Constellation Ursa Minor - decoration of the northern sky

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

The constellation Ursa Minor contains only twenty-five stars that can be seen with the naked eye. It does not contain particularly bright galaxies or nebulae, nor does it contain any clusters. The main distinguishing feature of the constellation Ursa Minor is not the presence of such things, but the fact that it can be easily seen at any time of the year.

In the astrology of the Sumerians, Assyrians and Babylonians, it was called the "Sun of Libra Anu", or "Heavenly Scales". In Greek mythology, Ursa Minor is a constellation associated with the nymph Callisto. According to the Greek scientist Ptolemy, his stars are like Venus in their "influence" and, to some extent, Saturn.

Speaking of Greek myths, one cannot fail to mention the connection between such a celestial element as the constellation Ursa Minor and the legend of the birth of the god Zeus. Goddess-Earth Gaia, saving her son from his father Kronos, who devoured his own children, took little Zeus to Mount Ida. There, in the sacred cave, Gaia lefthim in the care of the nymphs Melissa and Kinosura. In gratitude for this, having become the Supreme God and an Olympian, the Thunderer raised Melissa to heaven in the form of Ursa Major, and Kinosura in the form of Ursa Minor. On ancient Greek maps Ursa Minor is called Kinosura.

The constellation Ursa Minor is associated with its "big brother" - Ursa Major. They are known for their interesting star patterns (the so-called ladles). It was the Big and Small Buckets that have been used in navigation since ancient times. In southern latitudes, the north pole is quite "tilted". Therefore, the North Star, which marks the tip of the tail of Ursa Minor, will be very low, right near the horizon.

The excellent mosaic of such a celestial wonder as the constellation Ursa Minor is dominated by several bright stars - Kokhab (also called Beta Ursa), which is visible on the right side, and the North Star on the left, at the tip of the handle of the Little Dipper, pointing to north pole.

Another interesting attraction is the Small Hanger asterism. This is a kind of reduced copy of another asterism called simply Hanger (located in the constellation Chanterelles). Another asterism of this constellation is the Diamond Ring. The stars form a kind of ring around the North Star.

The constellation Ursa Minor and its nebulae are hundreds of light-years away from our planet Earth. The same distance - and to the North Pole Starpeace. Thin clouds of gas and dust are illuminated by all the stars in our galaxy at once, and not by any particular single star.

This constellation is quite small, it does not have any huge emission nebulae or dusty dark clouds, as this constellation is located on the outskirts of the Milky Way, away from most others. Nevertheless, very thin veil-like gas and dust accumulations and nebulae permeate it. It is very difficult to see them, and, unfortunately, it is almost impossible to get a high-quality picture of the starry sky with the image of these clusters.