Where is the constellation Aquarius? Aquarius constellation. What does the constellation Aquarius look like in the sky - photo

It is difficult to see in the stellar outlines of this constellation a person pouring water from a jug. But you can see a large space spider, spreading its furry legs, which in the spring at dawn begins to climb the sky in the south-eastern part. At the beginning of winter, in the evenings it obediently crawls under the horizon. Aquarius is visible almost all summer and autumn, and is located exactly at the intersection of summer and autumn constellations. For the most part, Aquarius is located in the southern celestial hemisphere and therefore is visible in the northern latitudes of our Motherland. On the star map, it borders on the constellations Capricorn, Southern Pisces, Whale, Pisces, Pegasus, Lesser Horse, Dolphin and Eagle - it has many neighbors.

Finding the constellation Aquarius in the sky is not difficult - on summer nights it is located immediately below the extended and noticeable Pegasus. Our ancient ancestors saw a lot of different things here and therefore there was no single legend about Aquarius. Perhaps this ambiguity gives astrologers today the opportunity to weave to this place on the star chart all sorts of fables about the coming era of Aquarius and the incredible abundance and prosperity accompanying this milestone. In fact, there are no objective prerequisites for this. Aquarius will take the baton of accepting the point of the spring equinox within its borders very, and not soon, according to human ideas. No significant planets begin their long-term positioning in Aquarius (Neptune is already urgently leaving this constellation, and Uranus will soon enter it, but will stay only for a few years, which is in no way comparable to the concept of “Era”; Pluto “goes” to Aquarius for another hundred years , Jupiter will enter the expanses of Aquarius at the beginning of 2010 and will stay there for a year, Saturn could stay for two and a half, but only after ten years).

And yet, what did they see in these stars in the era of star myths?

There are several small tales on this topic. The very first and most logical thing is related to the seasonal factor - it was during the period of the appearance of these stars in the morning dawn that agricultural irrigation work became relevant and “Aquarius” irrigating fields and plantings was very, very useful. Another mention of a certain giant man frantically pouring water from the sky is associated with the so-called “World Flood” present in the annals of various nations, and if the constellation Aquarius owes its name to this natural disaster, it is unlikely that the whole era of this very Aquarius will be useful to us. It's better somehow without her. Later legends tell about a certain young man, very handsome and noble - the son of one of the Greek kings - Tros - his name was Ganymede. Ganymede was called by Zeus to Olympus as a cupbearer (which is why there are persistent rumors that in fact Aquarius pours not water at all from his jug, but wine or even divine nectar!) to serve the gods during regular “high-mountain” feasts and in return, Zeus promised the young man immortality. But jealous Hera even here found a reason to suspect her divine spouse of infidelity and demanded that she quickly get rid of the handsome cupbearer. Zeus had to obey this time too. Ganymede was demoted to the constellation, but thereby gained the promised immortality. There were many other fairy tales about Aquarius, but I’m already pretty tired of them and it’s time to move on to the astronomical essence of this constellation.

There are no very bright stars within the boundaries of the constellation Aquarius, but there are many stars of medium brightness from which its branched figure is completely formed. All these star chains begin from the star Zeta Aquarii (it has its own name of Arabic origin - Sadaltager).

Zeta Aquarii, together with three other stars of this constellation (Gamma, Eta and Pi), forms a “Y”-shaped asterism - a visually close group of stars that are actually very far apart in space. And indeed, Zeta is the closest of them - 105 light years away. Gamma and Eta are noticeably further away - 163 and 191 light years. Pi Aquarii is very far away - more than a thousand light years from the Sun and the three previously mentioned stars of this optical cluster. But from here, from Earth, this three-rayed “propeller” looks nice and is a distinctive feature of the constellation Aquarius, by which it can be unmistakably recognized in the sky.

Already a small telescope, but with a very significant magnification, will show us that Zeta Aquarii is a double star (the distance between the components is 2"). This duality is not optical - both stars are connected by gravitational forces and revolve around the center of mass of this system in 361 years.

