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Vel - Vela the Sail of Argo Navis

  • Ant - Antlia the Air Pump

    IAU Constellation
    Ant - Antlia the Air Pump

    Size

    62 of 88
    Astronomical Regions
    Southern
  • Car - Carina the Keel of Argo Navis

    IAU Constellation
    Car - Carina the Keel of Argo Navis

    Size

    34 of 88
    Astronomical Regions
    Circumpolar (southern)
    Southern

    Intro and Visual description

    Locate Canopus by drawing a line from the easternmost star of Orion’s belt down through Rigel, Orion’s left foot. Canopus lies about twice as far from Orion’s belt as Sirius.

    Between Canopus and the south pole lies the Large Magellenic Cloud (LMC), located in the constellation Dorado the Swordfish.

    Between Canopus and Crux are the False Cross (nearer Canopus, shared by Carina and Vela) and the Diamond Cross (nearer Crux, in Carina). These are fainter than Crux and were once part of Argo Navis.

  • Cen - Centaurus the Centaur

    IAU Constellation
    Cen - Centaurus the Centaur

    Size

    9 of 88
    Astronomical Regions
    Southern

    Intro and Visual description

    Partially visible only in March and April from 35 degrees north latitude.

    Hadar, a knee of the Centaur, is on a line from Alpha Centauri to Crux.

  • Pup - Puppis the Stern of Argo Navis

    IAU Constellation
    Pup - Puppis the Stern of Argo Navis

    Size

    20 of 88
    Astronomical Regions
    Southern
  • Pyx - Pyxis the Compass of Argo Navis

    IAU Constellation
    Pyx - Pyxis the Mariner's Compass of Argo Navis

    Size

    65 of 88
    Astronomical Regions
    Southern
  • Vel - Vela the Sail of Argo Navis

    IAU Constellation
    Vel - Vela the Sail of Argo Navis

    Size

    32 of 88
    Astronomical Regions
    Southern

    Intro and Visual description

    See Argo Navis. 

  • Argo Navis the Ship of the Argonauts

    Vincenzo Coronelli, Celestial Globe Gores (Paris, 1693; reprint ca. 1800)

    Asterism Visual Appearance

    Argo Navis is located between between Antlia, Centaurus, Chamaeleon, and Musca. Canopus, once alpha-Argus, now lies in Carina.

    Asterism Origin and History

    An ancient constellation, the only one of Ptolemy's 48 no longer used.  In the 18th century, the French astronomer Lacaille dismantled Argo Navis into three smaller constellations: Carina the Keel, Puppis the Stern or Poop, and Vela the Sail. Small Pyxis the Compass is located nearby.

    Asterism Skylore

    Argo Navis was the ship which Argus built for Jason and his crew, the Argonauts, to carry them on their quest for the Golden Fleece. After their many adventures, Athena raised their ship to the sky.

  • Lochium Funis the Nautical Line of Argo Navis

  • The False Cross

  • Hyginus (1485) figure: Argo Navis

    Image

    Hyginus-1485-ArgoNavis

Pagination

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IAU Constellation Main Page

Tau - Taurus the Bull

IAU Constellation
Tau - Taurus the Bull

Size

17 of 88
Astronomical Regions
Zodiac
Northern
Equatorial

Intro and Visual description

Taurus the Bull is easily spotted. Its head is the Hyades, a V-shaped cluster of stars. His horns point outward from the V. Aldebaran is the red eye of the Bull as he charges down upon us.

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Kerry Magruder, Brent Purkaple, and Aja Tolman, editors, "The Sky Tonight: Cultural Archaeology of the Stars" (December 21, 2019 - ongoing), skytonight.org.


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