Taurus (Latin for " Bull ") is one of the constellations of the zodiac, which means it is crossed by the ecliptic plane. Taurus is a large and prominent constellation in the northern hemisphere winter sky. This is one of the oldest constellations, derived from at least the Early Bronze Age when marking the location of the Sun during the spring turning point. The importance of the agricultural calendar affects various bull figures in Ancient Sumerian mythology, Akkad, Assyria, Babylonia, Egypt, Greece, and Rome.
A number of features are of interest to astronomers. Taurus has two closest open clusters to Earth, Pleiades and Hyades, both visible to the naked eye. At first magnitude, red giant aldebaran is the brightest star in the constellation. In the northwestern part of Taurus is the rest of the Messier 1 supernova, better known as Crab Nebula. One of the closest regions of the active star formation, the Taurus-Auriga complex, crosses to the northern constellation. Tauri's variable star is a prototype of pre-main-sequence star class.
Video Taurus (constellation)
Characteristics
Taurus is a large and prominent constellation in the northern hemisphere winter sky, between Aries to the west and Gemini to the east; to the north lies Perseus and Auriga, to the southeast of Orion, to southern Eridanus, and to the southwestern Cetus. In September and October, Taurus is seen at night along the eastern horizon. The best time to observe Taurus in the night sky is during December and January. In March and April, the constellations will appear west during the twilight.
This constellation forms part of the zodiac and therefore intersects with the ecliptic. This circle crosses heavenly spheres forming a clear path from the Sun when the Earth completes its annual orbit. As the orbits of the Moon and planets lie near the ecliptic, they can usually be found in the constellations of Taurus stars for several parts each year. The Milky Way galaxy crosses the northeast corner of the constellations and the galactic anticenter lies near the border between Taurus and Auriga. Taurus is the only constellation crossed by the three galaxy equatores, the celestial equator, and the ecliptic. The structure of a ring-like galaxy known as the Belt Gould over constellation.
The recommended three-letter abbreviation for the constellation, as adopted by the International Astronomical Union in 1922, is "Tau". The boundaries of the official constellation, as determined by EugÃÆ'¨ne Delporte in 1930, are determined by polygons of 26 segments. In the equatorial coordinate system, the coordinates of the right elevation of these boundaries are between 03 h 23,4 m and 05 h 53,3 m , while the declination coordinate is between 31.10 Â ° and -1.35 Â °. Since a small portion of the constellation lies south of the celestial equator, it can not be a fully circumpolar constellation at any latitude.
Maps Taurus (constellation)
Features
During November, Taurid meteor shower seemed to emanate from the general direction of this constellation. Taurid Beta meteor showers occur during June and July during the day, and are usually observed using radio techniques. Between 18 and 29 October, both North Taurid and South Taurid were active; although the latter flow is stronger. However, between November 1 and 10, the two streams equate.
The brightest member of this constellation is Aldebaran, the giant star K5Ã, III which is orange and colored. Its name comes from ??????? al-dabar? N , Arabic for "followers", probably from the fact that he followed the Pleiades during the night movement of celestial balls in the sky. Forming a Bull face profile is V or K -form stars stars. This outline was made by prominent members of Hyades, the closest open star cluster after the Main Group Ursa Moving. In this profile, Aldebaran forms the bull's red eye, which has been described as "strikingly threatening in Orion Hunters", a constellation located just to the southwest. The Hyades span about 5 Â ° from the sky, so they can only be viewed as a whole with binoculars or the naked eye. This includes the double star of the naked eye, Theta Tauri, with the separation of 5.6 arc arcminutes.
In the northeastern quadrant of the constellation Taurus lies Pleiades (M45), one of the most recognizable open clusters, which is easily visible to the naked eye. The seven most prominent stars in this group have at least six visual magnitudes, and so this cluster is also named "Seven Sisters". However, many more stars are visible even with simple telescopes. Astronomers estimate that this group has about 500-1000 stars, all of which are around 100 million years old. However, they vary in type. The Pleiades themselves are represented by big and bright stars; also lots of small brown dwarfs and white dwarfs there. This group is expected to disappear within 250 million years. The Pleiades cluster is classified as a class Shapley c and Trumpler class I 3 r n cluster, indicating that it is irregularly shaped and loose, although it is concentrated in its center and apart from the plane of the star.