In the eastern part of the constellation and much to the south there is another characteristic star formation, quite characteristic of Aquarius - the “Frog's Leg” asterism. The “paw” is formed by five dim stars: Phi Aquarius, Chi Aquarius and three stars located in a chain Psi-1, Psi-2, Psi-3 Aquarius. Located in the middle of the asterism, the dark red Chi of Aquarii is an irregular stellar variable with insignificant amplitude, but it is fair to say that at the moment scientists simply do not understand the nature of this star and therefore classify it as one of the many stars that change their brightness in an unpredictable way. At one time I also studied this star, but in Moscow conditions, when the Chi of Aquarius does not rise very high above the horizon, and the number of transparent and clear nights is not enough, I also was not able to somehow advance towards studying the laws by which the Chi of Aquarius changes your shine.

Directly below the red variable there is a double star - Psi-1 Aquarii - its duality can be detected even by the owner of small binoculars, since the distance between the stars is quite large (80"). Very powerful professional telescopes show that in the Psi-1 Aquarii system the forces of universal gravity five stars are connected. Recently, in this complex system of stars, an extrasolar planet was also discovered, orbiting one of the stars and comparable in size to “our” Jupiter.

The constellation Aquarius contains one of the largest globular star clusters. The “star ball” numbered M2 (this is the second object included in the famous catalog of various kinds of comet-like objects by its creator, Charles Monsieur. The first one, as you remember, was included, as you remember, was the “Crab Nebula” in the constellation Taurus) is located at the northern border of Aquarius with the constellation Pegasus. It can be seen even with small binoculars, but only a telescope will help you see it in detail.

At the western border of Aquarius there is another “Star Ball” (M72), but it contains fewer stars, and it itself is located further away, so even in a telescope it looks very modest.

Next to the object from Charles Monsier's catalog - M72 - is the next object from the same catalog - M73. But this is not a globular cluster, but an open one, I would add - loose and few in number, although with binoculars at low magnification this handful of faint stars may seem interesting.

And again, very close to the two listed clusters there is also an interesting celestial object in the constellation Aquarius - the planetary nebula "Saturn" or more strictly - in scientific terms - NGC 7009.

A planetary nebula is a cosmic formation that has nothing to do with planets. This is the shell of some star scattering in space that has undergone a catastrophe, exploded, if you will. But in that distant era, when absolutely nothing was known about the nature of such nebulae, astronomers of that time dubbed them “planetary” for their visible resemblance to the disks of the distant planets Uranus and Neptune. The nebula NGC 7009 is less worthy of such a comparison and indeed, in small and medium-sized telescopes, looks a bit like Saturn with its ring “ears” protruding in different directions. Pictures taken with very powerful telescopes reveal a slightly different appearance of this nebula.

In the southern part of Aquarius there is another similar object - the planetary nebula "Helix" (in other words - "Snail") or NGC 7293. This is the closest planetary nebula to us and in the sky it occupies a space of half the lunar disk - for a planetary nebula this is so many. The distance to this cloud of glowing gas is 300 light years.

This huge nebula is illuminated by a dying, but very, very hot star. Astronomers do not know of another equally or hotter star in the universe - the surface temperature of this star is 130,000°C. It is clear that the star is even hotter inside.

In addition to stellar and nebulous objects, the constellation Aquarius gave shelter to three meteor radiants. The radiant is an imaginary point in the sky from which meteors sometimes fly out during the action of one or another meteor shower, and in its meaning the radiant is similar to the point on the horizon where parallel railway rails run.

Since Aquarius is called Aquarius in Latin, the meteor showers operating on its territory have a name similar to the constellation. The Delta and Iota Aquarids (the names of stars located close to the radiant often appear in the name of the stream) are very faint and practically unobservable from the vast expanses of our country. But Eta Aquarites generated by Halley's Comet can be quite active - up to 35 meteors per hour. We just need to add that in the city conditions in the already brightening May sky (the era of maximum activity of the Eta Aquarids falls on May 4-5) you can’t count more than one “shooting star”, but in the southern hemisphere the stream is considered one of the most active and beautiful .

