1.
Bayer designation
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A Bayer designation is a stellar designation in which a specific star is identified by a Greek letter, followed by the genitive form of its parent constellations Latin name. The original list of Bayer designations contained 1,564 stars, most of the brighter stars were assigned their first systematic names by the German astronomer Johann Bayer in 1603, in his star atlas Uranometria. Bayer assigned a lower-case Greek letter, such as alpha, beta, gamma, for example, Aldebaran is designated α Tauri, which means Alpha of the constellation Taurus. A single constellation may contain fifty or more stars, but the Greek alphabet has only twenty-four letters, when these ran out, Bayer began using Latin letters, upper case A, followed by lower case b through z, for a total of another 24 letters. Bayer never went beyond z, but later added more designations using both upper and lower case Latin letters, the upper case letters following the lower case ones in general. Examples include s Carinae, d Centauri, G Scorpii, and N Velorum, the last upper-case letter used in this way was Q. Bayer catalogued only a few stars too far south to be seen from Germany, in most constellations, Bayer assigned Greek and Latin letters to stars within a constellation in rough order of apparent brightness, from brightest to dimmest. Since the brightest star in a majority of constellations is designated Alpha, in Bayers day, however, stellar brightness could not be measured precisely. Within each magnitude class, Bayer made no attempt to arrange stars by relative brightness, as a result, the brightest star in each class did not always get listed first in Bayers order. Occasionally the order looks quite arbitrary, of the 88 modern constellations, there are at least 30 in which Alpha is not the brightest star, and four of those lack an alpha star altogether. Orion provides an example of Bayers method. Bayer first designated Betelgeuse and Rigel, the two 1st-magnitude stars, as Alpha and Beta from north to south, with Betelgeuse coming ahead of Rigel, Bayer then repeated the procedure for the stars of the 2nd magnitude, labeling them from gamma through zeta in top-down order. The First to Rise in the East order is used in a number of instances, Castor and Pollux of Gemini may be an example of this, Pollux is brighter than Castor, but the latter rises earlier and was assigned alpha. In this case, Bayer may also have influenced by the traditional order of the mythological names Castor and Pollux. Although the brightest star in Draco is Eltanin, Thuban was assigned alpha by Bayer because, due to precession, sometimes there is no apparent order, as exemplified by the stars in Sagittarius, where Bayers designations appear almost random to the modern eye. Alpha and Beta Sagittarii are perhaps the most anomalously designated stars in the sky, the order of the letters assigned in Sagittarius does correspond to the magnitudes as illustrated on Bayers chart, but the latter do not agree with modern determinations of the magnitudes. Bayer designations added by later astronomers generally were ordered by magnitude, in Libra, for example, the new designations sigma, tau, and upsilon were chosen to avoid conflict with Bayers earlier designations, even though several stars with earlier letters are not as bright. In Cygnus, for example, Bayers fixed stars run through g, Bayer did not intend such labels as catalog designations, but some have survived to refer to astronomical objects, P Cygni for example is still used as a designation for Nova Cyg 1600
2.
Constellation
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A constellation is formally defined as a region of the celestial sphere, with boundaries laid down by the International Astronomical Union. The constellation areas mostly had their origins in Western-traditional patterns of stars from which the constellations take their names, in 1922, the International Astronomical Union officially recognized the 88 modern constellations, which cover the entire sky. They began as the 48 classical Greek constellations laid down by Ptolemy in the Almagest, Constellations in the far southern sky are late 16th- and mid 18th-century constructions. 12 of the 88 constellations compose the zodiac signs, though the positions of the constellations only loosely match the dates assigned to them in astrology. The term constellation can refer to the stars within the boundaries of that constellation. Notable groupings of stars that do not form a constellation are called asterisms, when astronomers say something is “in” a given constellation they mean it is within those official boundaries. Any given point in a coordinate system can unambiguously be assigned to a single constellation. Many astronomical naming systems give the constellation in which an object is found along with a designation in order to convey a rough idea in which part of the sky it is located. For example, the Flamsteed designation for bright stars consists of a number, the word constellation seems to come from the Late Latin term cōnstellātiō, which can be translated as set of stars, and came into use in English during the 14th century. It also denotes 88 named groups of stars in the shape of stellar-patterns, the Ancient Greek word for constellation was ἄστρον. Colloquial usage does not draw a distinction between constellation in the sense of an asterism and constellation in the sense of an area surrounding an asterism. The modern system of constellations used in astronomy employs the latter concept, the term circumpolar constellation is used for any constellation that, from a particular latitude on Earth, never sets below the horizon. From the North Pole or South Pole, all constellations south or north of the equator are circumpolar constellations. In the equatorial or temperate latitudes, the term equatorial constellation has sometimes been used for constellations that lie to the opposite the circumpolar constellations. They generally include all constellations that intersect the celestial equator or part of the zodiac, usually the only thing the stars in a constellation have in common is that they appear near each other in the sky when viewed from the Earth. In galactic space, the stars of a constellation usually lie at a variety of distances, since stars also travel on their own orbits through the Milky Way, the star patterns of the constellations change slowly over time. After tens to hundreds of thousands of years, their familiar outlines will become unrecognisable, the terms chosen for the constellation themselves, together with the appearance of a constellation, may reveal where and when its constellation makers lived. The earliest direct evidence for the constellations comes from inscribed stones and it seems that the bulk of the Mesopotamian constellations were created within a relatively short interval from around 1300 to 1000 BC
3.
