PATTERNS IN THE SKYTeacher’s Guide for Discussion

Lesson 3.2: ConstellationGrade 9, Quarter 3

Ma. Rachel B. EspinoTeacher I

Buhatan NHS; Sorsogon City

Observers in ancient times imagined group of stars that form pictures of animals, objects and people. These imaginary group of stars are called CONSTELLATIONS.

Many of these constellations have names that can be traced back to early Babylonians and Greek civilizations, but nearly all cultures have different names for constellations. For example, the Greek called the large constellation Orion which means hunter and is prominent in the night sky all over the world in winter. Early Filipinos visualized the same group of stars as Balatik, a trap used in hunting wild pigs. Christian Filipinos named the three stars (at Orion’s belt) Tatlong Maria or Tres Marias.

Do you see the

hunter?

This is how the

constellation looks like

Orion: The

Hunter

Orion: The

Hunter

Betelgeuse

Rigel

Tatlong Maria

The POLARISPolaris, commonly known as the North Star,

is the brightest star in the constellation Ursa Minor (Little Dipper). It is very close to the North Celestial Pole, making it the current northern pole star.

Polaris stands almost motionless in the sky and all the stars of the Northern sky appear to rotate around it.

In the Philippines, to locate Polaris, face North and locate the Big Dipper. Two stars (Merak and Dubhe) in the Big Dipper are called pointer stars because they seem to point to Polaris.

We see different star patterns through the yearWhile the rotation of the Earth on its axis

caused the apparent nightly movement of the stars across the sky , the revolution is responsible for the fact that we can see different parts of the sky at different parts of the year.

An observer from Earth will be able to see the stars on the night side. The stars on the same side as the sun cannot be seen because sunlight overpowers all the starlights.

During summer, in the Philippines, the constellations of Orion and Taurus are not visible at night. They will be visible again as the cold season begin. During that time, Scorpius will not be seen in the night sky.

As the Earth revolves around its orbit, the stars that were concealed by the bright light of the Sun in the previous months will appear in the night sky.

Examples of Constellations

What form

do you see?

Do you see a bull?

Taurus: The Bull

Taurus: The Bull

Aldebaran

Pleiades (star cluster, made up of seven stars)

What form do you see?

Do you see a

scorpion?

Scorpius: The

Scorpion

Scorpius: The

Scorpion

What form do you see?

Do you see a

woman?

Virgo: The

Maiden

Virgo: The

Maiden

What do you see?

Do you see a

horse?

Pegasus: The

Winged Horse

Pegasus: The

Winged Horse

Suggested Additional Teaching/ Instructional ToolDownload “Stellarium” at www.stellarium.org

this software renders a 3D photo-realistic skies in real time with OpenGL. It displays stars, constellations, planets, nebulae and others things like ground, landscape, atmosphere, etc.

Tip: Identify the type of software in your PC (e.g.: Linux, Windows 32 bit, Windows 64 bit, etc.) for an efficient and faster download.

STAR PATTERNS IN THE PHILIPPINES

(Manila Night Sky)

CONSTELLATION SEEN IN MANILA (March Night Sky 9 PM)

CONSTELLATION SEEN IN MANILA (June Night Sky 9 PM)

CONSTELLATION SEEN IN MANILA (September Night Sky 9 PM)

CONSTELLATION SEEN IN MANILA (December Night Sky 9 PM)

Suggested VideosPictures in the sky: the origin and history of

the constellations ( a conference with Dr. Ian Ridpath of the Royal Society of Science; it shows the description of some known constellation along with a brief history/ mythology about it)http://youtu.be/nZm-QaKqS-Y

HOW EARLY PEOPLE USED THE CONSTELLATIONS

The first use for constellations was probably religious. People thought that the gods lived in the heavens and that they created them. Many cultures believed that the positions of the stars were their God's way of telling stories. So it seemed natural to recognize patterns in the sky, give them names, and tell stories about them. We inherited the names for our constellations from the Greeks. And they named the constellations after their mythological heroes and legends. So behind every constellation there is a story. For example, to the ancient Greeks, Orion was a great hunter. He was the son of Neptune (god of the sea). But the same stars were considered to depict Osiris by the Egyptians. Each different culture developed their own interpretation.

