’s myth; Mercury made a little harp with three strings and gave it to Orpheus who used it to charm the beasts. Jupiter placed Lyra in the heavens to honor Orpheus’s death.

“It is said to give an harmonious, poetical and developed nature, fond of music and apt in science and art, but inclined to theft.” [1] Ptolemy said it is like Venus and Mercury. The theft will come from its associations with Mercury. The constellation obviously has a trickster element to it. As you can see below, crime and punishment and being a law unto yourself is also a feature of this stellar zone. It is said that when this constellation rises in a chart; “There shall be born a man to investigate wrong-doing and punish the guilty…he will get to the bottom of crimes by sifting the evidence for them and bring to light all that lies hidden under the silence of deceit. Hence, too, are begotten the merciless torturer, the dispenser of penalties…..” ~ Manilus . The Latin word fidicula, sometimes associated this constellation, also signifies an instrument of torture. This explains the eclectic mix of artists, media “whores”, and politicians alongside some sadistic murderers. The Australian Lyrebird was mistakenly thought to have a tail shaped just like a Lyre and this “lie” was commemorated on a postage stamp.

This extremely shy bird IS infact a lair though, it is famed for its extraordinary ability to mimic any variety of bird and any sound. This is fitting since its principle star Vega is associated with pretentiousness. Vega Keywords Blood is thicker than water, family honor, loyalty, musical, theatrical, arty and crafty, waxes lyrical, charming the birds from the trees, pied piper, paying the piper, songbirds, lullaby, lair, aspiring, social climbers, class conscious, divas, wannabies, fans, stalkers, admirers, high status, flash cars, impressive, political clout, gangsters, grasping, publicity hungry, media whores, ancestral talents, dynasties, forging, faking, plastic surgery, perfection, idealism, the pinnacle of success, snobbery, rags to riches, riches to rags, thieving, criminal activity, torture, punishment, law unto themselves. Stars of the Lyre The alpha star of this small constellation is a beautiful pale Sapphire star called Vega found at 15º 19’ Capricorn.

“It gives beneficence, ideality, hopefulness, refinement and changeability, and makes its natives grave, sober, outwardly pretentious and usually lascivious.” [1] “Vega is supposed to give artistic talents especially for music and acting, but also a liking for good living. With eccentric artists, this may lead to a debauched life. Tied up with Jupiter or Venus, Vega is said to pave the way to riches and fame. However, if other influences play a part, this wealth may be lost again” [2] The star seems to be associated with wealth, snobbery and a certain pretentiousness. Vega has high aspirations and likes to associate with the rich, glamorous and famous. it is the ultimate wannabe, which can become either a groupie or in the worst cases a stalking fan. I would think this star also has a talent for mimicry (There are a surprising amount of female impersonators) and also the kind of voice that can lull a person to sleep. The other two important stars of Lyra are Sheliak: 18º Capricorn 53’ and Sulaphat: 21º Capricorn 55’.

I think these two stars may have less of the artistic Venusian talents of Vega and lean more towards the Mercurial energy. So here there will be vocalists, those who use their bodies as instruments, the torch-song singers but also tortured souls, or those who like to torture. Early depictions of Lyre have it nestled in the breast of a Vulture. This bird, like Mercury, is an ambivalent symbol, it can be protective and maternal yet also destructive. In nature the scavenger can be cleansing and purifying, but it also deals with the dirty jobs that no one wants to do. It has that vigilante feel to it. These are people who take the law into their own hands, the way that gangsters do. They are doing it for the “family” and protecting their own blood. In their mind it is honourable, never mind who else’s guts gets bust in the process. You can see this mentality I think in Sulaphat and Sheliak, both these stars fall around the talons of the Vulture. These stars are more tenacious, practical and hands-on than the more idealistic, visionary energy of Vega.

The Stars of the Constellations and Astrological Meaning â Part 4 - YinYangAstrologer YinYangAstrologer The Stars of the Constellations and Astrological Meaning â Part 4 English: The principal stars of the constellation Sagittarius, as seen from the northern hemisphere, in a long exposure. (Photo credit: Wikipedia) Stars currently aligned in Sagittarius Most of the stars of the constellation Scorpio are now found zodiacally in Sagittarius, and a turbulent lot they mostly are.Â The chief of them is Antares, another of the Royal Stars of the Persians, which anciently marked the autumnal equinox.Â The name Antares means âRival of Aresâ, and Ares was the Greek god of war â the Romans called him Mars.Â Antares is certainly a warrior star, driving, ambitious, masterful and capable of great violence and destruction when in negative mode.Â It is a power star and then some, and not to be trifled with.

Later in Sagittarius is found the main star of Ophiuchus, the constellation of the Serpent-Bearer.Â This star is called Rasalhague, a contraction of an Arabic name meaning âHead of the Snake-charmerâ.Â Rasalhague has a strange, mostly unwholesome influence, so the challenge is to avoid its pitfalls of greed, especially sexual greed.Â This star can be a symbol of perversion, and like all the stars in snake constellations (Hydra, Serpens, Ophiuchus), has an association with poison, both literal and metaphorical.Â At its best, it can offer healing, especially through mastery of the desire nature. Another star with a strong purification symbolism is Eltanin, the Head of the Dragon âits name comes from its position in the constellation of Draco, the Dragon.Â At its worst another toxic influence, at its best Eltanin bestows great powers of healing and self-mastery, and the kind of creative magic that has long been associated with the mighty dragons of myth.