The last post in the series about zodiac signs is about the constellation Aquarius.
12 signs of the zodiac circle - 12 sectors of 30°, into which the zodiac belt is divided in astrology
The division of the ecliptic into twelve parts goes back to the sexagesimal number system and astronomy of ancient Babylon, which served as the basis for dividing the year into twelve months, just as the division of the celestial circle into 360 angular shares (approximately in accordance with the number of days in the year) was adopted there. source for dividing a circle into 360 degrees in geometry.

The names of the zodiac signs correspond to the zodiac constellations in which the Sun is alternately located in its annual movement. In fact, these concepts differ significantly, because Constellation is an astronomical concept, meaning a section of the celestial sphere with boundaries established by historical tradition.
For modern astronomy, the signs of the zodiac, as an element of astrology, are interpreted by modern scientists most likely as a strange and unnecessary misunderstanding, not related to true science. But the historical significance of the Zodiac Signs cannot be ignored.
Although ordinary admirers of the zodiac constellations are least concerned about the historical significance, give us the practical! After all, they were called upon to reveal the most intimate and secret things - the destinies of people.

Zodiac clock of the Clock Tower in St. Mark's Square, Venice, 15th century

Constellation Aquarius in astronomy

Aquarius is included in the catalog of the starry sky of Claudius Ptolemy “Almagest”.

The constellation Aquarius is located in the southern hemisphere of the starry sky, where it is surrounded by various water inhabitants - the constellations Cetus, Dolphin, Eridanus and others, due to which the area it occupies is often called the sea. Aquarius, as the ancient Greeks called it, is one of the oldest and largest constellations. To be precise, by the area occupied in the starry sky, namely 980 square degrees.

The Sun is in the constellation from February 16 to March 11. The sun enters Aquarius precisely at the moment when spring replaces winter, and the season of regular light spring rains begins outside the window.
Unfortunately, there are not many stars in the constellation that can be seen with an ordinary telescope.
The most significant in this constellation are three stars - alpha, beta and delta Aquarius - Sadalmelik, Sadalsuud, and Skat, respectively.

Sadalsuud is a third magnitude star - its apparent magnitude is 2.91m. This celestial body is quite rare, because it belongs to the hot supergiants.

Sadalmelik- the second brightest star in Aquarius after Sadalsuud. Its light is only slightly weaker than that of Beta Aquarius. As usual, the name of the star is rooted in Arabic. The name of Alpha Aquarius means "lucky star of the king." Sadalmelik is 750 light years away from Earth. From here, thanks to simple calculations, we can conclude that its luminosity is 3000 times greater than the Solar one, but its diameter is only 60 times greater than the Solar one.

Scat is a blue-white star, its mass of Skat is approximately twice that of the Sun.

In addition to stars and meteor showers, globular clusters and nebulae can be recognized in Aquarius. For example, the planetary Helix Nebula, commonly referred to as NGC 7293

Photos of the Helix Nebula

The constellation Aquarius also “contains” within its borders the beautiful globular cluster M2, which is larger in size than many similar objects. There is also an open cluster here.

Cluster NGC 7089

Cluster NGC 7089

Although Aquarius is a dim celestial design, it is worthy of the significance that astronomy gives it. Constellations like it are not easy to spot in the sky, but when studied through a telescope, amazing secrets and beauties of the Universe are revealed.

Aquarius in mythology

Among the ancient Sumerians, Aquarius was one of the most important constellations, since it personified the sky god An, who gives life-giving water to the earth. According to the Greeks, Aquarius depicts several mythical characters at once, for example, Ganymede, the Trojan youth who became a cupbearer on Olympus; Deucalion - the hero of the flood; Cecrops - the ancient king of Attica.

