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Most of the stars we see have little relation to one another, but people are very good at finding patterns and throughout history have grouped stars that appear close to one another into configurations called constellations. Different cultures have had different constellations, although a few of the more obvious ones tend to appear over and over again - e.g. Orion and Scorpius. |
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A constellation is a group of stars visibly related to each other in a particular configuration. In three-dimensional space, most of the stars we see have little relation to one another, but can appear to be grouped on the imaginary plane of the night sky. People are very good at finding patterns and throughout history have grouped stars that appear close to one another into constellations. |
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The International Astronomical Union (IAU) divides the sky into 88 official constellations with precise boundaries, so that every direction belongs to exactly one constellation. These are mostly based upon the constellations of the ancient Greek tradition, passed down through the Middle Ages. The zodiac includes the following 12: |
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The grouping of stars into contellations is essentially arbitrary, and different cultures have had different constellations, although a few of the more obvious ones tend to recur frequently, e.g. Orion and Scorpius. The International Astronomical Union (IAU) divides the sky into 88 official constellations with precise boundaries, so that every direction belongs to exactly one constellation. These are mostly based upon the constellations of the ancient Greek tradition, passed down through the Middle Ages. The zodiac includes the following 12: |
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