Transcript File
Draco THIS NOT THIS Mrs. Joyce Legend • The constellation represents Ladon, the dragon that guarded the golden apples in the gardens of the Hesperides in Greek mythology. • The golden apple tree was a wedding present to Hera when she married Zeus. She planted the tree in her garden on Mount Atlas and tasked Atlas’ daughters, the Hesperides, with guarding it. She also placed the dragon Ladon around the tree so that the Hesperides would not pick any apples from it. • As part of his 12 labours, Hercules was asked to steal some golden apples from the tree. He killed Ladon with his poisoned arrows and took the apples. Saddened by the dragon’s death, Hera placed its image in the sky among the constellations. Draco is usually depicted coiled around the North Pole, with one foot of Hercules on its head. • In some versions of the myth, Ladon had a hundred heads and was the child of the monster Typhon and Echidna, who was half woman and half serpent. In others, he was the offspring of two sea deities, Ceto and Phorcys. • In Roman mythology, Draco was one of the Giant Titans who warred with the Olympian gods for ten years. He was killed in battle by the goddess Minerva and thrown into the sky, where it froze around the North Pole. Discovery • Draco was first catalogued by the Greek astronomer Ptolemy in the 2nd century. • It is a circumpolar constellation; it never sets below the horizon for many observers in the northern hemisphere. Major & Minor Stars • Etamin (Eltanin) – γ Draconis (Gamma Draconis) – The brightest star – It is sometimes known as the Zenith Star because it lies close to the zenith point directly overhead in London. • Aldibain – η Draconis (Eta Draconis) – Second brightest star (60 times the sun) • Rastaban – β Draconis (Beta Draconis) – third brightest star • Altais – δ Draconis (Delta Draconis) – Fourth brightest star • Aldhibah – ζ Draconis (Zeta Draconis) – Fifth brightest star • • • • • • • • • • • • Edasich – ι Draconis (Iota Draconis) – In 2002, was the first planet discovered to orbit a giant star. Batentaban Borealis – χ Draconis (Chi Draconis) – Spectroscopic binary stars Batentaban Australis – φ Draconis (Phi Draconis) Thuban – α Draconis (Alpha Draconis) – It was the North Pole star from 3942 to 1793 BC. Grumium – ξ Draconis (Xi Draconis), Gianfar (Giausar) – λ Draconis (Lambda Draconis), Tyl – ε Draconis (Epsilon Draconis), Shǎowèi – κ Draconis (Kappa Draconis), θ Draconis (Theta Draconis) Draconis (Omicron Draconis) – The north pole star of Mercury. Alsafi – σ Draconis (Sigma Draconis), 42 Draconis, Kuma – ν Draconis (Nu Draconis), Arrakis – μ Draconis (Mu Draconis) 26 Draconis – A triple star system composed of a spectroscopic double star BY Draconis – Variable stars with starspotsand rapid rotation Struve 2398 – HD 173739/HD 173740 (Gliese 725) – They are a known source of x-rays. Kepler-10 – It was the first star identified by the Kepler spacecraft as a possible host to a small transiting exoplanet. The star has at least two planets in its system. GD 356 • • • DEEP SKY OBJECTS Cat’s Eye Nebula – NGC 6543 (Caldwell 6) – Most complex nebulae ever discovered. It was formed about a thousand years ago, when a bright hot star lost its outer envelope in the red giant phase. The central star is suspected to be a binary star. As a result of a strong stellar wind, it is losing about 20 trillion tons of mass per second and is currently believed to be only slightly more massive than the Sun. Spindle Galaxy – Messier 102 – NGC 5866 – The galaxy is notable for its extended disk of dust, seen exactly edge-on. The disk, which might contain a ring-like structure, is an unusual feature for a lenticular galaxy. The galaxy might also be a spiral galaxy, in which case the dust disk would not be unusual. Draco Dwarf Galaxy – The galaxy is believed to contain large amounts of dark matter. • Abell 2218 – • Tadpole Galaxy – Arp 188 – • A spiral galaxy NGC 4319 & NGC 4236 – • A quasar NGC 6340 & NGC 5879 – • The Tadpole Galaxy is a disrupted (collided) barred spiral galaxy in Draco believed to be a result of gravitational interaction with a smaller, more compact galaxy, which drew out the stars, dust and gas out of the main body of Arp 188. Q1634+706 – • Abell 2218 is a galaxy cluster containing thousands of galaxies (mass equal to 10,000 galaxies). The cluster was used as a gravitational lens to find the most distant known object in the universe, a 13 billion year-old galaxy that is seen from Earth as it appeared only 750 million years after the Big Bang. A barred spiral galaxy NGC 6503 & PGC 39058 – A dwarf galaxy Where • It lies in the third quadrant of the northern hemisphere (NQ3) and can be seen at latitudes between +90° and -15°. Facts • Draco is the eighth largest constellation in the night sky, occupying an area of 1083 square degrees. • Draco constellation lies in the northern sky. Its name means “the dragon” in Latin. • There is one meteor shower associated with the constellation; the Draconids. My Constellation - Nyx Constellation Nyx- Legend • Along time ago, when fairies roamed the forests, they had a brave leader named Nyx. She had the power of the night to protect nature and all those around her. Then one day an army came and she was slain trying to save an old willow tree. Gaia, Mother Nature, showed her love for her earth daughter by placing her up in the night sky where everyone can remember her bravery and love for the natural world.