Scorpius

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Scorpius
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Abbreviation	Sco
Genitive	Scorpii
Symbology	the Scorpion
Right ascension	17 h
Declination	−40°
Area	List of constellations by area>Ranked 33rd
Number of stars (magnitude < 3)	13
Brightest star	Antares (α Sco) (Apparent magnitude>App. magnitude 0.96)
Meteor showers	Alpha Scorpiids Omega Scorpiids
Bordering constellations	Sagittarius Ophiuchus Libra Lupus Norma Ara Corona Australis
Visible at latitudes between +40° and −90° Best visible at 21:00 (9 p.m.) during the month of July
Scorpius (Latin for scorpion, symbol , Unicode ♏) is one of the constellations of the zodiac. In western astrology it is known as "Scorpio". It lies between Libra to the west and Sagittarius to the east. It is a large constellation located in the southern hemisphere near the center of the Milky Way. Contents 1 Notable features 2 Notable deep sky objects 3 Mythology 3.1 Astrology 4 Notable and named stars 5 See also 6 External links Notable features Scorpius contains many bright stars, including Antares (α Sco), β1 Sco (Graffias), δ Sco (Dschubba), θ Sco (Sargas), λ Sco (Shaula), ν Sco (Jabbah), ξ Sco (Grafias), σ Sco (Alniyat), τ Sco (also known as Alniyat) and υ Sco (Lesath). The star once designated γ Sco (despite being well within the boundaries of Libra) is today known as σ Lib. λ Sco and υ Sco, two stars at the end of the scorpion's tail that appear very close together, are sometimes referred to as the Cat's Eyes. Notable deep sky objects Due to its location on the Milky Way, this constellation contains many deep sky objects such as the open clusters M6 (the Butterfly Cluster) and M7 (the Ptolemy Cluster), and the globular clusters M4 and M80. Mythology Scorpio resembles, quite noticeably, a scorpion's tail, and a vague body [link]. According to Greek mythology, it corresponds to the scorpion which was sent by Gaia (or possibly the goddess Hera) to kill the hunter Orion, the scorpion rising out of the ground at the goddess' command to attack. Although the scorpion and Orion appear together in this myth, the constellation of Orion is almost opposite to Scorpius in the night sky. It has been suggested that this was a divine precaution to forestall the heavenly continuation of the feud. In many versions, however, Apollo sent the scorpion after Orion, having grown jealous of Artemis' attentions to the man. Later, to apologize for killing her friend, Apollo then helped Artemis hang Orion's image in the night sky. However, the scorpion was also placed up there, and every time it appears on the horizon, Orion starts to sink into the other side of the sky, still running from the attacker. Scorpius also appears in one version of the story of Phaethon, the mortal son of Helios, the sun. Phaeton asked to drive the sun-chariot for a day. Phaeton lost control of the chariot. The horses, already out of control, were scared by the great celestial scorpion with its sting raised to strike, and the inexperienced boy lost control of the chariot, as the sun wildly went about the sky (this is said to have formed the constellation Eridanus). Finally, Zeus struck him down with a thunderbolt to stop the rampage. The Chinese included these stars in the Azure Dragon, a powerful but benevolent creature whose rising heralded spring. In Maori mythology, this constellation can be Maui's magic jawbone (used to fish up the North Island of New Zealand), the front of Tama-rereti's waka/canoe (used to ferry the stars