In the northern part of the constellation to the northwest of the Pleiades there is a Crystal Ball Nebula, known by its NGC 1514 catalog marking. The planet's nebula has a historical interest after its discovery by the German-born astronomer William Herschel in 1790. Prior to that time, astronomers assumed that the nebula is an unresolved star group. However, Herschel can clearly finish the star in the center of the nebula surrounded by a cloud of faint. In 1864, the English astronomer William Huggins used the spectrum of the nebula to conclude that the nebula is a luminous gas, not a star.
To the west, two bull horns are formed by Beta (?) Tauri and Zeta (?) Tauri; a two star system separated by 8 Â °. Beta is a white star of the spectral class B7 III known as El Nath , which comes from the Arabic phrase "the butting", as in butting by the bull's horn. On a scale of 1.65, it is the second brightest star in the constellation, and shares the border with the constellation Auriga. As a result, he also bears the title Gamma Aurigae. Zeta Tauri is a binary star of an eclipse that completes orbit every 133 days.
Degree to the northwest? Tauri is the Crab Nebula (M1), the rest of the supernovae. This enlarged nebula was created by a Type II supernova explosion, seen from Earth on July 4, 1054. Bright enough to be observed during the day and mentioned in Chinese historical texts. At its peak, the supernova reaches a magnitude of -4, but the nebula is currently measuring 8.4 and requires the telescope to be observed. North American society also observes supernovas, as evidenced by paintings in the New Mexico canyon and various pieces of pottery that illustrate the event. However, the rest itself was not discovered until 1731, when John Bevis found it.
The Lambda (?) Star Tauri is a binary star eclipsing. This system consists of a spectral B3 star class orbited by a star A4 class that is not too massive. Their orbital plane is located almost along the line of sight to Earth. Every 3,953 days, the system temporarily decreases in brightness by 1.1 magnitude because the lighter star is partially defeated by a dimmer companion. The two stars are separated by only 0.1 astronomical units, so the shape is modified by tidal interaction together. This results in their total magnitude variation in each orbit.
Located about 1.8 Â ° west of Epsilon (?) Tauri is T Tauri, a prototype of a variable star class called T Tauri star. The star experiences erratic changes in luminosity, varying between 9 and 13 for several weeks or months. This is a newly formed star object that has just emerged from gas and dust envelopes, but has not become a major sequence star. The reflection nebula surrounding NGC 1555 is illuminated by T Tauri, and thus also the variable in luminosity. To the north lies Kappa Tauri, a visual double star consisting of two A7 type components. The couple has a separation of only 5.6 minute arc, making them a challenge to part with the naked eye.
This constellation includes parts of the Taurus-Auriga complex, or the Taurus dark cloud, the star-forming region containing a rare cloud of gas and sparse dust. It covers the diameter of 98 light years (30 parsecs) and contains 35,000 solar masses of material, both of which are larger and smaller than the Orion Nebula. At a distance of 490 light-years (150 parsecs), this is one of the nearest active star-forming regions. Located in this region, approximately 10 Â ° to the northeast of Aldebaran, is an astericle NGC 1746 covering a 45-minute wide arc.
History and mythology
The identification of the Taurus constellation with the bull is very old, certainly dating to Chalcolithic, and perhaps even to the Upper Paleolithic. Michael RappenglÃÆ'¼ck of the University of Munich believes that Taurus is represented in a cave painting in the Bulls Hall in the caves of Lascaux (about 15,000 BC), which he says is accompanied by a description of the Pleiades. The name "seven sisters" has been used for Pleiades in many cultural languages, including indigenous groups of Australia, North America and Siberia. This suggests that the name may have a common ancient origins.
