Boötes Notable Features Notable Deep Sky Objects Mythology

Boötes, the herdsman, is one of the 88 modern 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 and was also one of the 48 constellations 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. It contains the fourth brightest star100 Brightest stars as seen from Earth (by apparent magnitude). The exact order of this list is not completely well defined: Double stars here are treated individually while other lists may combine their brightness. Statistical variations in measured valu in the night sky, Arcturus.

1 Notable features

The name Arcturus, the alpha star of Boötes, means bear driver. It is a zero magnitude red giant and is the fourth brightest star as seen from Earth in the night sky. It is one of the vertices of the Spring Triangle, the other two being Spica (α Virginis) and Denebola (β Leonis).

Izar (ε Boo), having an apparent magnitude of 2.7, is the third brightest star in the constellation. It is actually a binary star and has a companion of 5.12^m.

τ Boötis is known to be orbited by a planet.

The meteor shower Quadrantids within this constellation is named after the defunct constellation Quadrans Muralis (which is now a part of Boötes).

2 Notable deep sky objects

NGC 5466 is a loose globular cluster that can be observed with most telescopes. It was discovered by William Herschel on May 17, 1784.

3 Mythology

Exactly whom Boötes is supposed to represent is not clear. According to one version, he was a ploughman who drove the oxen in the constellation Ursa Major using his two dogs Chara and Asterion (from the constellation Canes Venatici). The oxen were tied to the polar axis and so the action of Boötes kept the heavens in constant rotation.

Boötes was also supposed to have invented the plough. This is said to have greatly pleased Ceres, the goddess of agriculture who asked Jupiter to give Boötes a permanent fixture in the heavens as a reward for doing this.

Another version portrays Boötes as a grape grower called Icarius, who one day allowed the Roman god Bacchus to inspect his vineyards. Bacchus revealed the secret of wine making to Icarius, who was so impressed by this alcoholic beverage that he invited his friends round to sample it. Having never tasted wine before, they all drank too much and woke up the next morning with terrible hangovers; and they made the mistaken assumption that Icarius had tried to poison them. It was decided that Icarius should pay the price with his own life, and he was swiftly murdered in his sleep.

Following another reading the constellation is identified with Arcas, son of Zeus and Callisto. Arcas was brought up by his maternal grandfather Lycaon, to whom one day Zeus went and had a meal. To verify that the guest was really the king of the gods, Lycaon prepared him a dish with the Arcas' meats. Zeus notice the deception and became very angry: he transformed Lycaon into a wolf and gave back life to his son. In the meantime Callisto had been transformed into a she-bear, or for work of Hera, Zeus' jealous wife, or for work of Zeus himself in order to subtract her to Hera's revenge. When he was grown up, Arcas met with the she-bear and, since obviously he didn't recognize her as his mother, he began to chase her: Callisto, followed by Arcas, sheltered herself in a temple, a sacred place whose profaners were certainly convicts to death. To avoid them such fate, Zeus decided to set his son and his lover in the sky: Arcas became Boötes and Callisto was Ursa Major.

The 88 modern Constellations

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Boötes

Abbreviation	Boo
Genitive	Boötis
Meaning in English	the Herdsman
Right ascension	15 h
Declination	30°
Visible to latitude	Between 90° and −50°
Best visible	June
Area - Total	Ranked 13th 907 sq. deg.
Number of stars with apparent magnitude < 3	3
Brightest star - Apparent magnitude	Arcturus (α Boötis) −0.04
Meteor showers	January Bootids June Bootids Quadrantids
Bordering constellations	Canes Venatici Coma Berenices Corona Borealis Draco Hercules Serpens VirgoThis article is about the constellation and astrological sign Virgo. For VIRGO, the French-Italian project in physics analogous to LIGO, see VIRGO (physics). Virgo (the virgin) is a constellation of the zodiac. Lying between Leo to the west and the Libra Ursa MajorUrsa Major is a constellation visible throughout the year in the northern hemisphere. Its name means Great Bear in Latin, and is derived from the legend of Callisto. Its seven brightest stars form a famous asterism known in North America as the Big Dipper

Home > Boötes

1 Notable features

2 Notable deep sky objects

3 Mythology

Topics: Boötes, Notable Features, Notable Deep Sky Objects, Mythology...