Virgo (constellation)

Virgo constellation
Latin name	Virgo
Latin genitive	Virginis
Abbreviation	Vir
Right ascension	11 h 37 m 22 s to  15 h 11 m 25 s
declination	−22 ° 40 ′ 38 ″ to  + 14 ° 21 ′ 38 ″
surface	1294.428 deg² rank 2
Completely visible	67.4 ° N to 76.2 ° S
Observation time for Central Europe	spring
Number of stars brighter than 3 mag	2
Brightest star (size)	Spica (0.98)
Meteor streams	Virginids
Neighboring constellations ( clockwise from north )	Berenike's hair lion cups Crow Water snake Libra Snake (head) Bear keeper
swell	IAU ,

The Virgin ( Latin Virgo , astronomical signs ♍) is a constellation on the ecliptic .

description

Virgo is the second largest constellation in the sky (after the water snake ). It lies between the lion (Leo) and the scales (Libra). The brightest stars are supposed to represent a person lying down.

The brightest star is Spica with an apparent magnitude of 0.98 mag. Spica can be found in the extension of the drawbar of the Big Dipper over the bright Arcturus in the constellation Bearkeeper .

The ecliptic runs through Virgo, therefore the sun , moon and planets move through this constellation. At the time when the constellations were named in antiquity, the sun was in the constellation Virgo from mid-August to the end of September, which at that time was almost identical to the zodiac sign Virgo. Due to the precession movement of the earth's axis, however, the time of the passage of the sun has shifted compared to antiquity . This is why the sun is currently in the constellation Virgo from September 16 to October 31.

In the constellation Virgo is the huge Virgo galaxy cluster , which contains about 2000 galaxies . Several of the galaxies can already be observed with small telescopes .

history

The constellation is first mentioned in Mesopotamia ; According to MUL.APIN it was known under the name ^MUL AB.SIN or šir'u ( furrow ) and also under ^d šala šubultu Šala ( god / goddess the ear of corn ). In terms of circumference, it corresponded to today's constellation Virgo, more precisely that part of it that is south of the ecliptic. The heliacal rise of the constellation, around 2700 BC. In mid-August and later around 1900 BC At the end of August, the farmers indicated the approaching start of the new annual cycle in the field. In ^MUL APIN, the goddess Šala is nicknamed the ear of corn , since the rising of the constellation symbolized the final phase of the harvest (bringing in the harvest). The ear of corn explicitly referred to the star Spica (Latin for "ear"), but because Spica was the first to rise star of the constellation, the constellation was named after this star.

The constellation of Virgo as seen with the naked eye

Eric Burrows assumes ( Oxford , 1926) that the change in meaning from furrow to virgin took place via a Hurrian word sala , virgin. So Šala was a goddess of pre -Semitic Syrian ( Hurrian , subartisch , mitannisch ) was and the word Šala latest by the Greeks as Virgin been taken. In the cuneiform tablets , the constellation was always referred to as ab-sim (= vegetation) or similar but never as a virgin or a similar word.

The entire constellation of Virgo had around 2700 BC. On August 29th and around 1900 BC. Its heliacal rise on September 6th in Mesopotamia. Further connections of the constellation are made to Ištar , Isis or Cybele .

A wide variety of interpretations existed among the ancient Greeks . So one saw in the constellation Athena , Hera , Persephone , Callisto , Dike , Astraea or Erigone .

The virgin is one of the 48 constellations of ancient astronomy described by Ptolemy .

mythology

Tablet with Epic of Gilgamesh.

In the mythology of Mesopotamia, the constellation Virgo was also associated with Inanna from the Gilgamesh epic . Inanna sent the heavenly bull to earth to punish Gilgamesh and Enkidu . As an astronomical process, this myth found its counterpart in the sky. With the heliacal rise of the constellation Virgo, the constellation Taurus set ; in the mythological context, the rise of Inanna was followed by the descent of the bull to earth, which took on the role of rainbringer and the plow-ox.

The following versions have come down to us from classical Greek mythology :

Core / Persephone (daughter of Demeter and Zeus)

The constellation is said to represent Persephone , the daughter of the grain and fertility goddess Demeter and of Zeus . The original name Persephones was Core . She was made pregnant by her own father and then ignored. Hades , the brother of Zeus and god of the underworld, fell in love with her and kidnapped her when she was in Sicily. He took her as his bride, what Zeus allowed, and named the unfortunate Core Persephone . Demeter became so desperate that she forgot to keep up with her duties, causing crops to fail and famine to break out. She also cursed the fields of Sicily. Zeus could not save her from this fate, but only made an agreement according to which Persephone had to spend half of the year with her husband Hades, and the other half was allowed to return to the surface.

Dike (daughter of Themis and Zeus)

According to another source, the constellation embodies the goddess Dike , daughter of Themis and Zeus. Dike lived on earth at a time when there was no war or violence and the earth was like the Garden of Eden . However, when mankind became angry, it fled to the mountains and finally to heaven. Dike is also called the daughter of Helios , Kronos or Nomos and Eusebia.