Ganymede by Benedetto Gennari The Younger (1633-1715, Italy)

Ganymede(ancient Greek “starter of fun”) - in Greek mythology, a beautiful young man, the son of the Trojan king Tros (after whom Troy was named) and the nymph Callirhoe
Because of his extraordinary beauty, Ganymede was kidnapped by Zeus and carried by the eagle of Zeus to Olympus (according to another version, Zeus himself turned into an eagle),
On Olympus he was granted immortality, and Zeus appointed him heavenly cupbearer. During the festivals, Ganymede offered nectar, pouring out of a jug like water, to the Olympian deities.
Whether Ganymede was the lover of Zeus is a debatable question, and different authors have answered it differently.

Throughout the Middle Ages, Ganymede symbolized homosexuality, and the "pro" and "contra" of the two types of love are discussed in the frivolous Latin poem "The Dispute between Helen and Ganymede." Only the Neoplatonist allegorists of the Renaissance read something more spiritual in the myth and found in it a symbol of the ascent of the soul to the absolute, and there were even theologians who compared the ascending Christ with Ganymede. Similarly, Goethe’s Ganymede ascends into the ethereal embrace of the all-loving Father.

Peter Paul Rubens The Rape of Ganymede

Deucalion is also considered an Aquarius, son of Prometheus. On the advice of his father Prometheus, Deucalion built a huge box, put food supplies in it and entered it with his wife. For nine days and nights, Deucalion’s box rushed along the waves of the sea that covered the entire land. Finally, the waves drove him to the double-headed peak of Parnassus. The rainfall sent by Zeus stopped. Deucalion and Pyrrha came out of the box and made a thanksgiving sacrifice to Zeus, who preserved them among the stormy waves. The water subsided

Aivazovsky Ivan Konstantinovich. global flood

Aquarius in astrology

The ancients gave a very large place to astrology. Zodiac signs were even used in medicine.


Illustration from the 15th century Book of Hours of the Duke of Berry, showing the relationship of the zodiac signs with the Hippocratic temperaments in accordance with the “hot-cold” and “wet-dry” zodiac constellations
In the 20th and 21st centuries they have not moved far from the ancients. We continue to check health, characters, and even fate with horoscopes.

AQUARIUS
January 21 - February 18
pictographic symbol - two wavy lines that represent the serpent of wisdom.
This zodiac sign represents change and challenge.

Element: air

Planet: Saturn, Uranus

Stone: obsidian, sapphire

Talisman: icon, key

Color: silver, blue

Since Aquarius is ruled by two planets at once, its character is ambiguous.
Uranus is the main ruler of Aquarius. It is he who fuels interest in various kinds of innovations and gives strength to make radical changes in his own life.
Saturn is the minor ruler of the sign Aquarius. It can balance the unpredictability of Uranus and deprive the representative of this sign of formalism. It is manifested by the rigor of thinking, the ability to formulate clearly and adhere to traditions that feed their creativity.

The favorite activities of the representative of this zodiac sign are gaining new knowledge and traveling. He tends to analyze everything that happens around him. He never betrays his principles and boldly enters the fight if he encounters obstacles.

Aquarius is a sociable zodiac sign. He has many friends, but he can only call one or two people a friend. People are attracted to him by his goodwill and ability to help at any moment. At the same time, others consider him tactless because he often directly asks personal questions. Such accusations are false. Aquarius does not seek to offend the interlocutor, but wants to solve the complex riddle of human relationships.

Aquarians are attractive, energetic and sociable people. They are endowed with strong intuition. These signs know how to be friends, it is always interesting to communicate with them. They are excellent organizers. Aquarians love risks, so they boldly take on promising projects. They know how to make money.

Representatives of the sign love to receive guests. They organize leisure time in an interesting way. That's why their house is always full of friends. They understand people well. Aquarians take full responsibility for themselves and their loved ones. They are wonderful parents. Their children grow up surrounded by love and affection.

