Endless space has always been of particular interest to people of all ages. Stars have been and remain the main object of study and observation. Billions of small planets forming whole systems attract the eyes of the inquisitive. Looking at the night sky and fantasizing, thousands of years ago people saw the outlines of animals in the stars and gave them names. They believed that the sun and planets are gods who, with the help of luminaries, give signs to earthly inhabitants. And it was indisputable that there is a connection between the stars, the Universe and the Earth. Since ancient times, people have learned to guess and predict by the stars. Then such sciences as astrology (prediction by stars) and astronomy (study of stars) were born.
Constellations
Studying the stars has become an exciting pastime for people. In order to navigate in this vast outer space, the celestial sphere was divided into sections, which are constellations. Each was assigned a name. In ancient times, clusters of stars were given the names of the gods and the names of the animals they resembled. To date, internationalThe astronomical union officially recognizes 88 constellations. The most famous groups of stars in the southern hemisphere are Libra, the Southern Cross and the Centaur. Famous clusters of stars in the northern hemisphere: Cassiopeia, Ursa Major and the constellation Pegasus. A photo of the latter, bewitching with its beauty, can be seen in the article.
Winged horse in the night sky
In the northern hemisphere of the night sky, you can see with the naked eye 166 stars that make up the constellation Pegasus. Next to him are Aquarius, Dolphin, Andromeda, Chanterelles, Pisces, Lizard, Small Horse and Swan. The area occupied by this cluster of stars is 1120 square degrees. This puts the constellation Pegasus in 7th place among all existing ones. For residents of the Northern Hemisphere, the winged horse looks upside down. And therefore, this is how the Pegasus scheme was depicted in ancient atlases. In order to be able to see the image of a horse from the stars, you need to have an extremely developed imagination. Many try to go tricky by photographing the constellation Pegasus, a photo of which, for a person with little imagination, will still show nothing but a cluster of stars.
How to find the constellation?
If you have knowledge of astronomy and experience in observing the stars, then you should know about the constellation Andromeda and how it looks. Focusing on the chain of stars of this constellation, move your eyes to the west. Look carefully. And behind the stars of Andromeda you will see the constellation Pegasus. Another way to find a wingedthe horse is to be guided by the Northern Cross, the stars of which border on it.
The most favorable time to observe Pegasus is autumn and late summer. For people with little experience and knowledge, it will not be difficult to find him on the Great Square of Pegasus.
Interesting facts about the winged horse constellation
All stars in the constellation Pegasus are related to the horse. Their names are derived from Arabic. So Enif in translation means "nose", Sheat - "shoulder", Markab - "saddle" or "carriage", Algenib - "horse navel". The brightest luminaries (Enif, Sheat and Markab) form the Great Square of Pegasus. Actually, this constellation can be found by anyone.
The constellation Pegasus has a distinctive feature: it lacks the star Delta Pegasus. Until 1928, this star, located between Andromeda and Pegasus, belonged to a winged horse. But later it began to be attributed to Andromeda, so Delta Pegasus became Alpha Andromeda.
An interesting fact is that in the constellation there is a source of the Pegasid meteor shower, as well as several galaxies, among which NGC 73331. This is a Seyfert spiral galaxy, the image of which is most often used to represent the appearance of our Galaxy.
Myths and legends about Pegasus
There is more than one legend about the constellation Pegasus. In Greek mythology, Pegasus is a snow-white winged horse born from Poseidon and the Gorgon Medusa. After his birth, he began to faithfully serveZeus, constantly bringing him lightning and thunder. Also, winged horses were used by mere mortals, who were gifted by the gods. These beautiful and strong animals served their masters until they died.
According to another version, Pegasus appeared from the blood of Medusa, killed by Perseus.
Another legend about the constellation Pegasus tells that, walking along Helikon, a winged horse hit the rock with his hoof. And from this rock arose the source of Hippocrene (in translation - "the source of the horse"). Anyone who drank water from such a source received inspiration. For this, Pegasus was nicknamed the “Horse of the Muses.”
According to another myth, the gods gave a winged horse to the Greek hero Bellerophon. He, having managed to saddle Pegasus, took to the air on it and defeated the chimera with arrows - a terrible monster with the head of a lion, the body of a goat and the tail of a dragon.
For the fact that Pegasus served faithfully, the gods raised him to the constellations, forever leaving the image of a winged horse in the sky.
