Constellations

• Stars

  Natural luminous bodies visible in the sky especially at night. A huge sphere of very hot glowing gas. The most fundamental building blocks of galaxies.
• Stars


  • They represent the most widely recognized astronomical objects
• Brightness of a star

  Depends on its size and temperature. The larger the star, the brighter it shines compared to a small star. The hotter the star, the brighter it shines than a cool star. Also depends on its distance from Earth.
• Brightness of a star

  • Sirius is the brightest star in the night sky
• Color and temperature of a star

  The color of a star ranges from blue to red, indicating its surface temperature. Blue stars are the hottest, while red stars are cooler.
• Size of stars

  Supergiants are the largest stars, dwarf stars are the smallest, and in between are the giant stars. Astronomers use the size of the Sun to determine the size of other stars.
• Star life cycle

  Low mass stars survive for billions of years and die quietly leaving a small white dwarf. High mass stars survive for a few million years and die in a supernova leaving behind a black hole.
• Constellations


  Groups of stars that form a pattern when seen from Earth. There are 88 constellations recognized by the International Astronomical Union (IAU).
• Earth's rotation affects how we perceive stars in the night sky, particularly the rising and setting of stars.
• Earth's revolution around the sun makes it possible to see constellations that cannot be seen on other days of the year. Depending on one's location on Earth, an observer can only see a specific set of stars and constellations.
• Constellation patterns


  The stars in constellations are imaginatively linked together to represent an animal, a person, or an object in the night sky. Constellation shapes and names are different depending on religions and cultures.
• Constellation patterns

  • Scorpio constellation is called 'Vrishchika Nakshatra' in Indian Culture
• Asterisms


  Smaller patterns of stars within a constellation, used by the Matigsulog Manobo of Bukidnon, but not recognized as constellations.
• Circumpolar stars


  Stars that do not set, located near the north celestial pole. All other stars that are affected by the Earth's motion are called Non-circumpolar stars.
• Circumpolar star

  • Polaris, the North Star
• Polaris


  The brightest star in the constellation Ursa Minor (Little Dipper), very close to the north celestial pole. It stands almost motionless in the sky, and all the stars of the Northern sky appear to rotate around it. It is mainly used for navigation.
• Orion the Hunter


  A constellation consisting of many bright stars, including Betelgeuse and Rigel, as well as the three stars that make up Orion's belt. In Christian Filipino culture, it is called Tatlong Maria or Tres Marias.
• Winter constellations

  • Orion, Canis Major, Gemini, Taurus, Eridanus
• Spring constellations

  • Leo, Cancer, Bootes, Aquarius
• Summer constellations

  • Scorpius, Sagittarius, Cetus, Eridanus
• Autumn constellations


  • Andromeda, Perseus, Pegasus
• The Zodiac constellations
• Constellation


  A group of stars that makes an imaginary shape in the night sky
• Constellations are usually named after mythological characters, people, animals, and objects
• In different parts of the world, people have made up different shapes out of the same groups of bright stars
• Star


  A huge bright ball of burning gas that is held together by gravity
• The closest star to Earth is the Sun
• Most of the stars you see in the sky are between 1 billion and 10 billion years old
• Star color

  Hottest stars give off a bluish light, cooler stars give off a reddish light
• Twinkling of stars


  Their light is disturbed as it travels through the Earth's atmosphere
• For thousands of years, people have used the stars and constellations for navigating at night and keeping track of the seasons
• Farmers planted their crops according to which constellations were visible in the sky at night
• As the Earth rotates or spins on its axis

  The constellations appear to move across the sky
• The stars themselves are not moving, we are while the Earth is spinning
• The Earth's path around the Sun causes us to see different parts of the sky during different seasons
• Farmers kept an eye on the sky for certain constellations to appear, signaling the coming of spring
• Your location on Earth also lets you see different portions of the sky
• The International Astronomical Union currently identifies 88 constellations
• Orion the Hunter


  A prominent winter constellation
• Scorpius the Scorpion


  A prominent summer constellation