Aquarians are avid realists, despite the fact that their address is tomorrow. You must always be prepared for any surprises with this sign. Generally kind and calm by nature, they take great pleasure in challenging public opinion and secretly enjoy shocking conservative people with their unusual behavior.

Let's start with the fact that the average person knows Aquarius, first of all, as one of the twelve existing signs of the Zodiac. Indeed, on the path of the Sun, this constellation lies along with the other eleven constellations of the zodiac belt.

The Sun is in Aquarius from February 16 to March 11, and the best conditions for observing the constellation occur in August-September. If you are lucky enough to live in the central and southern regions of Russia, at this time you will be able to observe this constellation in all its glory without any problems.

Constellation location

Where is Aquarius located geographically? If we talk about zodiac placement, then traditionally it is between Capricorn and Pisces. The constellation Aquarius is located in the southern hemisphere of the starry sky, where it is surrounded by various water inhabitants - the constellations Cetus, Dolphin, Eridanus and others, due to which the area it occupies is often called the sea. Aquarius, as the ancient Greeks called it, is one of the oldest and largest constellations. To be precise, in terms of the area occupied in the starry sky, namely 980 square degrees, Aquarius is in tenth place.

Number of stars in the constellation

If there is a moonless and clear night outside the window, then the observer will easily be able to see approximately 90 stars from the constellation Aquarius. It is worth noting that only seven of these ninety have a magnitude greater than four. These stars form a kind of curved arc, in the middle of which the five brightest stars are concentrated. This five forms a kind of prototype of a jug with a stream of water flowing from it. In this arrangement of stars it is not easy to see a young guy with a jug of water, but this is exactly how the constellation Aquarius was depicted on ancient star atlases.

Why did they begin to designate the constellation Aquarius with this image? This picture appeared as a result of the ancient Greeks’ observations of natural phenomena. The fact is that above the southern part of the horizon the constellation becomes clearly visible with the arrival of autumn and the onset of the rainy season. This situation repeated regularly, from year to year. Then the Greek ancestors began to associate Aquarius with a certain young man who, on his knees, watered the earth with water from a jug. The picture, invented in ancient times, has survived to this day.

The brightest stars of Aquarius

The most significant in this constellation are three stars - alpha, beta and delta Aquarius. Let's start the story with the first star, not alphabetically, but by brightness, which is called Sadalsuud (aka beta Aquarius). Like most stellar objects, this unusual name for the celestial body comes from the Arabic language, and translated means “lucky among the happiest.” The name is undoubtedly philosophical, but it is explained simply: the Sun enters Aquarius precisely at the moment when spring replaces winter, and the season of regular light spring rains begins outside the window.

Sadalsuud

Sadalsuud is a third magnitude star - its apparent magnitude is 2.91m. This celestial body is quite rare, because it belongs to the hot supergiants. Its spectral class is defined as G0, and its surface temperature is almost similar to the Sun - 5600 K. Beta Aquarii is located at a distance of six hundred light years from Earth and has a luminosity 2200 times that of the Sun. Sadalsuud also has other advantages over the Sun: the diameter of the star is approximately 50 times that of the Sun, and its mass is equal to six whole Suns.

In a telescope you can see that Sadalsuud is a triple star. In addition to the main component, beta Aquarius itself, it is worth noting two more optical components. The first component is Beta Aquarii B, which has an apparent magnitude of 11.0m and is approximately 35 arcseconds distant from the main star. The second component is beta Aquarius C, which is 57.2 arcseconds away from the main star and its magnitude is 11.6m. However, at the moment, unfortunately, there is no evidence that these stars are a triple system (gravitationally bound). There is a high probability that they are simply a visual triple system.

Another “lucky” star of Aquarius

The second brightest star in Aquarius after Sadalsuud is Sadalmelik, but its light is only slightly weaker than that of Beta Aquarius. As usual, the name of the star is rooted in Arabic. The name of Alpha Aquarius means "lucky star of the king." It has an apparent magnitude of 2.96m and its spectral type is G2 Ib. In the constellation drawing, this luminary is located on the right shoulder of Aquarius.