While constellations were associated with religion, they also have practical uses. Before the calendars, people had no way of determining when to sow or harvest except by looking at these patterns in the sky. Ancient people developed a way to remember the patterns by giving them names and stories.

For example, in the northern hemisphere, the constellation Orion indicates the coming of cold season. The constellations made it easier for them to recognize and interpret patterns in the sky. For example, Gemini is seen in the Philippines during the months of April and May. Farmers interpreted the appearance of Gemini as the end of the planting season and it signified rich harvest.

GEMINI

Table 1: Stars and Constellations Used by Matigsalug Manobo of Bukidnon

Local Name Month of Appearance

Related Agricultural

Activity

Western Equivalent

Baha December to February

Learing of forest

Taurus

Pandarawa January Start of planting what kind of crops to be planted

Pleiades

Balatik February Start of planting and setting of traps to protect the crops from animals

Orion’s Belt

Local Name Month of Appearance

Related Agricultural Activity

Western Equivalent

Malihe March Planting of rice, corn or vegetables

Gibbang April and May End of planting season; signifies rice harvest

Gemini

Malara May Stop planting Canis MinorLepu Late May Time to clean

or clear the fields while waiting for harvest time

Aquila

Buwaya June Start of rainy season

Illustration of constellation used by Matigsalug Manobo of Bukidnon

Taurus (Baha) Pleiades (Pandarawa)

Orion’s Belt (Baha) Gemini (Gibbang)

Canis Minor (Malara) Aquila (Lepu)

Another use of constellations was in navigation. The Polaris is widely used in navigation because it does not change its position at any time of the night or year. Also, one can figure out his/her latitude just by looking at how high Polaris appears in the night sky. This allowed sailors to find their way as they sail across the seas.

The constellations are used today by astronomers to determine the location and name of the stars. When astronomers go to conferences they like to share their research with others. And usually they will want to tell someone which stars or objects they may be looking at. If they just give the coordinates (numbers) the other person is not likely to have an immediate idea of where the star is located in the sky. But if you say that the star's name is Alpha Tau then you will know that is the brightest star in the Taurus constellation. The stars are named based on the constellation they are in (all stars are in some constellation). The naming goes from brightest to dimmest star and is designated by the Greek alphabet. For example Beta Ori is the second brightest star in Orion (also called Rigel).

The ZodiacThe sun, the moon, and the planets travel on a

set path through the sky known as the ecliptic as the Earth rotates. The list of 13 constellations they pass through are known as the stars of the Zodiac. The Zodiac constellations' names are:1. Capricorn 6. Cancer 11. Ophiuchus2. Aquarius 7. Leo 12. Sagittarius3. Aries 8. Virgo4. Taurus 9. Libra5. Gemini 10. Scorpio

In astronomy, the zodiacal constellations are a convenient way of marking the ecliptic (the Sun's path across the sky) and the path of the moon and planets along the ecliptic. Modern astronomy still uses tropical coordinates for predicting the positions the Sun, Moon, and planets, except longitude in the ecliptic coordinate system is numbered from 0° to 360°, not 0° to 30° within each sign.

Astrologers use 12 of these constellations as signs of the Zodiac, omitting Ophiuchus, to make predictions. [Unlike astronomy, astrology is not a science. Signs differ from constellations, bearing only a loose reference to one another. The sign of Pisces, for instance, corresponds to the rise of the constellation of Aquarius. Ironically, if you are born under a particular sign, that constellation it is named for is not visible at night. Instead, the sun is passing through it around that time of year, making it a daytime constellation that can't be seen. 

Capricorn Aquarius

Sagitarrius Pisces

Sagitarrius

Aries Cancer

Leo Ophiuchus