Stars currently aligned in Capricorn There are only two really notable stars currently aligned in the zodiacal degrees of Capricorn:Â Pelagus (often called Nunki ) and Wega (usually spelt, incorrectly, Vega).

Pelagus is the second brightest star of the constellation Sagittarius, the Archer.Â It has a favourable association with mariners and shipping, coming from its Latin name which means âthe open seaâ.Â Â Pelagus was conjunct the Sun in the horoscope for the Act of Union which established the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland – and the time of greatest expansion of the British Empire, which crossed the seas of all the world, and on which the sun never set.Â Its much older name of Nunki derives from the Sumerian, means âPlace of Nunâ, and refers to Eridu , the ancient city on the Persian Gulf which was sacred to the wise god Enki, who dwelt in the watery depths below.Â Nunki has also been translated as âStar of the Proclamation of the Seaâ, which could be rendered along the lines of âProclamation of Enkiâ.Â Pelagus is a powerful star, and too much neglected by astrologers.Â It seems to bestow a strong will and a drive to dominate, which may or may not receive gracious and considerate expression.

Wega is a gloriously brilliant star visually, and with largely glorious meanings, too.Â It is the chief star of Lyra, the Lyre of Orpheus, and has meanings associated with harmony and perfection, music both celestial and terrestrial, artistic gifts, popularity and general good fortune.Â It also has a very ancient association with the Egyptian goddess of perfect truth and justice, Maat, and has been called the Vulture Star.Â One of Maatâs symbols was the vulture. Lyra and the star Wega (Vega) – per Wikipedia Stars currently aligned in Aquarius At the beginning of the sign Aquarius can be found the zodiacal position of Altair, the main star of the constellation Aquila, the Eagle.Â This is a star of ambition, as befits the mighty symbolism of the eagle, and generally the power to achieve the noble aims.Â Â Artistic talent is often associated with Altair, too.

In the middle of the sign are found the zodiacal positions of the two main stars of Delphinus, the Dolphin.Â Little work has been done with these stars, which bear the strange names Rotanev and Sualocin â which are Venator and Nicolaus spelt backwards, and are a Latinised version of the name of Italian astronomer Niccolo Cacciatore (Nicholas Hunter in English!).Â Â They carry some of the playfulness associated with the dolphin, and also the high intelligence.Â Such work as I have done with them suggests they both bestow mathematical ability, which can translate into an aptitude for computers these days.Â Rotanev seems more aggressive, Sualocin more relaxed.

Later in Aquarius can be found one of the stars of the constellation as well â most of the stars of Aquarius proper are now projected onto degrees in the sign Pisces.Â This star is called Sadalsuud, a contraction of an Arabic title meaning âLuckiest of the Luckyâ.Â You should not take this name too literally â it is a little like the way the Greeks called the fearful Furies âThe Kindly Onesâ, to placate them with flattery.Â Sadalsuud has a somewhat capricious influence, a little like the Roman goddess of Fate, Fortuna.Â Sometimes her wheel turned to bestow good fortune, and sometimes it didnât.

You donât like it?Â Too bad; tell someone who cares.Â (Indifference is very Aquarian!) Stars currently aligned in Pisces The first major star found against Piscean degrees is Fomalhaut, the last of the four Royal Stars of Persia, and marker of the winter solstice.Â Fomalhaut is the chief star of Piscis Australis , the Southern Fish â not to be confused with Pisces, the paired Fishes.Â It is a contradictory star, sometimes very helpful but often not, with a tendency to exaggerate emotional responses and frustrate plans.Â It is at its best when expressing altruism, and can then assist in manifesting inspiring, and inspired, achievements.

Deneb Adige is a showy and operatic star, appropriate enough for the chief star of Cygnus, the Swan.Â There is a splendidly theatrical quality here, grand gestures, creativity.Â Lots of actors and some writers are born with this star somewhere, though the great astrologer Ebertin described most of the writers in his files with this star as purveyors of romantic trash.Â Oh well… Underneath the lush velvet charm thereâs a will of iron, too. Achernar, chief star of the constellation Eridanus, the River, is another priestly star.Â This means it bestows strong spiritual aspirations, creative gifts, but an often arduous path to full attainment.Â Traditional writings consider it fortunate on the whole, but Bernadette Brady has recently suggested it can be found quite often in times of crisis, and with natural disasters.Â She does use the stars by paran, however, rather than ecliptic projection, which may make a difference.

Markab, the alpha star of the Winged Steed Pegasus, has a mixed influence.Â On the one hand, it offers material success and good fortune; on the other, danger from acts of violence.Â All the Pegasus stars seem to have an association with both mental agility and aggression, so if the desire nature is harnessed with a proper bridle, you can probably ride anywhere you please, like Perseus.Â Just remember, though, that over-ambitious Bellerophon couldnât manage the winged steed, and in presuming to ride him to Olympus, instead fell crashing to his death. Near the very end of the zodiacal circle, as currently described, is found another very challenging star.Â It also belongs to the constellation Pegasus and its name is Scheat .Â This is another disaster star, and held sway over the launching and sinking of the Titanic.Â Scheat also symbolises great storms and tidal waves.Â Less literally, it can stand for stormy emotions.Â The challenge with Scheat is to apply its mental acumen to the gaining of detachment, and rise serenely above the turmoils of the ocean like Pegasus riding the element of air.