Canis Major
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Canis Major /ˌkeɪnᵻs ˈmeɪdʒər/ is a constellation in the southern celestial hemisphere. In the second century, it was included in Ptolemys 48 constellations and its name is Latin for greater dog in contrast to Canis Minor, the lesser dog, both figures are commonly represented as following the constellation of Orion the hunter through the sky. The Milky Way passes through Canis Major and several open clusters lie within its borders, Canis Major contains Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky, known as the dog star. It is bright because of its proximity to the Solar System, in contrast, the other bright stars of the constellation are stars of great distance and high luminosity. At magnitude 1.5, Epsilon Canis Majoris is the second-brightest star of the constellation, the red hypergiant VY Canis Majoris is one of the largest stars known, while the neutron star RX J0720. 4-3125 has a radius of a mere 5 km. In ancient Mesopotamia, Sirius, named KAK. SI, in the later compendium of Babylonian astronomy and astrology titled MUL. APIN, the arrow, Sirius, was also linked with the warrior Ninurta, and the bow with Ishtar, daughter of Enlil. Ninurta was linked to the later deity Marduk, who was said to have slain the ocean goddess Tiamat with a great bow, the Ancient Greeks replaced the bow and arrow depiction with that of a dog. It was also considered to represent one of Orions hunting dogs, pursuing Lepus the Hare or helping Orion fight Taurus the Bull, the ancient Greeks refer only to one dog, but by Roman times, Canis Minor appears as Orions second dog. Alternative names include Canis Sequens and Canis Alter, Canis Syrius was the name used in the 1521 Alfonsine tables. The Roman myth refers to Canis Major as Custos Europae, the dog guarding Europa but failing to prevent her abduction by Jupiter in the form of a bull, and as Janitor Lethaeus, the watchdog. In medieval Arab astronomy, the constellation became Al Kalb al Akbar, islamic scholar Abū Rayḥān al-Bīrūnī referred to Orion as Al Kalb al Jabbār, the Dog of the Giant. Among the Merazig of Tunisia, shepherds note six constellations that mark the passage of the dry, one of them, called Merzem, includes the stars of Canis Major and Canis Minor and is the herald of two weeks of hot weather. In Chinese astronomy, the constellation of Canis Major lies in the Vermilion Bird. The Military Market was a pattern of stars containing Nu3, Beta, Xi1 and Xi2. The Wild Cockerel was at the centre of the Military Market, schlegel reported that the stars Omicron and Pi Canis Majoris might have been them, while Beta or Nu2 have also been proposed. Sirius was Tiānláng, the Celestial Wolf, denoting invasion and plunder, southeast of the Wolf was the asterism Húshǐ, the celestial Bow and Arrow, which was interpreted as containing Delta, Epsilon, Eta and Kappa Canis Majoris and Delta Velorum. Alternatively, the arrow was depicted by Omicron2 and Eta and aiming at Sirius, while the bow comprised Kappa, Epsilon, Sigma, Delta and 164 Canis Majoris, and Pi and Omicron Puppis. Both the Māori people and the people of the Tuamotus recognized the figure of Canis Major as a distinct entity, Te Huinga-o-Rehua, also called Te Putahi-nui-o-Rehua and Te Kahui-Takurua, was a Maori constellation that included both Canis Minor and Canis Major, along with some surrounding stars
4.