Sadalmelik is a rather unusual star, and this is due to several reasons. Firstly, this star is classified as a yellow supergiant. The surface temperature of Sadalmelik is only a few degrees lower than the solar 6000 K. It is worth noting that meeting a yellow supergiant in the sky is a great success, because most of the large stars known to astronomy are either even hotter (and therefore have a blue color) or colder (and, as a result, the color is red).

Sadalmelik is 750 light years away from Earth. From here, thanks to simple calculations, we can conclude that its luminosity is 3000 times greater than the Solar one, but its diameter is only 60 times greater than the Solar one. The figure is impressive, but unlike the real ones, which are capable of occupying the entire orbit of Jupiter, Sadalmelik is a moderately modest star. The rank of a supergiant rather suggests that, in accordance with the evolution of stars, this star is close to its imminent death.

The third bright component of Aquarius

In third place in brightness after Sadalsuud and Sadalmelik is the Aquarius delta. It is better known as Skat, which can be translated from Arabic as “thigh”. No wonder, because the star is located exactly on the foot of Aquarius, hence the origin of the name. The star's apparent magnitude is 3.27m, and its spectral class is determined to be A3V. It is 160 light years away from our planet.

Skate is a blue-white star. In its spectral class, Delta Aquarius is on the main sequence. Judging by the distance of the central star of the system, again by its spectral class and luminosity, we can conclude that it is very similar to beta of the constellation Leo. There is a possibility that Skat is part of a moving group of luminaries in the constellation.

If we compare this star with the Sun, it should be said that the mass of Stingray is approximately twice that of the Sun. The surface temperature of the star is 9000 K, and the radius is about two and a half radii of the Sun. Today, there are spectroscopic studies that suggest the presence of a companion star at Delta Aquarius. The circulation period of the latter can take about 490 days.

Meteor showers in the constellation Aquarius

Unfortunately, there are not many stars in the constellation that can be seen with an ordinary telescope. However, with its help, anyone can view the whole five radiants of different meteor showers. Let's tell you more about them.

First in line is a radiant called . This radiant of a strong meteor shower is located near Beta Aquarius. This star formation can be seen even with binoculars between May 1 and May 8. Its maximum falls somewhere on the fifth day of May: then about 36 meteors can be seen per hour. This stream is quite often associated with the brightest comet of the 20th century -. As the latter approached the Sun, an increase in the flow was noted; therefore, systematic observation of this phenomenon for its more detailed study is of particular interest.

Near Delta Aquarius you can see another radiant - . His observation falls on the 15th of July - 15th of August. The maximum of this flow is considered to be July 29. Then about 14 meteors can be seen simultaneously every hour.

Northern Delta Aquarids, long exposure shot

Still in the same place, near the Aquarius delta, the second meteor shower is located - the Northern Delta Aquarids. Its observation period, like its maximum, falls on dates similar to the Southern Delta Aquarid. However, the hourly fall of Nord Stream meteors is much weaker. From a scientific point of view, the simultaneous contemplation of these two meteor showers is very significant. Indeed, thanks to this, it is possible to reveal as many structural characteristics of both flows as possible.

Near the celestial body Iot Aquarius you can find another interesting radiant of the Southern Iot Aquarids. It is usually observed between 15.07 and 25.08. The shower reaches its maximum on the 5th of August, when everyone can see about 10 meteors every hour.

In the interval from August 11 to September 10, one more radiant can be observed in the constellation Aquarius - the Northern Yota Aquarids. It is located near another star - Theta Aquarius. These two meteor showers should also be studied in combination, then the structural features of each radiant can be revealed as best as possible separately.

Interesting and unusual constellation objects

Helix Nebula

In addition to stars and meteor showers, globular clusters and nebulae can be recognized in Aquarius. For example, the planetary Helix Nebula, commonly referred to as NGC 7293.

