Aquila (constellation) Notable Features Notable Deep sky Objects

Aquila is one of the 48 constellationOrion is a remarkable constellation, visible from most places on the globe (but not always the whole year long). A constellation is a group of stars visibly related to each other in a particular configuration. In three-dimensional space, most of the starss listed by PtolemyThis article is about the geographer and astronomer Ptolemy. For Alexander the Great's general, see Ptolemy I of Egypt. For others, see Ptolemy (disambiguation). Claudius Ptolemaeus (Greek: Klaudios Ptolemaios; A. circa 85 circa 165), known in English as and is now also part of the list of 88 constellations acknowledged by the IAU. It lies roughly at the celestial equatorThe celestial equator is a great circle on the imaginary celestial sphere, which could be constructed by inflating the Earth's equator until it intersects with said sphere. The celestial equator is inclined by ~23. 5°, with respect to the ecliptic plane;. The alpha star, Altair, is a vertexIn geometry, a vertex ( Latin: whirl, whirlpool; plural vertices is a corner of a polygon (where two sides meet) or of a polyhedron (where three or more faces and an equal number of edges meet). In graph theory, a graph describes a set of connections betw of the so-called " Summer Triangle".

1 Notable features

Aquila, which lies in the Milky Way, contains many rich starfields.

α Aql: also known as Altair ( ar. flying) this multiple star system (3 components) has 0.77m and is of spectral type A7 V.
β Aql (Alshain): its spectral type is G8 IV and it shines with an apparent brightness of 3.71m. Like Altair, it too is a multiple star system with three components.
γ Aql (Tarazed): spectral type K3 II; 2.72m
η Aql: This variable star is one of the brightest classical Cepheids; its brightness varies between 3.48 mag and 4.39 mag every 7.177 days.
15 Aql: This double star is a yellow K star of 5.4 mag accompanied by a 7th mag star; it can easily be observed with small telescopes.

2 Notable deep-sky objects

Two interesting planetary nebulae lie in Aquila:

NGC 6803 shows a small but bright ring
NGC 6781 which bears some resemblance with the Owl Nebula in Ursa Major.

More deep-sky objects:

NGC 6709: an open cluster of 6.7m
NGC 6755: an open cluster of 7.5m
NGC 6760: a globular cluster of 9.1m

3 History

Two major novae have been observed in Aquila; the first one was in 389 BC and was recorded to be as bright as Venus, the other shone brighter than Altair.

4 Mythology

Aquila is Latin and means eagle. The constellation is said to represent the eagle which, in classical Greek mythology, carried the thunderbolts of Zeus and was sent by him to carry the shepherd boy Ganymede, represented by the neighbouring Aquarius, to Mount Olympus where he became the wine-pourer for all the gods. This explains why the largest moon of Jupiter was called Ganymede, Jupiter being the Roman name of Zeus.

This constellation was also known as Vultur volans to the Romans, not to be confused with Vultur cadens which was the Romans' name for what is now known as Lyra.

Aquila also represents one of the Stymphalian Birds killed by the Greek hero Heracles during his Sixth Labour.

In the Chinese love story of Qi Qiao Jie, Niu Lang ( Altair) and his two children (Aquila -β and -γ) are separated forever from their mother Zhi Nu ( Vega) who is on the far side of the river, the Milky Way.

The 88 modern Constellations

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Aquila

Abbreviation	Aql
Genitive	Aquilae
Meaning in English	the Eagle
Right ascension	20 h
Declination	+5°
Visible to latitude	Between +85° and - 75°
On meridian	July
Area - Total	Ranked 22nd 652 sq. deg.
Number of stars with apparent magnitude < 3	3
Brightest star - Apparent magnitude	Altair (α Aquilae) 0.77
Meteor showers	June Aquilids Epsilon Aquilids
Bordering constellations	Sagitta Hercules Ophiuchus Serpens Scutum Sagittarius CapricornusCapricornus Abbreviation Cap Genitive Capricorni Meaning in English the Goat or Sea-Goat Right ascension 21 h Declination minus;20° Visible to latitude Between 60° and −90° Best visible September Area Total Ranked 40th414 sq. Number of stars with ap AquariusThis article is about the constellation. For other meanings see Aquarius (disambiguation Aquarius the water bearer, is one of the oldest recognized constellations along the zodiac, the sun's apparent path. It is found in a region often called the Sea due DelphinusThere are other meanings of Delphinus Delphinus the Dolphin, is a rather small (ranked 69th) northern constellation very close to the celestial equator. It was already included in Ptolemy's list of 48 constellations and also forms part of the modern list

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