And so, with Scheat, a short stellar journey of the zodiac is completed.Â There are, however, many more stars to understand.Â Having spent many years using up to seventy or so, I have recently embarked on a much more thorough study and have my eye on almost three hundred of them.Â Yet there are hundreds more one could examine.Â This is a small sample to stimulate you â so what stars shine for you? Vega is the Harp Star | Brightest Stars | EarthSky Vega is the Harp Star By Larry Sessions in Brightest Stars | July 20, 2016 One of the prettiest stories in all skylore surrounds this star. “On the 7th night of the 7th moon … “ Image via Fred Espenak . Used with permission. The beautiful blue-white star Vega has a special place in the hearts of many skywatchers. Come to know it, and you will see. Follow the links below to learn more. Vega science How to see Vega. Observers in the Northern Hemisphere can see the star Vega come into view in the northeast in mid-evening in May.

Look for this star in the very early evening in June – high overhead on autumn evenings – in the northwestern quadrant of the sky on December evenings. The constellation Lyra the Harp and its brightest star Vega Vega is easily recognizable for its brilliance and blue-white color. You can also easily pick out its constellation Lyra, which is small and compact, and consists primarily of Vega and four fainter stars in the form of a parallelogram. The little constellation Lyra has some interesting features. Near Vega is Epsilon Lyrae, the famed “double-double” star. Between the Gamma and Beta stars is the famous Ring Nebula, visible in small telescopes. Vega is one of three stars in an asterism – or noticeable star pattern – called the Summer Triangle to the early evening sky. The other two stars in the Triangle are Deneb and Altair . You can see the Summer Triangle in the evening beginning around June, through the end of each year. Tanabata and her lover meet on a bridge of magpies across the Celestial River, each year on the 7th night of the 7th moon.

Image via Anhellica/Lilliacerise’s blog Here are the stars depicted in the illustration above, from Matthew Chin in Yuen Long, Hong Kong. He wrote: “Happy Chinese Valentine’s Day: the Qixi Festival .” This festival in China is August 9 in 2016, August 28 in 2017 and August 17 in 2018. Vega in history and myth. In western skylore, Vega’s constellation Lyra is said to be the harp played by the legendary Greek musician Orpheus. It’s said that when Orpheus played this harp, neither god nor moral could turn away. Vega is sometimes called the Harp Star. But the most beautiful story relating to Vega comes from Asia. There are many variations. In Japan, Vega is sometimes called Tanabata (or Orihime), a celestial princess or goddess. She falls in love with a mortal, Kengyu (or Hikoboshi), represented by the star Altair. But when Tanabata’s father finds out, he is enraged and forbids her to see this mere mortal.

Thus the two lovers are placed in the sky, where they are separated by the Celestial River, known to us as Milky Way. Yet the sky gods are kind. Each year, on the 7th night of the 7th moon, a bridge of magpies forms across the Celestial River, and the two lovers are reunited. Sometimes Kengyu’s annual trip across the Celestial River is treacherous, though, and he doesn’t make it. In that case, Tanabata’s tears form raindrops that fall over Japan. Many Japanese celebrations of Tanabata are held in July, but sometimes they are held in August. If it rains, the raindrops are thought to be Tanabata’s tears because Kengyu could not meet her. Sometimes the meteors of the Perseid shower are said to be Tanabata’s tears. NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope recently captured this image of the star Vega, located 25 light years away in the constellation Lyra. Spitzer was able to detect the heat radiation from the cloud of dust around the star and found that the debris disc is much larger than previously thought. Image Credit: NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Size of star Vega in contrast to our sun.

Image via RJHall at Wikimedia Commons Vega science. Vega is the 5th brightest star visible from Earth, and the 3rd brightest easily visible from mid-northern latitudes, after Sirius and Arcturus. At about 25 light-years in distance, it is the 6th closest of all the bright stars, or 5th if you exclude Alpha Centauri, which is not easily visible from most of the Northern Hemisphere. Vega’s distinctly blue color indicates a surface temperature of nearly 17,000 degrees F, making it about 7,000 degrees hotter than our sun. Roughly 2.5 times the diameter of the sun, and just less than that in mass, Vega’s internal pressures and temperatures are far greater than our sun, making it burn its fuel faster. This causes Vega to produce 35-40 times the energy of the sun, which in turn shortens its lifetime. At about 500 million years, Vega is already middle-aged. Currently it is only about a tenth the age of our sun, and will run out of fuel in another half-billion years.

In astronomer-speak, Vega is an “A0V main sequence star.” The “A0” signifies its temperature, whereas the “V” is a measure of energy output (luminosity), indicating that Vega is a normal star (not a giant). “Main sequence” again testifies to the fact that it belongs in the category of normal stars, and that it produces energy through stable fusion of hydrogen into helium. With a visual magnitude (apparent brightness) of 0.03, Vega is only marginally dimmer than Arcturus, but with a distinctly different, cool-blue color. Vega’s position is RA: 18h 36m 56.3s, dec: +38° 47′ 1.3″. Vega | Constellation Guide Constellation Guide Constellations: A Guide to the Night Sky Vega by admin Here are some of the things to see in August: by admin The Winter Triangle, or the Great Southern Triangle, is an asterism formed by three bright stars in three prominent winter constellations. These stars are Betelgeuse in Orion, Procyon in Canis Minor and Sirius in Canis Major constellation.