It is the largest and closest nebula to Earth. The integral magnitude of the Snail is 6.5m, so it can be easily seen with binoculars. NGC 7293 has an angular size that is only half the apparent size of the Moon. The distance from Earth to this planetary nebula is six hundred light years. In the center of the Helix there is a star with a temperature of 60,000 K, which illuminates the nebula.

Gallery shot of the Helix Nebula

Another notable object in the constellation Aquarius is the globular cluster M2 (Messier 2 or NGC 7089). It is noteworthy that this cluster can be seen from Earth without the help of any optical instruments. Despite its great “saturation” - there are 150 thousand stars in the globular cluster, it is considered quite compact: its diameter is some 175 light years. It is interesting that in 1746 the M2 cluster was discovered a second time, in parallel by two scientists Zh.D. Miraldi and C. Messier. The latter listed it in the star catalog as a nebula in which there are no stars. The stars in it were discovered only 11 years later, and W. Herschel saw them.

In addition to M2, there are several other interesting nebulae in Aquarius, for example, the M72 cluster or NGC 6981. This cluster is the weakest and dimmest in the constellation, and even if you have high-aperture optics on hand, it will be quite difficult to see it in the sky. The star cluster M72 is located behind the center of our galaxy. The distance from Earth to M72 is 53 thousand light years.

Aquarius(Latin Aquarius) is a large zodiac constellation located between Capricorn and Pisces. A famous asterism in Aquarius is the "Jug", a small Y-shaped group of five stars straddling the celestial equator. The central one of these stars, ζ Aquarii, is a double star. Also interesting are the globular cluster M2 and the planetary nebulae Saturn and Helix (NGC 7009 and NGC 7293). Aquarius is home to the radiant of the Delta Aquarids meteor shower, active in late July.

As a rule, the Sun is in the constellation from February 17 to March 11. The most favorable visibility conditions are in August - September.

click on the image to enlarge it

Story

Among the ancient Sumerians, Aquarius was one of the most important constellations, since it personified the sky god An, who gives life-giving water to the earth. According to the Greeks, Aquarius depicts several mythical characters at once, for example, Ganymede, the Trojan youth who became a cupbearer on Olympus; Deucalion - the hero of the global flood and Cecrops - the ancient king of Attica. Aquarius is included in the catalog of the starry sky of Claudius Ptolemy “Almagest”.

Notable objects:

* The constellation contains the red dwarf Gliese 876, with three discovered exoplanets.
* In 2008, astronomers discovered BD -22 5866, a multiple star with four components.

The constellation is in alphabetical order Aquarius. A large and beautiful constellation that harbors the Helix Nebula, the Saturn Nebula, a couple of globular clusters and other interesting deep-sky objects.

Legend and history

Among the ancient Sumerians, Aquarius was one of the most important constellations, since it personified the God of the sky, An, who gives life-giving water to the earth. The Greeks thought it was Zeus who poured the water of life. Many peoples were sure that after the Sun passes through the constellation Aquarius, the rainy season begins.

In Latin, Aquarius means "cupbearer." Aquarius is one of the oldest recognized constellations in the sky. The constellation does not have bright stars and clear outlines of the figure.

Characteristics

The most interesting objects to observe in the constellation Aquarius

Atlas of the constellation Aquarius

1. Globular star cluster M 2 (NGC 7089)

A globular star cluster that can be seen with the naked eye in favorable weather conditions and in the absence of city light. Contains about 150 thousand stars. M 2 is one of the most compact and rich globular clusters. 36,200 light years away from the Sun. The brightness is 6.5 m, the visible angular dimensions are 16′. Today there are 21 known (which change their brightness) in this cluster. It can be found in the sky by making a path in two ways (from the two brightest stars of the constellation):