Astraea (daughter of Themis and Zeus)

But it should also be about Astraea , the virgin daughter of Themis and Zeus . She embodied justice. Because of the injustice among the people, she returned to heaven disappointed. Next to her is the constellation Libra , as a symbol of justice. Astraea is also identified as Dike and vice versa.

Erigone (daughter of Icarius)

In another version, the constellation represents Erigone , and is in connection with the neighboring constellations bear keepers and hounds . The god Dionysus taught Ikarios , the father of Erigone, the art of wine growing. Ikarios wanted to sell his wine to the people and gave it to some farmers to taste. They had never drank wine before and killed Ikarios because they thought he was trying to poison them. Erigone finally went to look for the father with the dog Maira . His dog found the place where he was buried, and out of grief, Erigone hung herself from a tree. The dog also died of grief and was transferred to heaven. Ikarios found its way into the heavenly realm as the bear guardian constellation.

Celestial objects

Stars

B.	F.	Vmag	Names or other designations	Del. ( Ly )	Spectral class
α	67	0.98	Spica , Azimech, Alarph	262	B1 III / IV + B2 V
ε	47	2.85	Vindemiatrix , Vindemiator, Almuredin, Alaraph, Provindemiator, Protrigetrix, Protrygetor	102	G8 III
ζ	79	3.38	Heze	73	A3 V
δ		3.38	Minelava , Minelauva, Auva, Al Awwa	approx. 200	M3 III
β		3.59	Zavijah , Alaraph, Minelauva	36	F8 V
γ	29	3.48 + 3.50	Porrima , Arich	39	F0 V + F0 V
	109	3.73	109 Virginis , HR 5511	129	A0 V
μ	107	3.87	HR 5487 , Rijl al Awwa	61	F2 III
η	15th	3.89	HR 4689, Zaniah	250	A2 IV
ν	3	4.04	HR 4517, Ny Virginis	313	M0 III
ι	99	4.10	HR 5338, Syrma	70	F.
ο	9	4.12	Omikron Virginis	171	G8 IIIa CN-1Ba1CH1
κ	98	4.18	Kappa Virginis	224	K2.5 III Fe-0.5
τ	93	4.23	Tau Virginis	218	A3 V
θ	51	4.38	Theta Virginis	415	A1 IV + Am
	110	4.39	110 Virginis , HR 5601	183	K0.5 IIIb Fe-0.5
λ	100	4.52	Khambalia	187	A2m
π	8th	4.65	8 Virginis	360	A5 V
χ	26th	4.66	Chi Virginis	320	A4 V
I.	74	4.68	I Virginis	430	M2 III
	61	4.74	61 Virginis	28	G6 V
	69	4.76	69 Virginis	258	K0 III-IV CN2Fe0.5
ψ	40	4.77	Psi Virginis	420	M3 IIICa-1
σ	60	4.78	Sigma Virginis	540	M1 III
φ	105	4.81	Phi Virginis	135	G2 IV
ξ	2	4.84	Xi Virginis	120	K2 III-IIIb CN1
ρ	30th	4.88	Rho Virginis	120	A0 V
	78	4.92	78 Virginis	183	A1p SrCrEu
		4.93	ET Virginis , HR 5301	540	M2 IIIa
	89	4.96	89 Virginis	242	K0.5 III-IIIb
c	16	4.97	C Virginis	285	K0 IIIb Fe-1
	70	4.97	70 Virginis	59	G4 V
		4.99	CU Virginis	262	A0 VpSi
m	82	5.03	m Virginis	460	M1.5 III
	53	5.04	53 Virginis	106	F5 III-IV
		5.09	HR 5392	151	A5 V
υ		5.14	Upsilon Virginis	274	G9 III
	49	5.15	49 Virginis	306	K2 III
p	90	5.16	P Virginis	254	K2 III
e	59	5.19	e Virginis	59	G0 V
	32	5.22	32 Virginis	244	F0 IIIm
H	76	5.21	h Virginis	264	K0 III
	57	5.21	57 Virginis	127	K1 III-IV
ω	1	5.24	Omega Virginis	480	M4 III
	68	5.27	68 Virginis	500	M0 III
A¹	4th	5.31	A Virginis	192	A1
	55	5.31	55 Virginis	126	G6 V
		5.33	HR 5013	300	K3 III
	84	5.35	84 Virginis	217	K2 III
b	7th	5.36	B Virginis	276	A1 V
	63	5.36	63 Virginis	320	K III
	87	5.41	87 Virginis	640	M2 IIIab
	106	5.42	106 Virginis	480	K5 III
	95	5.46	95 Virginis	179	F2 IV
q	21st	5.48	Q Virginis	262	A0 V
	86	5.50	86 Virginis	380	G8 III

Spica is a multiple star system 272 light years away . The main star is a white giant star with 13,500 times the luminosity of our sun. The star pulsates weakly over a period of 0.174 days, changing its brightness slightly in the process. At a distance of 0.12 astronomical units , a smaller companion star orbits the main star in about four days. Due to the short distance, the star is not visible in the telescope . With each orbit, the weaker companion passes in front of the bright main star, causing the brightness to decrease slightly. Spica is thus an eclipsing binary . The main star is orbited by at least two smaller companion stars that cannot be observed with optical telescopes either.

