Lizard (constellation)
Constellation Lizard |
|
---|---|
Latin name | Lacerta |
Latin genitive | Lacertae |
Abbreviation | Lac |
Right ascension | 21 h 57 m 30 s to 22 h 57 m 52 s |
declination | + 35 ° 09 ′ 56 ″ to + 56 ° 55 ′ 05 ″ |
surface | 200.688 deg² rank 68 |
Completely visible | 90 ° N to 33.4 ° S |
Observation time for Central Europe | autumn |
Number of stars brighter than 3 mag | 0 |
Brightest star (size) | α Lacertae (3.77) |
Meteor streams |
no |
Neighboring constellations ( clockwise from north ) |
|
swell | IAU , |
The lizard ( Latin Lacerta ) is a constellation in the northern sky.
description
The lizard is an inconspicuous constellation between the constellations Andromeda , Kassiopeia , Cepheus , Swan and Pegasus . It consists of a chain of faint stars, only one of which is brighter than the 4th magnitude . The Milky Way runs through the northern part of the lizard .
history
The constellation was introduced by the Danzig astronomer Johannes Hevelius in his work Firmamentum Sobiescianum, sive uranographia , published posthumously in 1690 . Hevelius also gave the second name Stellio (water newch), which was hardly used.
The stars of today's constellation were several parts of constellations that could not prevail: The French Augustin Royer summarized the stars in 1697 in honor of the Sun King Louis XIV. To the "Scepter" (the scepter ). In 1787, Johann Elert Bode proposed the name “Honores Frederic” (“Frederick's Honor”) in memory of the Prussian King Frederick the Great, who died a year earlier .
In 1929, Cuno Hoffmeister discovered an object in the lizard whose brightness changed without any discernible periodicity . It was considered a variable star and described it according to standard nomenclature as BL Lac . Only later was it discovered that it is the active galactic nucleus ( English : Active Galactic Nucleus AGN) a galaxy acting. BL Lacertae was the first blazar to be discovered and namesake of a type of galaxy now referred to as BL Lacertae objects .
Celestial objects
Stars
B. | F. | Names or other designations | Size (mag) | Lj | Spectral class |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
α | 7th | 3.77 | 100 | A2 V | |
1 | 4.13 | 300 | K3 II | ||
5 | 4.36 | 800 | M0 III | ||
β | 3 | 4.43 | 150 | G9 III | |
11 | 4.46 | ||||
ADS 15758 | 4.49 | ||||
6th | 4.51 | ||||
2 | 4.55 | 400 | B6 V | ||
4th | 4.55 | 5000 | B9 Ia | ||
9 | 4.63 | ||||
10 | 4.88 | ||||
15th | 4.95 | ||||
13 | 5.08 | ||||
12 | 5.25 | ||||
16 | 5.59 | ||||
8th | 5.73 | 2000 | B2 + B2 | ||
13 | 5.92 |
Alpha Lacertae , the brightest star in the lizard, is a whitish shining star of the spectral class A2 V 100 light-years away .
Double stars
system | Sizes (mag) | distance |
---|---|---|
8th | 5.7 / 6.5 | 22.4 " |
8 Lacertae is a binary star system 2000 light years away. The two extremely luminous components belong to the spectral class B2. They can already be observed with a small telescope .
NGC objects
NGC | other | Size (mag) | Type | Surname |
---|---|---|---|---|
NGC 7209 | 9.5 | Open star cluster | ||
NGC 7243 | 6.4 | Open star cluster | ||
NGC 7245 | 7.5 | Open star cluster | ||
BL Lacertae | 14.5 | Blazar |
In the lizard there are three open star clusters that can be resolved into single stars with a central telescope.
The galaxy BL Lacertae is very faint with a brightness of 14.5 mag. To observe them, you need a larger telescope.
See also
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Michael E. Bakich: The Cambridge Guide to the Constellations . Cambridge University Press, 1995, ISBN 9780521449212 , pp. 224 f.
- ↑ Ian Ridpath : The Great Constellations. Patmos, 2004, ISBN 3-491-69112-5 , p. 129 ( online version of the original English edition ).
- ↑ a b Richard Hinckley Allen: Star-names and their meanings. GE Stechert, New York 1899, p. 251. Digitized in the Internet Archive
- ↑ Ian Ridpath: The Great Constellations. Patmos, 2004, ISBN 3-491-69112-5 , p. 228 ( online version of the original English edition ).