Search for the globular cluster M 2

2. Planetary Helix Nebula (NGC 7293, C 63)

You've probably come across this memorable image of the planetary Helix Nebula more than once in books or on the Internet ( NGC 7293). Of course, the Hubble telescope managed to take a fantastic picture. Afterwards, astronomers performed post-processing of the image. The nebula is located 500-600 light years from the Sun and is the closest planetary nebula discovered. When observed through small amateur or semi-professional telescopes, it is visible as a round, foggy spot. An example image using the filter is shown below:

The brightness of the nebula is 7.5 m, angular dimensions are 17.57′. In the starry night sky, you will have to start from the star to search Scat with a magnitude of 3.25 m and move in the direction of the southeast, as roughly schematically shown on the map:

The following three objects are located in close proximity to each other and an approximate search route has been compiled for them on one map. But let’s take a closer look at each of them separately.

3. Globular star cluster M 72 (NGC 6981)

M 72- a bright and saturated globular star cluster. It is located at a distance of 53 thousand light years from the Sun and is one of the most distant clusters in the Messier catalog. The brightness is 9.3 m. There are 42 variable stars known in the cluster. In the sky you can find following the route marked with yellow arrows:

Search for M 72, M 73 and NGC 7009

4. Asterism M 73 (NGC 6994)

M 73- this is consisting of four stars. The stars have brightness levels of 10th and 11th. In a telescope they look like a small nebula. As astronomers assume, the stars are physically connected, i.e. gravitational forces. On the map above, first yellow arrows and then red arrows from the star Albami show an approximate route for finding the sky.

5. Planetary Nebula Saturn (NGC 7009, C 55)

The sixth and final object to observe in the constellation Aquarius is this remarkable planetary nebula "Saturn". It owes its name to the ringed planet Saturn in the solar system, which it looks very similar to when observed through a telescope. The star in the center has a magnitude of 11.5 m. The nebula itself is very small and its surface brightness is - 8.0 m. In a powerful professional telescope it will look something like this:

On the star map above, following the yellow arrows and, starting from the star Albami, following the green ones, you can find the Saturn Nebula.

Although I highly recommend observing the last three objects in one session, try to spot them all. Start with a lower magnification, find M 72 and, moving west, you will find M 73, and then a little to the west and north you will find a nebula NGC 7009. I'm sure you can do it. And don’t despair if you can’t find all three the first time. Patience and persistence will help you a lot.

Small (apparent dimensions 3.5′ × 2.2′), but very beautiful spiral galaxy NGC 7723 turned to face the observer from the Earth. With a telescope of 150 millimeters or more, you can see the arms, shape, and rich central part of the galaxy. Brightness - 11.2 m.

Finding a star ψ 1 Aqr(you’ll see a few more bright ones nearby) and turn the pipe counterclockwise. On the atlas below, red arrows indicate the direction:

Search for galaxy pair NGC 7723 and NGC 7727

By the way, an amateur astronomer from Europe in 2015 managed to take a wonderful photo of the galaxy and the bright comet Catalina:

Near the previous galaxy NGC 7723 there is a larger and brighter galaxy NGC 7727. In the image above you can notice both galaxies. Previously viewed galaxy in the background NGC 7727 looks very tiny. Using a wide-angle eyepiece will allow you to view both galaxies in the same field of view.

The brightness of the galaxy in question is 10.6 m, the apparent angular dimensions are 4.7′ × 3.5′.

Multiple star systems

8.1 Double star ζ (zeta) Aquarii

This is a dual system. Both stars are so close together (less than two arcseconds) that it is very difficult to photograph or separate them into two independent ones. Therefore, I apologize for the photo above, but this is the best I found on the Internet, and in the program I couldn’t separate them into two separate stars at all. The brightness of each star is 4.4 m and 4.6 m.

These are the “surprises” presented to us constellation Aquarius. Despite the fact that in our latitudes this constellation is difficult and inaccessible for observation, you should know that it is clearly accessible on a clear night in early September (I was convinced of this myself). You just need to go further outside the city, somewhere in a field or large clearing, so that the trees on the horizon do not cover the stars lying low on the horizon - and you will find everything.