The Winter Triangle is prominent in the night sky in the northern hemisphere during the winter months, from … [Read more…] by admin Here are some of the things to see in August: by admin The Lyrid meteor shower, also known as the April Lyrids, is one of the oldest known meteor showers, with records dating back more than 2,600 years. The Lyrids are an annual event that peaks around April 22 and the early morning of April 23 each year. Lyrid meteors can typically be seen from April 16 … [Read more…] by admin Arcturus, Alpha Boötis, is the brightest star in Boötes constellation and the fourth brightest star in the sky. With an apparent magnitude of -0.04, Arcturus is the brightest star in the northern celestial hemisphere. (The three brightest stars – Sirius in Canis Major, Canopus in Carina, and Alpha Centauri in Centaurus – lie south of … [Read more…] by admin Capella, also known as Alpha Aurigae or the Goat Star, is the brightest star in Auriga and the sixth brightest star in the sky.

The only stars in the northern celestial hemisphere brighter than Capella are Arcturus in Boötes constellation and Vega in Lyra. The only other star visible from northern latitudes that is brighter … [Read more…] by admin The Northern Cross is a prominent asterism formed by the brightest stars in the constellation Cygnus. by admin Here are some of the highlights of the night sky in August: 9 PM southern sky – Mars and Saturn moving toward the western horizon after sunset, moving closer together as the month progresses 9 PM western sky – August 31 – Mars, Saturn and the crescent Moon in a triple conjunction 5:45 AM eastern … [Read more…] by admin Polaris, also known as the North Star, Alpha Ursae Minoris or Star of Arcady, is the brightest star in Ursa Minor constellation. Polaris is notable for currently being the closest bright star to the North Celestial Pole.

The pole marks true north, which makes the North Star important in navigation, as the star’s elevation above … [Read more…] Brilliant Star Vega Lights Up July Nights Brilliant Star Vega Lights Up July Nights By Joe Rao, SPACE.com Skywatching Columnist | July 22, 2011 05:05pm ET MORE Look directly overhead to find the star Vega in the constellation Lyra. North is at the top of this sky map. Credit: Starry Night Software Standing almost directly overhead around midnight on July nights is the brilliant bluish-white star, Vega, in the constellation of Lyra, the Harp. It's the fifth brightest star in the entire sky and the third brightest visible from mid-northern latitudes, behind Sirius and Arcturus. Also, as seen from mid-northern latitudes such as New York or Madrid, Vega goes below the horizon for only about seven hours a day, meaning that you can see it on any night of the year. The sky map of Vega here shows how the star appears in relation to constellations and other stars. Farther south, Vega is below the horizon for an even longer interval of time.

Conversely, for Alaska, central and northern Canada, as well as central and northern Europe, Vega never sets and is readily visible on any night of the year. Popular misconception As a young boy I used to spend my summers at Long Island's Atlantic Beach. On clear nights, my Uncle Bob would point to Vega and tell me that it was "the North Star, the brightest star in the sky." Of course, he was wrong: the North Star is Polaris at the end of the tail of Ursa Minor, the Little Bear. Even today the idea that the North Star is the brightest star in the sky continues to be a popular misconception. [ Stunning Daily Photos of Stars and Galaxies ] Vega is the brightest of the three stars forming the large " Summer Triangle " consisting of Vega, Altair and Deneb. It is located 25 light-years away, has a diameter approximately three times that of our sun and is 58 times more luminous. In January 2002, astronomers at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Mass., announced that features observed in a cloud of dust swirling around Vega may in fact, be the signatures of an unseen planet in an eccentric orbit around the star.

Getting the name wrong Observations of Vega in 1983 with the Infrared Astronomy Satellite provided the first evidence for large dust particles around another star , probably debris related to the formation of planets. This discovery likely inspired Carl Sagan to place a planet orbiting Vega in his novel "Contact." "Contact" was also made into a 1997 American film, directed by Robert Zemeckis. I personally enjoyed it for the most part, except for one thing; the mispronunciation of Vega. [ What Makes an Alien Encounter Movie Believable? ] Vega is correctly pronounced "Vee-ga." But between 1971 and 1977, the Chevrolet division of General Motors produced a lightweight four-cylinder automobile that was christened after Vega. The car's name was marketed as being pronounced "Vay-ga." For years thereafter, whenever I gave planetarium shows or lectured under the real sky, I would remind my audience that Vee-ga was a star, but Vay-ga was a car. Unfortunately, it appears that the latter pronunciation carried-over two decades later into the production of the film "Contact." Today I tell people that if the film's protagonist, Dr.

Eleanor "Ellie" Arroway was a real person, then as an astronomer she would have referred to the strong extraterrestrial signal as emanating from the star Vee-ga and not from the car Vay-ga. But then, that's Hollywood. Vega also holds a rather unique place in the annals of astronomy as being the first star ever to be photographed. The historic photograph was made using the daguerreotype process at Harvard Observatory on the night of July 16-17, 1850. A 15-inch refractor was used, but nonetheless it still took an exposure of 100 seconds for Vega's image to register. The lyre Officially, Lyra is a lyre — a stringed instrument of the harp family used to accompany a singer or reader of poetry, especially in ancient Greece. In Greek mythology, Lyra was associated with the myth of Orpheus, the musician who was killed by the Bacchantes. After his death, his lyre was thrown into the river. Zeus sent an eagle to retrieve the lyre, and ordered both of them to be placed in the sky.

