|
Antinous (now part of Aquila) was named after a
homosexual slave and lover of the Roman emperor, Hadrian, who
drowned himself in the Nile in the hope that the gods might prolong
his master's life. Cur Caroli (now Canes Venatici) commemorated the
martyrdom of Charles I. The brightest star in Canes Venatici still
bears the name ``the crowned heart of Charles.'' Another English
royal constellation was Robur Carolinum (now in Carina) representing
the Royal Oak of Charles II who supposedly hid a day and a night in
this tree after his defeat by Cromwell at the Battle of Worcester.
One possible reason for abolishing this constellation is that barely
an oak tree in England was not claimed as the king's hiding place
after the battle!
And I was surprised to learn also that, including
the 12 zodiacal constellations, the Moon passes through a total of
18, the visible planets through 24, and Pluto through no less than
41. (I'm sure that astrologers could make something of this if only
they knew it.)
It is well known that some constellations are
much richer in interesting objects than others, but Mr Bakich gives
the exact figures. The most interesting is Centaurus, with 101 stars
visible to the naked eye; and the most boring is Caelum, with only
four.
And for another way of looking at it, Hydra is
the biggest constellation, comprising 3.2 percent of the sky or
1,303 square degrees; and Crux is the smallest, with only 0.2
percent or 68 square degrees. I don't know whether these facts are
of any practical use, but reciting them might well create a
noticeable effect at a cocktail party.
So why is the star Zuben el Chamali green, the
only known star in the Universe to be so? Mr Bakich does not know.
He has contented himself with observing it and questioning other
observers of it, and they all agree about its unique colour.
But if anyone can tell me why, of 3,047 naked eye
stars, one, and only one, is green, I should be very interested to
hear. |
