The starry sky always beckons with its mystery and mystery. Many constellation names are associated with mythical characters (Cassiopeia, Perseus, Andromeda, etc.). There are clusters of stars that resemble the image of animals and birds (Peacock, Ursa Major and Minor, Hare, Snake, etc.) and even objects. Navigators who made round-the-world voyages were guided by the stars. One way or another, human life is connected with these cosmic objects, take at least the signs of the zodiac circle. Today we will talk about the constellation Bird of Paradise, which can be contemplated while in the southern hemisphere of the Earth. You can also see the Southern Cross, Compass, Peacock and other clusters of stars in this part of the world.
When the constellation was discovered
The combination of stars, which was called the "Bird of Paradise", was discovered in the 16th century by Petrus Plansius, an astronomer from Holland. While exploring the expanses of space, he was guided by research data obtained by navigators Peter Dirkzun Keizer and Frederick Houtman.
In 1603 another famousastronomer, Johann Bayer, created a star atlas called "Uranometry", which also recorded the constellation Bird of Paradise. Since this edition was so popular, many people mistakenly attributed the discovery to Bayer, although it was first identified by Petrus Plansius.
There are many constellations discovered by this Dutch astronomer, but many of them have been attributed to other scientists or canceled altogether. Among the currently existing, the most famous are the Southern Cross, the Unicorn, the Dove, the Southern Triangle, the Peacock, the Chameleon, the Southern Hydra and others. Names that have been cancelled: Pole Guard, Jordan River, Lesser Cancer, Indian, Rooster, Flying Fish, Northern Fly, Tigris River and South Arrow.
History of origin of the name
After Peter Plancius discovered this constellation in 1598, he gave it a name that sounds like Paradysvogel Apis Indica in Latin. Translated into Russian, the first word means “bird of paradise”, but an incident happened with the second phrase: it means “Indian bee”. Many scientists believe that there was an elementary mistake, since the words "apis" (bee) and "avis" (bird) are very similar in spelling.
Many names of celestial objects are closely intertwined with ancient Greek myths, but they do not include the constellation Bird of Paradise. There is still a legend about this mysterious bird: such creatures are mentioned in the beliefs of the Malay peoples. "Bird of Paradise" they called one of the species of legless birds that supposedly live in their area. According to the Malays, birdsalways soared in the sky and never made a nest. Then the question arises: “How did they breed their offspring?” The legends of this people tell that the bird of paradise carries an egg directly in the air, and by the time it reaches the ground, the embryo inside it will fully form into an adult. Having broken on the soil, the egg will release the bird, fully adapted to life. However, it is not clear how, having fallen to the ground, the legless feathered creature carried out its first flight.
Description of the stars in the constellation
The constellation Bird of Paradise has a very colorful and promising name. However, all the stars included in it are not very bright. As scientists suggest, the reason for the decrease in brightness lies in the features of their atmosphere, in which a large amount of a substance similar to soot condenses. The prerequisite for this accumulation of condensate are low temperatures and high carbon content.
All the stars of the described constellation do not have official names. Three main objects are distinguished by brightness: alpha, beta and gamma. Alpha is considered the brightest star - an orange giant that belongs to class K. The Earth is 410 light-years away from it. Today alpha is in the process of changing, turning into a white dwarf. Its dimensions are 3, 825 m.
Star gamma takes the second position. It is less bright than alpha, and is located at a distance of 160 light years from our planet. Gamma belongs to the yellow giants. Its magnitude is about 3,872 m.
Third brightest- This is a beta star, which consists of two objects: A (orange giant) and a smaller B. Their total value is 4.24 m. The binary star is 158 light-years away from Earth.
Bird of Paradise Neighbors
Since the constellation is located in the Southern Hemisphere, residents of the Northern Hemisphere cannot observe it in their latitudes. The Bird of Paradise "hovers" over the South Pole of the Earth, and you can determine it by finding the Southern Triangle in the sky. This spectacle is not available to residents of Russia, since the state is located in the Northern Hemisphere.
The area of the constellation Bird of Paradise is 206 square degrees. In terms of its dimensions, it ranks 67th among other stellar objects. The constellation's neighbors are:
- Compass.
- Chameleon.
- Southern Triangle.
- Fly.
- Altar.
- Octane.
- Peacock.
How to find the Bird of Paradise in the sky
In the Southern Hemisphere you can clearly see the constellation Bird of Paradise when the sky is not overcast. In total, it consists of 20 stars visible to the naked eye.
The constellation is not so bright, so it is best seen in the winter. At this time at night, the Bird of Paradise moves across the starry sky towards the western meridian. To the right of it, you can see the Peacock alpha, which is called Peacock, a little lower to the right is the Southern Triangle alpha.