This is why Lyra is often represented on star maps as a vulture or an eagle carrying a lyre, either enclosed in its wings, or in its beak. Six stars form a combined geometric pattern of a parallelogram and an equal-sided triangle attached at its northern corner. Vega gleams at the western point of the triangle. In his classic book, "The Stars — A New Way to See Them," author H.A. Rey commented that Lyra better resembled a two-stringed zither than a traditional lyre. But there are other interesting sights to explore here. Epsilon Lyrae, at the northern point of the little triangle where Vega is located, is known as the "double-double" star. Good eyesight reveals Epsilon is really a close pair of stars. Binoculars readily separate the two, while a moderately large telescope shows each one divided again into two stars. [ Telescopes for Beginners ] The star Sheliak is one of the two that forms the southern side of the parallelogram and appears to diminish by half of its normal brightness about every 13 days when it's eclipsed by a darker companion star.

Between this winking star and its neighbor, Sulafat is the famous Ring Nebula, faintly glowing like a ghostly doughnut or a cosmic smoke ring. Visible only in large telescopes, it appears as an oval ring around a star. Millions of years ago, this star exploded, hurling out great masses of gas. We see the star now through the thin part of this gaseous envelope. One final point. Thanks to precession, the wobbling motion of the earth's axis, in 12,000 years, our north polar axis will be pointing in the general direction of Vega and it will indeed officially become the North Star. My Uncle Bob passed away in 2009, but I'm sure that piece of news would have made him very happy. 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. Finding Your Way Around The Sky Finding Your Way Around The Sky Steven Dutch, Natural and Applied Sciences, University of Wisconsin - Green Bay First-time Visitors: Please visit Site Map and Disclaimer .

Use "Back" to return here. Brightness of Stars Astronomers describe the brightness of objects in the sky in terms of magnitude. This scale was originally devised by the Greek astronomer Hipparchus over 2,000 years ago, and the modern version is largely an extended and more accurate version of the ancient scale. Hipparchus called the 20 or so brightest stars in the sky magnitude 1, and stars just visible to the unaided eye are magnitude 6. Faint objects have large magnitude numbers, bright objects have small numbers. Each step of one magnitude corresponds to an increase or decrease of about 2.5 times in brightness; a five-magnitude step means a 100-fold increase or decrease. Unfortunately, because Hipparchus followed the natural tendency to rank the most prominent objects as first magnitude, very bright objects can have zero or even negative magnitudes, and scales with zero and negative numbers are often very confusing to beginners. A zero magnitude star doesn't mean no brightness, it means a very bright star. We can also define fractional magnitudes. The nearest star beyond the Sun, Alpha Centauri, has a magnitude of zero.

Sirius, the brightest star besides the sun, has a magnitude of -1.4. Venus at its brightest has a magnitude of -4 A crescent Moon is about magnitude -8, the full Moon about -12 The Sun is about magnitude -27 The table below shows the number of stars of each magnitude and the total number of stars of equal or greater brightness. At each step the number of stars visible roughly triples. Magnitude 8,768 The Constellations Every culture has told stories about the stars, and grouped the stars into constellations. These differ radically from one society to the next; traditional Chinese constellations bear almost no resemblance to Western constellations. Most of the constellations now accepted in astronomy are based on traditional Western and Near Eastern star lore, with a few 17th and 18th-century additions to fill in unmapped areas (and make a name for the inventor), and map the southern skies. At one time, a few stars were parts of two constellations, and about a quarter of the stars in the sky were "unformed"; they belonged to no constellation. Now the constellations have fixed boundaries that preserve, as much as possible, the traditional constellation figures.

There are 89 constellations that cover the entire sky. Every star belongs to one, and only one, constellation. The constellation names are Latin. The constellations we see from Earth are patterns of stars more or less in the same direction as we see them from Earth. Most of the objects in a constellation are at widely different distances, and not physically connected with each other. For example, "in" the constellation Virgo, we might find the Moon (240,000 miles away), Jupiter (480 million miles), the bright star Spica (220 light years) and the Virgo Cluster of galaxies (40 million light years). If we were to travel to a distant star, none of the constellations would be recognizable any more. Names of the Stars Only a few of the brightest stars have proper names. Each culture has its own star traditions, and most of our star names were invented by the Arabs. They came into English when Arabic learning came to Europe in the Middle Ages, often with interesting misspellings. For example, the Arabs called a bright red star in Orion Yad-al-Jawza, the Shoulder of Orion, but the Arabic characters for Y and B look much alike.

A medieval scholar mistook the Y for a B when transcribing the name into Roman letters, and Betelgeuse it has been to this day. A few star names originated in other ways. Regulus means "little king" in Latin. Cor Caroli, Latin for "heart of Charles" was named in honor of the deposed and executed Charles I of England. Star Catalogs Most stars are designated in accordance with some star catalog. A common system is that of Johannes Bayer, who in 1603 used Greek letters for the stars in each constellation, usually, but not always, starting with alpha for the brightest star and proceeding roughly in order of decreasing brightness. Since Bayer estimated brightness by eye, his system is only approximate. In the case of the Big Dipper, he simply started with alpha at the northern pointer star. When he ran out of Greek letters, he used lower-case Roman letters and then capitals. In Bayer's system, Sirius, the brightest star besides the Sun, is Alpha Canis Majoris, the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major. Later on, in 1725, John Flamsteed employed a system that numbered stars in the order in which they crossed the meridian.

