The stars in the night sky are arranged randomly. Some appear larger and others smaller for various reasons. One is the size of the star itself, and the other is the distance between that star and our planet. What is thought is that there are imaginary lines that connect the stars, which we call constellations Constellations have a meaning and have been useful in history. Here we are going to tell you more about the constellations and name some of the most important.
Do you want to increase your knowledge about astronomy and know more about the constellations? Here we tell you.
Constellations in the night sky
Constellations are nothing more than a group of stars that, completely imaginary form, they take forms from the unions of lines. It is as if we join dots to shape it. The names of these constellations come from mythological beings, animals, people who have done great work for humanity or even important objects.
They are named through the traditional proper names from Latin, Greek and Arabic. This name usually has a lowercase Greek letter beginning with alpha and the rest of the alphabet in descending order. In this way, you give it a bit of order of discovery just by reading the name. Behind the letter of the Greek alphabet, we find an abbreviation of the name of the constellation.
If we exhaust the Greek letters for the enumeration of the constellations, we use the Latin letters. This type of nomenclature it is known as that of Bayer. The smallest stars are made up of a name followed by the abbreviation known as Flamsteed. As there are numerous nomenclatures, a star can have different names throughout the world.
Not only can we find the same stars with different names, but the groups of stars that make up the constellations are also called different.
Utility
In ancient times, the constellations were of great utility to learn to navigate at night. Without GPS navigation or radars of any kind, navigation across the seas was subject to other kinds of "technologies." In this case, the constellations served as a reference to indicate the orientation in which they were.
They were also used to record the passing of the seasons. Aside from the weather, the seasons are not clearly defined. Therefore, the movement of the constellations could give an idea of the Earth's position relative to the Sun at the time. Solar system and find out what season they were in. Also, if you want to know more about the constellations that can be observed during one of those seasons, you can read about them here. the constellations in autumn o the spring constellations.
Currently, the only use of constellations is to more easily memorize the position of the stars. We must bear in mind that we can see millions of stars in the sky and that, as the minutes and hours pass, they move due to the movement of the Earth's rotation.
In total we find 88 groupings of stars in our celestial sphere. Each of them takes a different figure with a name, be it religious or mythological. The oldest constellation drawings are dated before 4.000 BC. At that time, the Sumerians named important constellations such as Aquarius, in honor of their god.
The constellations that are "worked" today in the northern hemisphere are not too different from those envisioned by the ancient Egyptians. Some of the important constellations was that of Homer and Hesiod. Ptolemy was a mathematician and astronomer and was able to identify 48 of the constellations that we have today. Of those 48 constellations that he discovered, 47 of them still have the same name.
Among the most important and known are those that are in the plane of the Earth's orbit. They are the constellations of the zodiac. They are related to each person's zodiac sign. This has to do with each person's birth month throughout the year. If you're interested in learning more about the zodiac constellations and their history, you can visit this link. There are also other articles on the easiest constellations to see in summer.
There are also others better known such as the Big Dipper that can be seen from the northern hemisphere and Hydra. The latter is one of the largest constellations that exists in our celestial vault. It is a grouping of 68 stars that can be seen with the naked eye. Quite the opposite is Cruz del Sur, which is the constellation with the smallest existing size.
Constellations vary in importance depending on the hemisphere where we are. For example, in the northern hemisphere, the Big Dipper is one of the most important constellations. However, not in the southern hemisphere. This is because it is not visible there, so it cannot be relevant. Let's not forget that not all constellations can be observed from a specific point on Earth, but it depends a lot on where we are. Something similar happens with the polar aurora.
Here we are going to show you some of the most famous and easy to recognize constellations.
Great Bear
It is one of the most important and known. It serves to mark the north. Ancient navigators used it to plot their course toward unknown lands. Additionally, if you'd like to learn more about the Big Dipper constellation, you can read more here.
Little Bear
It is another constellation that can be observed only in the northern hemisphere. However, it was of great importance in ancient times for navigators since they could know the season of the year and the moment without even using any type of calendar.
Orion
It is one of the most famous and considered the most beautiful in the sky. It is also known as the hunter. It represents several cultures and is sacred to the Egyptians, as it would accompany them during the night. If you'd like to learn more about this constellation, you can visit an article about it. the constellation Hydra which also has a notable importance.
Cassiopeia
It is one of the easiest to recognize in the sky by its M or W shape. It is used to identify some constellations when learning about this field. You can also find more details about the constellations in Greek culture, which are also fascinating.
German portillo
Thanks for sharing
Your constellations.
Thank you very much for your comment Jose!
A greeting!