Taurus marks the vernal point (spring) equinox in Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age, from about 4000 BC to 1700 BC, after which it moved to the constellation of Aries neighbors. Pleiades closest to the Sun at the turning point of spring around the 23rd century BC. In Babylonian astronomy, the constellation is listed in MUL.APIN as GU 4 .AN.NA , "The Bull of Heaven". As this constellation marks the turning point of spring, it is also the first constellation in the Babylonian zodiac and they describe it as "The Bull in Front". Akkadia's name is Alu .
In the Old Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh, Ishtar's goddess sends Taurus, Bull of Heaven, to kill Gilgamesh for refusing his steps. Enkidu rips the back of the bull and throws his quarters into the sky where they become stars we know as Ursa Major and Ursa Minor. Some people find Gilgamesh as the constellation of Orion's neighbors, facing Taurus as if in combat, while others identify it with the rising sun in the equinox subduing the constellation. In early Mesopotamian art, Bull of Heaven is closely related to Inanna, the goddess of sexual love, fertility, and the Sumerian war. One of the oldest depictions shows the bull standing in front of the standard goddess; because it has 3 stars depicted on its back (a pointed sign for "constellation-stars"), there is a good reason to regard this as a constellation later known as Taurus.
The same iconic representation of the Celestial Bull is depicted in the Dendera zodiac, carved Egyptian reliefs on the ceiling depicting the hemisphere using planisphere. In this ancient culture, the horn orientation is described as upward or backward. This differs from the later Greek depiction in which the horn pointed forward. For the Egyptians, the constellation of Taurus is a sacred bull associated with the renewal of life in the spring. When the spring equinox enters the Taurus, the constellation will be covered by the sun in the western sky as spring begins. This "sacrifice" leads to land renewal. For the early Hebrews, Taurus was the first constellation in their zodiac and consequently it was represented by the first letter in their alphabet, Aleph.
In Greek mythology, Taurus is identified with Zeus, who takes the form of a magnificent white bull to kidnap Europa, a legendary Phoenician princess. In Greek mythology illustrations, only the front of this constellation is illustrated; this is sometimes described as a partially submerged Taurus as he brings Europa into the sea. The second Greek myth describes Taurus as Io, a Zeus madame. To hide his lover from his wife Hera, Zeus transforms Io into the shape of a cow. The Greek mythology Acusilaus marks the bull of Taurus as the same thing that forms the myth of the Cretan Bull, one of the Twelve Heracles Labor.
Taurus became an important object of worship among the Druids. Their Tauric religious festival is held while the Sun passes through the constellations. Among the Arctic people known as the Inuit, the constellation is called Sakiattiat and Hyades is Nanurjuk, with the latter representing the spirit of polar bears. Aldebaran represents a bear, with the rest of the stars in Hyades being the dog that holds the beast at bay. In Buddhism, the legend holds that the Buddha Gautama was born when the Full Moon was in Vaisakha, or Taurus. Buddha's birthday is celebrated with the Wesak Festival, or Ves? Kha, which occurs on the first full moon or second when the Sun is in Taurus.
Astrology
In 2008, the Sun appeared in the constellation Taurus from 13 May to 21 June. In tropical astrology, the Sun is considered to be in the Taurus sign from April 20 to May 20.
Space exploration
The space probe Pioneer 10 moves towards this constellation, although it will not approach the stars in this constellation for thousands of years, at which time its battery will be long dead.
Solar eclipse May 29, 1919
Some of the stars in the Hyades cluster including Kappa Tauri were photographed during the solar eclipse on May 29, 1919 by the expedition of Arthur Eddington at PrÃÆ'ncipe and others in Sobral, Brazil which confirmed Albert Einstein's prediction of bending light around the Sun from the general theory of relativity that he published in 1915.
See also
- Pleiades in folklore and literature
- Taurus (Chinese Astronomy)
- White Tiger from the West
Note
References
Reference book
External links
- In-depth Photography Guide to Constellation: Taurus
- The BBC article on the possibility of Taurus being represented in Lascaux
- Star TalesÃ, - Taurus
- Warburg Institute Ikonographic Database (over 300 modern medieval and early Taurus drawings)
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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