In Flamsteed's system Sirius is 9 Canis Majoris, the ninth star in Canis Major. Fainter stars are listed in great catalogues like the Bonn Durchmusterung (Sirius is BD -16 1591 in this catalog) or the Palomar Sky Survey and more recently, the Hipparcos Catalog (Sirius is HIP 32349). Usually each star designation has an abbreviation for the catalog and then the catalog number of the star. The overwhelming majority of very faint stars have no designation, unless they happen to be of unusual interest. At times various organizations have offered to name stars after people, in return for a fee. Some such enterprises have been run in jest, to raise money for charity; others are merely aimed at the gullible, but none have any official standing. Astronomers are under no obligation to use purchased star names. A Tour of the Sky Note: the following is written for Northern Hemisphere viewers. In order to find your way in the sky, there are two things to bear in mind: Constellations move across the sky As the constellations move, they change orientation.

They also change position and orientation if you change your latitude (move north or south). Below are illustrations showing how the Big Dipper changes its position and orientation in the early evening hours of each season. Distances on the sky are measured in terms of angles. Lines from opposite sides of the Moon to your eye intersect at an angle of about 1/2 degree, so we say the Moon spans, or subtends, an angle of about 1/2 degree. Your fist at arm's length spans about 10 degrees. The heavens appear to rotate around two points called the celestial poles. The elevation of the pole above your horizon is equal to your latitude. Stars close to the north celestial pole circle the pole without ever hitting the horizon. Such stars are called circumpolar. Around the South Celestial Pole is a similar zone of stars that never rise. In between, is a band of stars that rise and set. Since the celestial pole is at an elevation equal to your latitude, at the North Pole the elevation of the celestial pole is 90 degrees - straight overhead. All the stars circle the pole endlessly and never rise or set. All the stars are circumpolar, and the opposite half of the sky can never be seen.

At the equator, the poles are at an elevation of zero degrees. All stars rise and set. The equator is the only latitude where all stars in the sky are visible at some time or another. On the star maps below, major constellations are joined by red lines, and less conspicuous constellations are in gray. Not all constellations are shown. Constellations are in bold type, individual stars and asterisms, or informally named groups of stars, are in italics. Above are the north circumpolar constellations. Best known is Ursa Major, the Big Dipper. The two stars at the end of the bowl are about 5 degrees apart and a line through them points to Polaris, the North Star. It is purely coincidence that we live at a time when there is a bright star close to the North Celestial Pole. There is no South Star. Apart from Polaris and one star in the bowl, Ursa Minor (the Little Dipper) is inconspicuous. The stars in the bowl include one from each magnitude, second through fifth, so it's a good guide to estimating star brightness.

The star at the bend of the Big Dipper's handle, Mizar, has a faint companion called Alcor that is a good test of your eyesight. A line from Mizar through Polaris and continued beyond takes you to Cassiopeia, easily recognized by its W shape. Two fainter constellations are Cepheus, shaped like a house, and Draco, which winds between the Dippers. In the movie Dragonheart, the dragon hero Draco sacrifices his life and takes his place among the stars, and the neat thing is that the scene actually shows the constellation accurately. The Springtime Sky In the late spring, you can use the Big Dipper as a guide to other constellations. Follow the arc of the Big Dipper's handle to the bright orange star Arcturus, then continue the arc to the bright star Spica. If you extend a line south from the Pointer stars, they take you to the constellation Leo, dominated by the bright star Regulus. A diagonal through the bowl will point to the winter constellation Gemini. South of Leo is the constellation Hydra, not very conspicuous except for one moderately bright star, but notable as the largest constellation in the sky.

Later in the spring and early summer, to the east of Arcturus, you can see the pretty little circle of Corona Borealis, the Northern Crown. To its east is Hercules, whose most obvious feature is the Keystone of four moderately bright stars. North of Hercules is a small trapezoid, the head of Draco, the only conspicuous part of the constellation. When the stars are first becoming visible, Arcturus and three other stars in Bootes and Corona Borealis form a conspicuous Y shape, shown in green. The Summer Sky The spectacular summer sky has few really bright stars but picturesque constellations galore and a glorious view of the Milky Way. The Summer Triangle consists of Deneb and Vega, almost circumpolar for the northern U.S., and Altair. Light from Altair left 16 years ago. Light from Vega left 27 years ago. Light from Deneb left before the Roman Empire fell. Deneb is the brightest star of Cygnus, the Swan, and forms its tail (Deneb means "tail" in Arabic). The Swan is flying with its outstretched neck, and the shape really reflects the constellation name.

The head of the Swan, Albireo, is one of the most beautiful double stars in the sky as seen through a small telescope. If you omit the wingtips, the rest of Cygnus forms a cross called the Northern Cross. Vega is the brightest star in Lyra, a small parallelogram capped by an equilateral triangle. Altair is the brightest star in Aquila, the Eagle, another constellation that's not a bad match for its name, though not terribly bright. Between Aquila and Cygnus is tiny Delphinus, the Dolphin, not very brilliant but very attractive and really fitting its name. Skimming the southern horizon is Sagittarius, whose stars outline a teapot, and Scorpius the Scorpion, yet another constellation that looks like its namesake. Scorpius is dominated by reddish Antares, whose name means "anti-Mars" because it looks similar to that planet. Between Scorpius and Hercules is faint, sprawling Ophiuchus and the two halves of Serpens.