Right ascension
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Right ascension is the angular distance measured eastward along the celestial equator from the vernal equinox to the hour circle of the point in question. When combined with declination, these astronomical coordinates specify the direction of a point on the sphere in the equatorial coordinate system. Right ascension is the equivalent of terrestrial longitude. Both right ascension and longitude measure an angle from a direction on an equator. Right ascension is measured continuously in a circle from that equinox towards the east. Any units of measure could have been chosen for right ascension, but it is customarily measured in hours, minutes. Astronomers have chosen this unit to measure right ascension because they measure a stars location by timing its passage through the highest point in the sky as the Earth rotates. The highest point in the sky, called meridian, is the projection of a line onto the celestial sphere. A full circle, measured in units, contains 24 × 60 × 60 = 86 400s, or 24 × 60 = 1 440m. Because right ascensions are measured in hours, they can be used to time the positions of objects in the sky. For example, if a star with RA = 01h 30m 00s is on the meridian, sidereal hour angle, used in celestial navigation, is similar to right ascension, but increases westward rather than eastward. Usually measured in degrees, it is the complement of right ascension with respect to 24h and it is important not to confuse sidereal hour angle with the astronomical concept of hour angle, which measures angular distance of an object westward from the local meridian. The Earths axis rotates slowly westward about the poles of the ecliptic and this effect, known as precession, causes the coordinates of stationary celestial objects to change continuously, if rather slowly. Therefore, equatorial coordinates are inherently relative to the year of their observation, coordinates from different epochs must be mathematically rotated to match each other, or to match a standard epoch. The right ascension of Polaris is increasing quickly, the North Ecliptic Pole in Draco and the South Ecliptic Pole in Dorado are always at right ascension 18h and 6h respectively. The currently used standard epoch is J2000.0, which is January 1,2000 at 12,00 TT, the prefix J indicates that it is a Julian epoch. Prior to J2000.0, astronomers used the successive Besselian Epochs B1875.0, B1900.0, the concept of right ascension has been known at least as far back as Hipparchus who measured stars in equatorial coordinates in the 2nd century BC. But Hipparchus and his successors made their star catalogs in ecliptic coordinates, the easiest way to do that is to use an equatorial mount, which allows the telescope to be aligned with one of its two pivots parallel to the Earths axis
5.
Declination
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In astronomy, declination is one of the two angles that locate a point on the celestial sphere in the equatorial coordinate system, the other being hour angle. Declinations angle is measured north or south of the celestial equator, the root of the word declination means a bending away or a bending down. It comes from the root as the words incline and recline. Declination in astronomy is comparable to geographic latitude, projected onto the celestial sphere, points north of the celestial equator have positive declinations, while those south have negative declinations. Any units of measure can be used for declination, but it is customarily measured in the degrees, minutes. Declinations with magnitudes greater than 90° do not occur, because the poles are the northernmost and southernmost points of the celestial sphere, the Earths axis rotates slowly westward about the poles of the ecliptic, completing one circuit in about 26,000 years. This effect, known as precession, causes the coordinates of stationary celestial objects to change continuously, therefore, equatorial coordinates are inherently relative to the year of their observation, and astronomers specify them with reference to a particular year, known as an epoch. Coordinates from different epochs must be rotated to match each other. The currently used standard epoch is J2000.0, which is January 1,2000 at 12,00 TT, the prefix J indicates that it is a Julian epoch. Prior to J2000.0, astronomers used the successive Besselian Epochs B1875.0, B1900.0, the declinations of Solar System objects change very rapidly compared to those of stars, due to orbital motion and close proximity. This similarly occurs in the Southern Hemisphere for objects with less than −90° − φ. An extreme example is the star which has a declination near to +90°. Circumpolar stars never dip below the horizon, conversely, there are other stars that never rise above the horizon, as seen from any given point on the Earths surface. Generally, if a star whose declination is δ is circumpolar for some observer, then a star whose declination is −δ never rises above the horizon, as seen by the same observer. Likewise, if a star is circumpolar for an observer at latitude φ, neglecting atmospheric refraction, declination is always 0° at east and west points of the horizon. At the north point, it is 90° − |φ|, and at the south point, from the poles, declination is uniform around the entire horizon, approximately 0°. Non-circumpolar stars are visible only during certain days or seasons of the year, the Suns declination varies with the seasons. As seen from arctic or antarctic latitudes, the Sun is circumpolar near the summer solstice, leading to the phenomenon of it being above the horizon at midnight
6.