into the sky) or one of the posts Tane used to hold Ranginui (the sky-father) in the sky. While three posts (Sirius, Matariki/The pleides and Orion) hold up the top half of Ranginui, only a single post (Scorpius) supports the lower half of his body. It therefore appears bent under the weight. Astrology ''Main article: Scorpio (astrology) The Western astrological sign Scorpio of the tropical zodiac (October 24 - November 22) differs from the astronomical constellation and the Hindu astrological sign of the sidereal zodiac (November 23 - November 29). Notable and named stars BD F Names and other designations Mag. Ly away Comments α 21 Antares, Alpha Scorpii, Cor Scorpii, Qalb al-Aqrab, Vespertilo 1.06 604 < ανταρης [holds] against Ares/Mars < cor scorpii The heart of the scorpion < قلب العقرب Qalb[u] al-'Aqrab The heart of the scorpion < vespertīlio The bat λ 35 Lambda Scorpii, Shaula 1.62 703 < الشولاء aš-šawlā´ The raised [tail] θ Theta Scorpii, Sargas 1.86 272 < Babylonian or Assyrian via archaeologists. δ 7 Delta Scorpii, Dschubba, Al Jabba, Iclarkrau 2.29 402 < الجبهة al-jabha[h] The forehead < Iklil al-'Aqrab The crown of the scorpion ε 26 Epsilon Scorpii, Wei 2.29 65.4 κ Kappa Scorpii, Girtab 2.39 464 β1,2 8 Beta Scorpii, Acrab, Elacrab, Graffias, Grafias, Grassias 2.56 530 name Graffias/Grafias/Grassias was formerly applied to ξ Scorpii < العقرب al-caqrab The scorpion υ 34 Upsilon Scorpii, Lesath, Lesuth 2.70 519 < اللسعة al-lasca[h] [The] sting τ 23 Tau Scorpii, Alniyat, Al Niyat 2.82 430 < النياط an-niyāţ The arteries π 6 Pi Scorpii 2.89 459 σ 20 Sigma Scorpii, Alniyat, Al Niyat 2.90 735 < النياط an-niyāţ The arteries Alpha2 Canum Venaticorum type variable star ι¹ Iota-1 Scorpii 2.99 1800 μ¹ Mu1 Scorpii 3.00 822 Beta Lyrae type eclipsing binary G G Scorpii 3.19 127 η Eta Scorpii 3.32 71.6 μ² Mu2 Scorpii 3.56 517 ρ 5 Rho Scorpii 3.87 409 ω¹ 9 Omega-1 Scorpii, Jabhat al Akrab 3.93 424 < جبهة العقرب jabhat[u] al-caqrab [The] forehead of the scorpion ν 14 Nu Scorpii, Jabbah, Jabah, Lesath 4.00 437 < جبهة jabhah forehead five star system ξ Xi Scorpii 4.16 92.5 formerly called Graffias/Grafias/Grassias. This is now applied to β Scorpii six star system H H Scorpii 4.18 N N Scorpii 4.24 Q Q Scorpii 4.26 ω² 10 Omega-2 Scorpii, Jabhat al Akrab 4.31 265 < جبهة العقرب jabhat[u] al-caqrab [The] forehead of the scorpion ο 19 Omicron Scorpii 4.55 1200 c² 13 13 Scorpii 4.58 A 2 2 Scorpii 4.59 433 b 1 1 Scorpii 4.63 521 i 22 22 Scorpii 4.70 ι² Iota-2 Scorpii 4.78 3700 d d Scorpii 4.80 k k Scorpii 4.83 24 24 Scorpii 4.91 ψ 15 Psi Scorpii 4.93 165 χ 17 Chi Scorpii 5.24 439 HD 147513 5.38 41.96 has a planet 16 16 Scorpii 5.43 27 27 Scorpii 5.48 18 18 Scorpii 5.49 45.7 solar twin 4 4 Scorpii 5.63 c¹ 12 12 Scorpii 5.67 11 11 Scorpii 5.75 3 3 Scorpii 5.87 455 25 25 Scorpii 6.72 Scorpius X-1 12.2 9000 X-ray binary PSR B1620-26 5600 pulsar/white dwarf binary in M4 has a planet γ Gamma Scorpii now designated σ Librae Source: The Bright Star Catalogue, 5th Revised Ed., The Hipparcos Catalogue, ESA SP-1200 See also Astronomy | Constellations of the Zodiac | Astrology Aries ( ) | Taurus ( ) | Gemini ( ) | Cancer ( ) | Leo ( ) | Virgo ( ) | Libra ( ) | Scorpius/Scorpio () | Ophiuchus | Sagittarius ( ) | Capricornus/Capricorn ( ) | Aquarius ( ) | Pisces ( ) External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to: [Special] [The Deep Photographic Guide to the Constellations: Scorpius]   From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. 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