Because of how constellation boundaries are drawn, the Sun actually spends more time in Ophiuchus than it does in Scorpius, and every so often the astrology community gets excited at the "discovery" of a thirteenth constellation in the Zodiac. Two important points are not marked on the chart. Between Vega and Hercules is the direction the Sun is moving relative to nearby stars. Just off the spout of the teapot of Sagittarius is the center of the Milky Way Galaxy, invisible to the eyes but detectable in radio waves. The Autumn Sky The Summer Triangle is high in the western sky in the fall but most of the constellations are associated with the myth of vain Cassiopeia, whose vanity offended the gods, who in turn sent a sea monster (Cetus) to ravage the coasts. She and her husband Cepheus consulted an oracle, who decreed that their daughter Andromeda had to be left as a sacrifice to the monster. (Notice how Cassiopeia offends the gods, but Andromeda has to be sacrificed? That's how it went in myths.

The fact that Cassiopeia and Cepheus were backed by a bunch of surly guys with swords and spears had only a little to do with the oracle's judgment.) Anyway, just as Cetus and Andromeda are about to do lunch, along comes the hero Perseus, riding the winged horse Pegasus, and saves the day. And they lived happily ever after, or at least until Perseus left his socks on the floor. The Great Square of Pegasus is the flagship of the autumn sky. Andromeda consists of two arcs of stars pointing between Cassiopeia and Perseus. Not far from the midpoint of the arcs is M31, the Andromeda Galaxy, at 2.3 million light years, the most distant object visible to the unaided eye. The zodiac constellation Aries is fairly easy to see. Pisces, Aquarius and Capricornus are rather faint. Aquarius consists of a tight little tripod of stars called the Water Jar and to other moderately bright stars. Far to the south is lonely Fomalhaut, a first magnitude star. Three variable stars of very different types are in this part of the sky.

Mira in Cetus is a huge pulsating red giant star that attains second magnitude and then fades to invisibility with a period of about a year. Algol in Perseus is an eclipsing variable in which a faint star orbits a brighter one, eclipsing it every few days. Delta Cephei is the namesake of a class of variable stars that vary regularly in brightness. The period of variation is directly related to the true brightness of the star, making it possible to use these stars as distance indicators in the Universe. The Winter Sky For Northern Hemisphere viewers, the winter sky is the richest in first magnitude stars. At twilight, the first stars to appear form a giant hexagon with reddish Betelgeuse near the center. Auriga, the charioteer, is dominated by yellow Capella, a nearly circumpolar star in the northern U.S. Taurus, the Bull, is dominated by orange Aldebaran and two star clusters, the V-shaped Hyades and the cute Pleiades. When you first see Capella in the northeast and the Pleiades rising, you know winter is on the way. Gemini is marked by the twins Castor and Pollux.

Canis Major is a bright constellation crowned by dazzling Sirius, the brightest star in the sky. Canis Minor consists of yellow Procyon and one other moderately bright star. Orion dominates the winter sky, with blue white Rigel and reddish Betelgeuse at opposite corners and the three stars of his Belt. Hanging from the belt is his Sword, containing the Great Orion Nebula. Some of the stars in Orion are among the most distant stars easily visible to the eye, over 2000 light years away. According to legend, Orion was stung to death by a scorpion (Scorpius), which is why the two constellations are on opposite sides of the sky. In winter, we're looking toward the sparse outer edge of the galaxy and the Milky Way is narrow and faint. It is not shown on the chart above but runs across Auriga, Orion and Canis Major. Some Important Southern Stars South of Nashville or Santa Fe, brilliant yellow Canopus clears the horizon. It's the second brightest star in the sky and important in spacecraft navigation.

It's so bright it's easy to detect, and nearly at right angles to the plane of the earth's orbit, so if a spacecraft can lock on Canopus and the Sun, it's orientation in space is fixed. First magnitude Achernar appears at Gulf Coast latitudes. Its constellation, Eridanus, represents a river, though which river varies considerably depending on the myth. Canopus belongs to a constellation called Carina, which means "keel" (of a ship) in Latin. The stars in the lower left corner of the chart once belonged to a huge constellation called Argo, the ship sailed by Jason and the Argonauts in Greek mythology. But Ago was such a big and unwieldy constellation - bigger than the largest constellation today - that it was subdivided into three constellations: Carina, the keel, Vela, the sails, and Puppis, the stern (from which we get the expression "poop deck.") No region in the sky has four first magnitude stars so close together as the Southern Cross and nearby Centaurus. In the U.S., only Hawaii, the Florida Keys and extreme southernmost Texas can see these constellations.