The second brightest star is the yellowish shining ε Virginis, 102 light years away.
His name, Vindemiatrix , means “grape picker”.

Double stars

→ Main article : Double stars

system	Vmag	distance
Gamma Virginis	3.48 / 3.50	2010: 1.4 "
θ	4.4 / 8.6	7.2 "
φ	5.0 / 9.2	4.7 "

Gamma Virginis (γ Virginis) is a binary star 39 light years away . The two stars of roughly the same size and brightness orbit each other in around 170 years. The angular distance changes relatively strongly during one revolution. In 1920 the greatest distance was reached with 6.2 arc seconds and the stars could be observed with a small telescope. In 2005, the smallest distance was achieved and the stars were only 0.3 arc seconds apart, which made a larger telescope necessary to resolve the components.

Variable stars

star	Apparent Size ( m )	period	Type
Spica	0.98	0.174 days / 4.014 days	Pulsation changer / coverage changer
R.	7 to 11	145.5 days	Mira star

R Virginis is a variable star of the Mira type . Its brightness changes significantly over a period of 145.5 days

Messier and NGC objects

→ Main articles : Messier Catalog  and New General Catalog

Messier (M)	NGC	Vmag	Type
49		8.4	elliptical galaxy
58		9.7	Spiral galaxy
59		9.6	elliptical galaxy
60		8.8	elliptical galaxy
61		9.7	Spiral galaxy
84		9.1	elliptical galaxy
86		8.9	elliptical galaxy
87		8.6	elliptical galaxy
89		9.8	elliptical galaxy
90		9.5	Spiral galaxy
104		8.0	Spiral galaxy
	4216	10.0	Spiral galaxy
	4388	11.0	Spiral galaxy
	4429	10.0	Spiral galaxy
	4526	9.7	Spiral galaxy
	4654	10.5	Spiral galaxy
	5634	11	Globular clusters
	3C273	12.9	quasar

The Virgo Galaxy Cluster is about 60 million light years away. About 250 of its members can be observed with a medium-sized telescope from 15 cm aperture. The French astronomer Charles Messier included 11 galaxies in his catalog of foggy objects.

M 49 was the first discovered galaxy in the Virgo cluster. Messier found it in 1771 . M 49 is the brightest object in the galaxy cluster. It can already be seen as a misty spot in prism binoculars . It is an elliptical galaxy . These are huge systems that were created by merging several galaxies. Elliptical galaxies contain relatively little interstellar matter and have no spiral structures.

The spiral galaxy M 61 also belongs to the Virgo galaxy cluster. In a small telescope it appears as a misty spot. Spiral structures are visible in larger telescopes.

The galaxies M 84 , M 86 , M 87 and M 88 belong to the central region of the Virgo cluster. Messier discovered all four galaxies on the night of March 18, 1781. M 84, M 86 and M 87 are elliptical galaxies, M 88 a spiral galaxy.

With an estimated mass of around 800 billion solar masses, M 84 is one of the most massive galaxies we know. It is also a powerful cosmic radio source .

M 87 is also a powerful radio source known as Virgo A. Long-exposure photographs show a jet of matter shooting out of the core of the galaxy.

The spiral galaxy M 104 , 50 million light years away , does not belong to the Virgo cluster. We see the galaxy from the side. A dark band of dust becomes visible in the middle telescope. The galaxy has roughly the shape of a hat, which earned it the name “Sombrero Galaxy”.

Other objects

The quasar 3C 273 is the core of an active galaxy located 2.5 billion light years away. It can already be recognized as a star in telescopes from 10 cm aperture.

See also

• List of constellations

Web links

Wiktionary: Virgo  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Commons : Virgo (constellation)  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Virgo constellation A photographic journey through the signs of the zodiac

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c d} calculations using the astronomical program Sky-Chart III
2. ↑ Eric Burrows, Ḫurrian Sala (s), Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland 2, 1927, 318-320
3. ↑ ^{a b} Constellation Virgo (Latin Virgo). Retrieved June 27, 2020 . 
4. ↑ vnawrath: The Virgin - From harvest, family tragedy and punitive justice. In: Volker Nawrath's blog. July 12, 2015, accessed on June 27, 2020 (German). 
5. ↑ Virgo constellation. Retrieved June 27, 2020 . 
6. ↑ Friedrich August Nösselt: Textbook of Greek and Roman mythology for higher schools for girls and the more educated of the female sex . E. Fleischer, 1837 ( google.de [accessed June 27, 2020]).