Interestingly, in later mythology, the same fleece was taken by Jason and his Argonauts. Just like many other zodiac constellations, the Aries constellation was recorded by the great Greek thinker of the 2nd century, Ptolemy.
However, Aries is not completely like other constellations because its symbolism and imagery has changed over time. The ancient Babylonians did not always depict the Aries constellation as a ram, and at one time, the constellation was depicted as a farmworker, also known as the agrarian worker. The exact point of time when the switch occurred has yet to be identified, and it is believed that the constellation was used to depict both images interchangeably for some time during later Babylonian times.
To create a constellation, certain stars are joined together to form an outline of an image. Of course, this new image of joined-up stars will not be elaborate or with fine details. Stargazers need to somewhat use their imagination to see the same images that were recorded from ancient times. For example, those looking at the Aries star constellation with a naked eye may not first see anything like a ram — or the even older image of a farm hand.
Earlier medieval depictions of Aries as a ram showed the animal as it would if it was moving, almost like it was running through a field. The brightest star in the Aries constellation is called Hamal. This star also makes it into the top 50 brightest stars in the sky, coming in at 49th place.
Other cool facts about Hamal include:. If you want to know how many stars are in the Aries constellation in total, the answer is five. Another interesting star from the constellation is interestingly called Sheratan, which derives from an Arabic phrase meaning two signs. This is considered interesting due to the two depictions that the Aries constellation has been known to represent over time. It takes up square degrees. The Pleiades is one of the most famous asterisms.
It is time. Keep going in the same direction as all the previous steps, but without following the inclination. Aries is almost right next to the Pleiades as seen in the illustration. The brightest star in Aries, Hamal, is hard to miss if you have made it to this point. Aries is a dim constellation. None of its stars are super bright and its area is smaller than average. It is possible to miss it even using this method, especially if the weather or light pollution conditions in your location are not helping.
When it comes to finding things on Earth, a map is always helpful. The same holds true for the stars. A star map is an app that you can download to your phone that will grab your GPS location and will show you a map of the stars and other objects that are right above you so you can recognize them. My favorite star map app due to how simple and free it is is Sky Map. Unfortunately, it is only available for android.
Elena is a Canadian journalist and researcher. She has been looking at the sky for years and hopes to introduce more people to the wonderful hobby that is astronomy.
What is Aries? When to find the Aries constellation Aries is visible from March to February. The only place on Earth where Aries is not visible at any point of the year in Antarctica. How to find Aries Ok. How to find Aries. Aries reaches its highest point in the sky at about 10 p. Luckily, the head of the Ram is quite easy to spot. You can find it midway between the Pleiades star cluster to the east and the Square of Pegasus to the west. There are several mythological narratives concerning Aries that were handed down from antiquity.
One of these legends attributes the name of the constellation to Zeus, who turned into a ram while fleeing the overpowering Titans. In another Aries constellation myth , a Roman writer Hygenius describes how Bacchus, the god of wine, together with his cheerful entourage, unexpectedly lost his way in the vastness of the Libyan Desert. In this dry wasteland, they were soon plagued by terrible thirst.
Fortunately, they met a friendly ram that led Bacchus and his party of revelers to a source of water, consequently saving them from certain death. In gratitude, Bacchus elevated the ram to the heavens. According to another Aries constellation story of Greek origin, King Athamas appointed his eldest son Phrixos as his successor to the throne.
His current wife, Ino, however, wanted to see her own son in his place. For this reason, the conniving queen resorted to a ruse. She let the seed spoil for the following year, causing crop failure. He was told that if he wanted to avoid another crop failure in the following year, he would have to sacrifice his son Phrixos. But high above the strait separating Europe and Asia, Helle fell into the sea, where she drowned.
The ram flew on with Phrixos on his back to the land of Colchis, where the boy was well received. In astronomy, there is a celestial coordinate system for fixing positions of all celestial bodies. The First Point of Aries has been chosen as the zero point in the celestial sphere. It is the point at which the Sun crosses the Celestial Equator moving from south to north along the ecliptic.
0コメント