Follow the arc from Arcturus to Spica and keep on going. This part of the sky is just breathtaking, peppered with moderately bright stars and the Milky Way. Crux is not so much a cross as a kite with a little off-center star within it. Nearby are blue white Beta Centauri and brilliant golden Alpha Centauri, third brightest star in the sky and a near twin of our Sun. It's also a spectacular double star and the nearest star beyond the Sun. Below and right of Spica is Corvus the Crow, a neat little trapezoid. If you can spot Corvus, just drop straight down from it to the Southern Cross. Libra has only two fairly bright stars. At one time they were considered to be the claws of Scorpius. The upright of Crux points nearly north-south and is used for direction finding in the Southern Hemisphere, since there is no South Pole star. Note that below the word "cross" in the chart there is another similar sized diamond of fairly bright stars. This grouping is called the "False Cross" because it is sometimes confused with the real Southern Cross. There's a small star within the Southern Cross that spoils the pattern.

In Latin America, this star is sometimes called "Intrometida" - "the intruder." In reality, the star has every right to be where it is - it was there long before we named the constellation. It's only an "intruder" because it breaks up a pattern that we think should be there. Sky Coordinates Just like on the earth, we have latitude and longitude on the sky. The sky equivalent of longitude is called Right Ascension. It is measured in hours, minutes and seconds of time, that is, how long it takes a given interval to move across the sky. One hour of right ascension equals 15 degrees, one minute equals 1/4 degree. The equivalent of latitude is called declination and is measured in degrees. The Celestial Equator is a line around the sky halfway between the celestial poles and is directly above the earth's equator. On the diagram above, we are seeing the celestial sphere as if we are outside it. Since we are inside it, the hours actually increase from east to west (toward the right as you face south). The numbers ascend to the right.

The Ecliptic Since the earth's axis is tilted with respect to the plane of the earth's orbit, the Sun and planets appear to travel a path at an angle to our celestial coordinates. We call this path the ecliptic because eclipses occur when the Moon is exactly on it. It is tilted 23.5 degrees with respect to the celestial poles. We use the ecliptic to define zero right ascension. Where the ecliptic crosses the celestial equator going up is zero right ascension. The sun is at this point on March 21 so this point is often called the vernal equinox. The ecliptic reaches a maximum declination of 23.5 degrees at 6 hours right ascension (summer solstice), crosses the equator headed south at 12 hours (fall equinox), and reaches a minimum of -23.5 degrees at 18 hours (winter solstice). We can define latitude and longitude based on the ecliptic, with the ecliptic as the equator of the sphere and two ecliptic poles 90 degrees away. This system is useful for describing the motions of the planets.

Ecliptic latitude and longitude are described in terms of degrees, like terrestrial latitude and longitude, with zero longitude at the vernal equinox, 90 at the summer solstice, and so on. The diagram above shows how the circumpolar stars relate to celestial coordinates for 45 degrees North. A few key locations in the sky: The rightmost star in Orion's Belt is almost on the celestial equator. The left side of the Great Square of Pegasus is just about at 0 h right ascension and the right side is close to 23 h. The spout of the teapot of Sagittarius is just a bit below the southernmost point of the ecliptic at 18 h. It's also close to the center of the Galaxy. Deneb and Capella are at 45 north, Vega at 40. Arcturus is at 20 north, Spica at 10 S. The celestial equator is one third of the way from Spica to Arcturus The left (east) sides of Auriga and Orion are close to 6 h. Denebola, the easternmost bright star in Leo is close to 12 h.

The eastern wingtip of Aquila is on the celestial equator. The Water Jar of Aquarius is on the celestial equator. The Pointer Stars in the Big Dipper are very close to 11 h and the other bottom star of the bowl is at 12 h. First magnitude stars close to the ecliptic are Aldebaran, Pollux, Regulus, Spica, and Antares. All except Pollux are close enough to be occasionally covered, or occulted by the Moon. The upright of the Southern Cross points toward the South Celestial Pole. Constellations This site is linked to Constellation Maps . The Constellations thanks more than two million visitors. A Brief Introduction Constellations are named patterns of stars. All societies created them. The classical -- "ancient" -- constellations that populate our sky began in the lands of the middle east thousands of years ago, their origins largely lost to time. They passed through the hands of the ancient Greeks, who overlaid them with their legends and codified them in story and verse. During Roman times they were assigned Latin names. The 48 ancient constellations single out only the bright patterns.

From around 1600 to 1800, post-Copernican astronomers invented hosts of "modern" constellations from the faint stars that lie between the classical figures, from pieces of ancient constellations, and from the stars that occupy the part of the southern sky that could not be seen from classical lands. They also separated the ship Argo into three parts, yielding 50 ancient constellations. In the early twentieth century, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) adopted 38 of the modern constellations and drew rectangular borders around all 88. Many of these contain informal constellations, or "asterisms," that are often the first to be learned, Ursa Major holding the " Big Dipper " and so on. Other asterisms, like the Winter Triangle , cut across constellation boundaries. Some constellations look like what they are supposed to represent, but most do not. Constellations, both ancient and modern, are generally meant to honor and represent, not to portray. The constellations play an important role in modern astronomy. They bring order to the sky by dividing it into smaller segments, providing a base for naming celestial objects.

Though the brighter stars commonly carry " proper names " that come mostly from Arabic, they are also assigned Greek letters and Arabic numbers to which are affixed the Latin possessive forms of the constellation names, Vega , for example, also known as "Alpha of Lyra," or "Alpha Lyrae." The IAU also adopted three-letter abbreviations for all the constellations and their possessives, Vega thus becoming Alpha Lyr. The accepted constellations are listed alphabetically in the table below. The columns give, in order: The constellation name.

Question: Vega is the brightest star of which zodiacal constellation?
Answer: Lyra