Major stars in Capricornus Deneb Algedi – δ Capricorni (Delta Capricorni)ĭelta Capricorni is the brightest point of light in Capricornus. Cronos had devoured his other children, all future gods and goddesses, because of a prophecy that said that he would be overthrown by one of them. In another story, Capricornus is identified as Amalthea, the goat that suckled Zeus when he was an infant, hiding from his father Cronos. In reference to the myth, Capricornus is still often depicted as a goat with the tail of a fish. Zeus eventually struck down Typhon with his thunderbolts. In the myth, Pan eluded the monster himself by jumping into the river Nile and turning the lower part of his body into that of a fish. He also suggested that gods disguise themselves as animals until the danger passed. Later, he warned the gods that Typhon, a monster sent by Gaia to fight them, was approaching. During the gods’ war with the Titans, Pan helped scare the Titans away by blowing his conch shell. Pan was placed in the sky by Zeus in gratitude for his coming to the other gods’ rescue on several occasions. Crotus, his son, is usually associated with another amphibious creature, represented by the neighboring constellation Sagittarius. The Greeks associated the constellation with the forest deity Pan, who had the legs and horns of a goat. The Sumerians knew the constellation as the goat-fish, or SUHUR-MASH-HA, while Babylonian star catalogues compiled around 1000 BCE called it Š, also meaning “goat fish.” In the early Bronze Age, Capricornus marked the winter solstice and, in modern astrology, Capricorn’s rule still begins on the first day of astronomical winter. The story of Capricornus originated with the Babylonians and Sumerians. There are five meteor showers associated with Capricornus: the Alpha Capricornids, the Chi Capricornids, the Sigma Capricornids, the Tau Capricornids, and the Capricorniden-Sagittarids.Ĭapricornus stars, image: Wikisky Capricornus mythĮven though Capricornus is one of the faintest constellations in the sky, it is associated with myths and images that date back to the 21st century BCE.
The star names approved by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) are Algedi, Alshat, Dabih, Deneb Algedi, and Nashira. The constellation contains five named stars. It is the only star in the constellation brighter than magnitude 3.00. The brightest star in Capricornus is Deneb Algedi, Delta Capricorni, with an apparent magnitude of 2.81.
The constellation is home to three stars located within 10 parsecs (32.62 light years) of the Sun. The three-letter abbreviation, adopted by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) in 1922, is Cap.Ĭapricornus belongs to the zodiac family of constellations, along with Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpius, Sagittarius, Aquarius, and Pisces.Ĭapricornus has five stars with known planets and contains one Messier object, the globular cluster M30 (NGC 7099). The genitive form of Capricornus, used in star names, is Capricorni (pronunciation: /ˌkæprɪˈkɔːrnaɪ/). In English, the constellation is known as the Sea Goat. The constellation name Capricornus is pronounced /ˌkæprɪˈkɔːrnəs/.
The best time of year to see Capricornus is during the month of September. The neighboring constellations are Aquarius, Aquila, Microscopium, Piscis Austrinus, and Sagittarius. It lies in the fourth quadrant of the southern hemisphere (SQ4) and can be seen at latitudes between +60° and -90°. Facts, location & mapĬapricornus is the 40th biggest constellation in the sky, occupying an area of 414 square degrees. Notable deep sky objects in the constellation include the globular clusters Messier 30 and Palomar 12, and the compact galaxy group HCG 87. In Greek mythology, the constellation is associated with Pan, the god of the wild, and with the goat Amalthea, who suckled Zeus when he was very young.Ĭapricornus constellation is home to the eclipsing binary system Delta Capricorni (Deneb Algedi), the multiple star systems Beta Capricorni (Dabih) and Alpha Capricorni (Algedi), and the white giant Nashira (Gamma Capricorni). Like other zodiac constellations, Capricornus was first catalogued by the Greek astronomer Claudius Ptolemy in his Almagest in the 2nd century CE. The constellation is represented by the symbol ♑. The constellation represents a sea goat, a mythical creature associated with the god Enki in Babylonian mythology and later with the Greek deity Pan.
Capricornus is a faint zodiac constellation located in the southern sky.
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