Snake (constellation): what time of year is better to observe, description and photo

The snake refers to equatorial constellations. Contains 106 bright stars, visible even to the unaided eye. Occupies an area of 636.9 square degrees in the sky. This is the only constellation that is divided into 2 parts: the "head" and "tail" of the Serpent.

Constellation Snake: at what time of year is it best to observe?

Asterism is seen throughout the year. But for a full observation of the object it is necessary to know at what time it is better to observe the constellation of the Serpent. According to astronomical sources, the most successful hour falls on the summer months. The optimal period is July and August. The constellation is visible throughout the Russian Federation.

On a moonless and clear night, both parts of the constellation are visible above the southern part of the horizon. The brightest stars form a winding, long chain, which is clearly visible to the observer - this is the desired asterism of the Serpent. The constellation contains many beautiful objects (according to astronomers), but only 60 of them are visible in the night sky.

About ten of them are less than the fourth and third stellar magnitude. The remaining objects Snakes are invisible to the human eye. Other stars can be seen only with the aid of a telescope.

In order to find the constellation Snake, you will need to find Ophiuchus. It is formed in the form of an irregular shape of a circle and it is easy to detect, starting from the neighboring constellations - Scorpio and Hercules.

History of the constellation

The snake was first discovered and combined into a star group by astronomer Ptolemy in the 2nd century BC. After some time, he brought it to the star catalog "Almagest". Scientists of antiquity have done a great job of classifying and defining constellations, including the asterism of the Serpent. The constellation underwent a number of modifications in the course of history.

The first mention of this group of stars is noted in ancient times. At one time stood out as a separate Snake. The constellation at that time was considered an integral part of asterism Ophiuchus. It was finally allocated to a separate constellation only in 1922.

Nearest neighbors

The constellation is divided into two unrelated parts: the head (the western) and the tail (eastern) of the Serpent, divided by the asterism of Ophiuchus. To find it easier to navigate through neighboring objects.

The Snake's head borders on Bootes, Virgo, Libra, Hercules, Northern Crown and Ophiuchus. And the nearest neighbors of the tail are Sagittarius, Shield, Ophiuchus and Eagle.

Legend

The constellation of snakes and asterism of Ophiuchus are united by a common legend. The history of the appearance of their names is connected with the God of healing - Asclepius.

The legend says that Asclepius was the son of Coronides and Apollo. In infancy, he was given to the education of the centaur Chiron. He taught him various sciences, including medicine. When Asclepius grew up, Chiron gave him all the secrets of healing with the use of snake venom.

Having achieved mastery in the treatment of people, he decided to learn how to resurrect the dead. To help him came Athena and gave the blood of Gorgon Medusa. She had miraculous power, resurrected the dead. Asklepiy, taking advantage of the gift, returned several people to the living world. For which they were very angry with Hades and Zeus, because only they disposed of people's lives.

The Thunderer, from rage, struck him with lightning and carried him to heaven in the guise of the constellation Ophiuchus. In the edification of Asclepius was entrusted to become the patron of all doctors - the god of medicine.

The ancient Greeks depicted Asclepius in the form of a bearded God who held a rod in his hand with a snake wrapped around him. It was from here subsequently appeared the symbol of medicine - a snake, wrapping the bowl. Further, the constellation "air Serpent" became a symbol in modern medicine.

Visible and "invisible" objects of asterism

The snake is a very bright constellation. However, there are no stars of the first magnitude in it. Alpha is the brightest star. It is a triple formation. Two of them have their own names. The first is known as Unukalnai. In translation - the "neck" of the Serpent, and the second as the Cor Serpentis - the "heart" of the Serpent.

The main of the three is the orange giant. In terms of brightness, our luminary exceeds 70 times. The object is located at a distance from the Earth 73.2 light years.

This is the second brightest star. It is an orange giant, has a satellite. This twin star is located at a distance of 61.8 light years from us. The Chinese name of the luminary - Tang has its original name in honor of the famous Chinese family Tan.

Muy Snake or Leiolepis (smooth or scaly) is considered the third brightest star. This is a white dwarf . The object is located approximately 156 light-years from Earth.

The Copper Serpent of Moses

Xie is a composite star of the constellation Snake. It is known as Nehushtan. This name is identified with the brazen serpent of Moses. The main component is the giant yellow color. It consists of a spectral-binary star and has a weak satellite of the 13th stellar magnitude.

Beta constellation The snake is a multi-star system consisting of a satellite and one white dwarf. The distance from Earth to the star is about 153 light years. Interestingly, beta refers to the shifting group of stars of the Big Dipper.

The delta consists of two pair stars and is about 210 light-years away. Received the name Chin in honor of the Chinese Jing Dynasty. The main object is the white-yellow sub-gigant. By its classification, it is a variable star delta Shield. The dim satellite is represented by a sub-class F-class.

Gamma is a yellow-and-white dwarf, known as the "eye" of Snake - Ainalhai. It is noteworthy that the star has two optical satellites.

Epsilon or "good" Snake Nulla Pambu is a white dwarf. It is about 70.3 light years from the Earth.

Theta constellation or Alya - "sheep's tail", displays the completion of the "tail" of the Serpent. The object is a multi-star system and is located at a distance of 132 light years from our Earth. It is noteworthy that the two main components are white dwarfs, and the third star belongs to the G-type.

Kappa is a red giant with a star magnitude of 4.09. The object is located at a distance of 348 light years.

Nebulae and congestion in the constellation Snake

The Eagle Nebula, it is also "Monsieur 16" - a fairly young star cluster. Its shape resembles something similar to a bird. The congregation contains the famous "Pillars of Creation" area. This is a fairly large star-forming region, similar to the "Mountains of Creation", located in the constellation Cassiopeia.

The Eagle Nebula is considered part of the IC 4703 emission nebula. The constellation Snake (pictured below) is saturated with various similar nebulae. It is an active region of star formation. It is about 6,500 light-years from our Sun.

"Monsieur 5" is a globular cluster at a diametral size of 165 light years. Well visible in the sky with the naked eye in the form of a dim star. "Monsieur 5" is considered to be one of the largest globular clusters ever discovered. The brightest stars in the cluster have a luminosity value of 12.2.

The cluster contains more than a hundred variable stars. NGC 5904 - refers to one of the ancient clusters of the Milky Way. According to scientists, the age of "Monsieur 5" is equal to 13 billion years.

Also here is the MWC 922, known as the Red Square Nebula. This symmetrical bipolar region contains a series of hot stars. Forms the shape of an ideal square. The nebula is not far from Monsieur 16.

Conclusion

In the course of history, astronomers have united the stars into groups and called them constellations. For today, there are eighty-eight constellations.

Perhaps the Serpent's asterism is not the most significant object. But it belongs to part of the whole mosaic of the starry sky and creates a holistic picture of the cosmos that we see.