Apparent magnitude
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The apparent magnitude of a celestial object is a number that is a measure of its brightness as seen by an observer on Earth. The brighter an object appears, the lower its magnitude value, the Sun, at apparent magnitude of −27, is the brightest object in the sky. It is adjusted to the value it would have in the absence of the atmosphere, furthermore, the magnitude scale is logarithmic, a difference of one in magnitude corresponds to a change in brightness by a factor of 5√100, or about 2.512. The measurement of apparent magnitudes or brightnesses of celestial objects is known as photometry, apparent magnitudes are used to quantify the brightness of sources at ultraviolet, visible, and infrared wavelengths. An apparent magnitude is measured in a specific passband corresponding to some photometric system such as the UBV system. In standard astronomical notation, an apparent magnitude in the V filter band would be denoted either as mV or often simply as V, the scale used to indicate magnitude originates in the Hellenistic practice of dividing stars visible to the naked eye into six magnitudes. The brightest stars in the sky were said to be of first magnitude, whereas the faintest were of sixth magnitude. Each grade of magnitude was considered twice the brightness of the following grade and this rather crude scale for the brightness of stars was popularized by Ptolemy in his Almagest, and is generally believed to have originated with Hipparchus. This implies that a star of magnitude m is 2.512 times as bright as a star of magnitude m +1 and this figure, the fifth root of 100, became known as Pogsons Ratio. The zero point of Pogsons scale was defined by assigning Polaris a magnitude of exactly 2. However, with the advent of infrared astronomy it was revealed that Vegas radiation includes an Infrared excess presumably due to a disk consisting of dust at warm temperatures. At shorter wavelengths, there is negligible emission from dust at these temperatures, however, in order to properly extend the magnitude scale further into the infrared, this peculiarity of Vega should not affect the definition of the magnitude scale. Therefore, the scale was extrapolated to all wavelengths on the basis of the black body radiation curve for an ideal stellar surface at 11000 K uncontaminated by circumstellar radiation. On this basis the spectral irradiance for the zero magnitude point, with the modern magnitude systems, brightness over a very wide range is specified according to the logarithmic definition detailed below, using this zero reference. In practice such apparent magnitudes do not exceed 30, astronomers have developed other photometric zeropoint systems as alternatives to the Vega system. The AB magnitude zeropoint is defined such that an objects AB, the dimmer an object appears, the higher the numerical value given to its apparent magnitude, with a difference of 5 magnitudes corresponding to a brightness factor of exactly 100. Since an increase of 5 magnitudes corresponds to a decrease in brightness by a factor of exactly 100, each magnitude increase implies a decrease in brightness by the factor 5√100 ≈2.512. Inverting the above formula, a magnitude difference m1 − m2 = Δm implies a brightness factor of F2 F1 =100 Δ m 5 =100.4 Δ m ≈2.512 Δ m
7.
Stellar classification
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In astronomy, stellar classification is the classification of stars based on their spectral characteristics. Electromagnetic radiation from the star is analyzed by splitting it with a prism or diffraction grating into a spectrum exhibiting the rainbow of colors interspersed with absorption lines, each line indicates an ion of a certain chemical element, with the line strength indicating the abundance of that ion. The relative abundance of the different ions varies with the temperature of the photosphere, the spectral class of a star is a short code summarizing the ionization state, giving an objective measure of the photospheres temperature and density. Most stars are classified under the Morgan–Keenan system using the letters O, B, A, F, G, K, and M. Each letter class is subdivided using a numeric digit with 0 being hottest and 9 being coolest. The sequence has been expanded with classes for other stars and star-like objects that do not fit in the system, such as class D for white dwarfs. In the MK system, a luminosity class is added to the class using Roman numerals. This is based on the width of absorption lines in the stars spectrum. The full spectral class for the Sun is then G2V, indicating a main-sequence star with a temperature around 5,800 K, the conventional color description takes into account only the peak of the stellar spectrum. This means that the assignment of colors of the spectrum can be misleading. There are no green, indigo, or violet stars, likewise, the brown dwarfs do not literally appear brown. The modern classification system is known as the Morgan–Keenan classification, each star is assigned a spectral class from the older Harvard spectral classification and a luminosity class using Roman numerals as explained below, forming the stars spectral type. The spectral classes O through M, as well as more specialized classes discussed later, are subdivided by Arabic numerals. For example, A0 denotes the hottest stars in the A class, fractional numbers are allowed, for example, the star Mu Normae is classified as O9.7. The Sun is classified as G2, the conventional color descriptions are traditional in astronomy, and represent colors relative to the mean color of an A-class star, which is considered to be white. The apparent color descriptions are what the observer would see if trying to describe the stars under a dark sky without aid to the eye, or with binoculars. However, most stars in the sky, except the brightest ones, red supergiants are cooler and redder than dwarfs of the same spectral type, and stars with particular spectral features such as carbon stars may be far redder than any black body. O-, B-, and A-type stars are called early type
. Bibcode:2007A&A...474..653V. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20078357.
