Constellation: Difference between revisions

[[Image:Big Dipper.jpg|thumb|left|150px|Big Dipper clearly defined]]

Also, constellations are often used to find other constellations or stars of importance. One famous example of this is finding the North Star by examining the Big Dipper and Little Dipper. First one must locate the two stars that form the outer edge of the Big Dipper, then draw an imaginary line straight through the two stars of the dipper edge toward the Little Dipper. The line will point very close to the handle of the Little Dipper; the brightest star in the Little Dipper is at the end of its handle. This is the North Star.  

Constellations have been around for a very long time. People kept track of constellations long before telescopes existed. In fact, a telescope is not at all necessary to view constellations because they were designed to be able to see with the naked eye. It is thought that the process of naming and identifying constellations was originated by farmers long ago. They followed seasonal constellations to help them know when the right time was to plant or reap their crops.

Interestingly though, almost every ancient civilization has kept records of constellations, but many of the constellations have been given very similar names, or represented very similar figures. These were recorded thousands of years ago; long before communication would have allowed for civilizations scattered across the globe to have shared ideas or thoughts however. One hypothesis by Jonathan Henry, is that much like the story of a world wide flood is found in almost every culture, the shapes and figures of constellations of stars are very congruent as well. He thinks this is because of the fact that when the people of Babel spread out their separate ways, they took popular beliefs or ideas with them. If when people dispersed from Babel, they took their ideas about constellations with them, it would explain why so many cultures around the world shared the same thoughts before communication between continents was a reality. <ref> [http://creation.com/images/pdfs/tj/j22_3/j22_3_93-100.pdf Constellations: legacy of the dispersion from Babel] </ref>

The Zodiac is a ring of constellations that is directly in line with where the sun "passes" over the earth during the year. Or more accurately, where the earth rotates so that it ''appears'' that the sun is moving, when really it is the earth ''orbiting''. This band is broken up into twelve parts, which are visible at different times throughout the year. Each Zodiac is 30⁰ of spherical rotation throughout the year. So all twelve of them put together make up one year, with a different Zodiac for each month. For this reason, they were used in ancient times as a sort of calendar to keep track of the months. Especially in more mild climates where the summers and winters are hardly distinguishable. The twelve signs of the Zodiac are: Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Serpentarius, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Awuarius, and Pisces. <ref> [http://www.astrology.com.au/12signs/index.asp The 12 Signs of the Zodiac] </ref>

There are currently 88 official constellations as defined by the International Astronomical Union. Listed in Alphabetical order they are:<ref> [http://www.cosmobrain.com/cosmobrain/res/constellations.html Constellations- The Official List of Constellations] </ref>