By: Emma Devore

CONSTELLATIONSBY EMMA DEVORE

BEFORE THE PRESENTATION

• To start, I want to say that there are several different cultures who use different constellations. On this PowerPoint, there are a lot of different constellations, but I didn’t include all of them due to the fact that there are too many constellations with all of the different cultures.

Enjoy the PowerPoint!!

WHAT IS A CONSTELLATION?

• A constellation is a group of stars forming a pattern that is traditionally named after its apparent form or identified with a mythological figure.

CONSTELLATIONS MAY VARY• The constellation may vary

from different cultures, such as the constellation Orion is from Greek mythology. The Lakota Indians, see a giant hand in the heavens meant to resemble peace between the heavens, which use some of the same stars as Orion.

CIRCUMPOLAR CONSTELLATIONS• Because of the rotation of the Earth and its orbit around the Sun, we divide the stars and

constellations into two groups, northern and southern constellations. Circumpolar means to circle around the pole. Circumpolar stars or constellations daily trace circles around the north celestial pole, without setting or dipping below the horizon. They move in a counterclockwise direction. On any given night, the constellation is visible during a portion of the circle; the rest is traced out when the constellation is hidden in the daylight sky.

HOW MANY CONSTELLATIONS ARE THERE?• There are 88 constellations used by Astronomers today.

• 14 men and women

• 9 birds, two insects

• 19 land animals

• 10 water creatures,

• two centaurs

• one head of hair

• a serpent

• a dragon

• a flying horse,

• a river and 29 inanimate objects are represented in the night sky.

THE LARGEST CONSTELLATION• The largest constellation is Hydra, from Greek mythology and covers over 1,300

square degrees. It is best seen from the southern hemisphere, but is also visible in the north from January through May.

THE SMALLEST CONSTELLATION• The smallest constellation is Crux, the southern cross. Its is about 68

square degrees. Originally it was part of the constellation Centaur, but became its own constellation during the 16th century when it was used as a valuable navigation tool by explorers.

SOME CONSTELLATIONS FAMOUS FROM GREEK MYTHOLOGY

Andromeda-the princess

Aquila-The Eagle

Ursa Major- Large Bear (Ursa means bear and Major means large)

Ursa Minor- Small Bear (Minor means small)

Orion- The Hunter

There are many more this is just to name a few

Pictures are the next slide

PICTURES OF THOSE CONSTELLATIONS

Ursa MajorUrsa Minor

Orion

HOW URSA MAJOR GOT IT’S NAME• One Greek myth tells that the nymph Callisto, a servant of the hunter Artemis was made

to bear a child by Zeus. Artemis banished Callisto for impurity. Artemis gave birth to the child named Arcas. This made Zeus' wife Hera very jealous and in revenge, Hera turned Callisto into a bear which ran away into the forest. Arcas grew up to become a hunter. One day while he was hunting, the bear Callisto heard Arcas' voice and rushed to greet her son. Arcas, not knowing the bear was his mother was about to kill her when Zeus intervened and sent both mother and son into the sky as the Greater and Lesser Bears. The way Zeus got the bears into the sky explains why their tails are so long, apparently Zeus grabbed them by their tails and swung them around over his head and finally flung them into the sky, and that is why these two bears have long tails!

Ursa Major

Ursa Minor

CONSTELLATIONS OF THE WINTER TRIANGLE• The winter triangle is made up of Canis Major(the Big Dog), Canis Minor (the Little Dog)

& Orion the Hunter.

ZODIAC CONSTELLATIONS

• The Babylonians named 12 constellations that were on the Sun’s path through the night sky. By dividing this path into 12 equal parts, they were able to measure celestial time. Because most of the constellations were named after animals, the whole set of them was called the zodiac.

THE ZODIAC CONSTELLATIONS• Aquarius (Water Bearer)

• Pisces (Fish)

• Aries (Ram)

• Taurus (Bull)

• Gemini (Twins)

• Cancer (Crab)

• Leo (Lion)

• Virgo (Virgin)

• Libra (Scales)

• Scorpio (Scorpion)

• Sagittarius (Centaur The Archer)

• Capricorn (Sea Goat)