Constellations

• A Group of stars that appear to form a pattern or picture in the sky.

• Currently there are 88 official constellations marked by IAU.
• 50 Ancient constellations + 38 Modern constellations
• Hydra(1st) - largest star constellation. Named after a mythical water snake, the
constellation's head sits in the northern celestial sphere while its tail stretches into the
southern one.
• Virgo(2nd) – Second largest. It is home to Spica, the 16th brightest star.
• Ursa Major(3rd) – Largest constellation in Northern hemisphere
• Hercules(5th) – Second Largest constellation in Northern hemisphere
• Pegasus(7th) – Home to prominent asterism known as the great square.
• Draco(8th) – Located in far northern sky, Circumpolar
Asterism
• Within the constellations there are variety of other familiar patterns
of stars, called Asterism. Ex - Big Dipper, Summer Triangle, Winter
Hexagon, Winter Triangle etc.
 Type of Constellations
• Circumpolar Constellations – Constellations that never disappear below horizon and can be
seen all year round. Ex – Ursa Major, Ursa Minor, Draco, Cassiopeia, Cepheus etc.

• Zodiacal Constellations – Constellations that have the ecliptic(path of Sun) pass through
them. Ex – Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpius, Sagittarius, Capricornus, Aquarius,
Pisces
*Ophiuchus - NASA named this as 13th Zodiacal Constellation
• Seasonal Constellations – Constellations that can only be seen during specific times of the
year. Ex – Gemini, Orion, Aurigo, Cancer etc.
Stars
• The stars can be used as a natural clock. Every Star rises and sets
about 4 minute earlier that it did the day before.
Magnitude of Stars (1-6 Scale)
• Apparent Magnitude – Brightness of an object as it appears in Night Sky seen from
Earth.

• Absolute Magnitude – Brightness of a celestial object if it was placed at a standard

distance of 10 parsecs (32.6 light-years) from earth.
• The smaller the magnitude, the brighter the star/Object.
 Betelgeuse – आर्द्र
• Betelgeuse is the nearest red supergiant star to Earth of apparent magnitude 0.6.
• It is a variable star.

• second-brightest star in Orion and 10th brightest star in night sky.

• It’s the seventh brightest star visible from north sky.

• In late 2019 it began dimming. It reached an apparent magnitude of 1.6 by early 2020
and returned to its original brightness later that year. This “Great Dimming” was
caused by a giant ejection of gas that condensed into dust when it cooled.

• By February 2020, the star had lost more than two-thirds of its brilliance, a dimming
visible even to the unaided eye, creating buzz that the star might be going supernova.
• Betelgeuse is called Ardra, as the Sun reaches near this star the
mansoon season starts.
• On the left of Orion Belt is Canis Major constellation, Which has a
prominent star Sirius(व्याध तारा).
 Ursa Major
• Ursa Major is the largest northern constellation and third largest
constellation in the sky.

• Its brightest stars form the Big Dipper 

asterism, one of the most recognizable
shapes in the sky, also known as the Plough.
Big Dipper/Saptarishi Indian
Name
Bayer
Designation
Western
Name
Kratu α UMa Dubhe
• There is another star slightly visible near Pulaha β UMa Merak
Mizar, known as "Arundhati". Arundhati Pulastya γ UMa Phecda
and Vashishtha are married, and together Atri δ UMa Megrez
form the Mizar double. Angiras ε UMa Alioth
• Arundhati and Vasistha were considered an Vasistha ζ UMa Mizar
Bhrigu η UMa Alkaid
ideal couple, symbolic of marital fulfillment
and loyalty.
• In most twin stars system one star is Mizar + Alcor

stationary and other rotates around it,

while Arundhati and Vashishtha both rotate
in synchrony.
Bi
g Di Polarish
pp
er

pia
sio
Cas
Dubhe

Merak
Distance – 323 Light years
Mass – 7.5 x Sun
Size – 30 x Sun
Luminosity: 2,200X Sun

View of night sky

 Polaris (ध्रुव तारा)
• Polaris is a star of Ursa minor constellation.

• Polaris hasn’t always been the North Star and won’t

remain the North Star forever. For example, a famous
star called Thuban, in the constellation Draco the
Dragon, was the North Star when the Egyptians built
the pyramids(5000 yrs ago).

• Earth’s axis maintains a tilt that varies from about 22 degrees to 24 degrees from
perpendicular every 41,000 years with respect to the plane of our orbit around the
sun. But, over a period of 26,000 years, Earth’s axis points out at different pole stars,
tracing out a slow circle in the heavens. Whichever star lies on or near that circle will
eventually be a pole star.
The Pole Star – Dhruv (MYTHOLOGY)
Suniti Dhruv
Uttanapada(King)
Suruchi Uttama

• Vishnu turned Dhruv into a little star and placed him high in the sky,
above the world, and away from all jealousy and evil.
• He turned the Seven Rishis, who had protected Dhruv as he prayed,
into stars as well, and  placed them protectively around the little
Dhruv-star.