The constellation Lizard is small in size and quite young. It can be seen in the sky with a telescope, even an amateur one. The constellation is a star cluster and not a single galaxy.
Origin
The constellation Lizard has no connection with ancient myths. It owes its appearance to the Polish astronomer Jan Hevelius, when the scientist found a place in his star atlas for a new constellation. It happened at the end of the XVII century (1690). Weak stars resembled a lizard. They were combined into the constellation with the name of this animal by an astronomer only because he believed that this sector of the atlas should not remain empty. But there was little space; only a small animal, such as a lizard, could fit there. It is noteworthy that the species name of the animal is indicated by the astronomer in the atlas. This is a mountain or ring-tailed agama. The flickering little stars, according to the scientist, are just sparkles adorning the reptile's scales.
Seven years have passed. The architect of King Louis XIV of France decided to perpetuate his name. The area where the constellation Lizard is located, a photo of which is presented for viewing, he called the Scepter and the power of justice. His idea was destined to be preserved only in documents, at that time it did not receive approval and distribution.
Description
The location of the constellation Lizard is the northern hemisphere of the sky. It can be seen between the two constellations: Swan and Andromeda. The nearest neighbors are Cassiopeia, Pegasus, Cepheus. The constellation in question does not differ in brightness of the stars, although it goes to the Milky Way with its northern half, its muzzle. It looks like a snake in shape.
It is no coincidence that the lizard is a constellation of the autumn sky . If you ask what time of the year it is better to observe the constellation Lizard, The answer is simple: in the fall, in September. Although the constellation is small and does not contain interesting objects, it is an example of the content of “diamonds” in the dull scales of an animal such as a reptile.
Interesting objects in the constellation
They are few here. The most unusual is blazar, which is called lacertida. That was the name of the constellation, where scientists first discovered objects of this class. At the beginning of the last century (1929), the German astronomer Kuno Hoffmeister discovered a body that the scientist considered a variable star. He even managed to get a name - BL Lizard. Research continued. Astrophysicists managed to find out that this is not a star at all, but an active core related to large elliptical galaxies, the distance to which is measured in billions of light years. Continuous from the core is electromagnetic radiation of high power.
Currently, such objects are mistaken for massive black holes. To date, 50 blazars are known, some of them were previously considered variable stars. In the Lizard, they also are:
- A notably variable star is AR Lizards. For a time equal to 545 days, its brightness changes by 0.7 m.
- Another variable star is the EV Lizards. It is called a flashing red dwarf. The age is several hundred million years old. This is the most studied flashing star. Scientists have been continuously monitoring it for different years for 11 consecutive nights. Flashes were recorded in different wavelength ranges. Expectations were not in vain: in 2008 in April, an outbreak was recorded that reached the Earth. In power, it exceeded the strongest solar flare by 10 thousand times. On the night of the 25th, the star was visible without a telescope.
Famous Lizard Objects
The most famous constellation objects are as follows:
- The star cluster NGC 7243. It is located next to the Alpha star Lizards, which consists of blue and white stars. The distance from them to the Earth is 2800 years, but not simple, but light. In scientific circles, it is known under a different name - Caldwell 16.
- BL Lacertae. Initially, scientists believed that this was a variable star. But this is blazar, which is a stellar object. It is very compact and emits intense variable radio emission.
The constellation Lizard does not have galaxies, globular clusters, meteor showers. But it contains star clusters, binary stars, as well as a planetary nebula. A new star has recently appeared. This event dates back to 1936. You can see it only with the use of a telescope, since it has small dimensions.
When is the best time to observe the constellation Lizard
It depends on the location of the region from which the monitoring is conducted. While in Bulgaria, finding the constellation in the sky is not difficult, from the month of July until the end of January. If the night is clear, without any telescope immediately visible 35 stars of the Lizard. All these stars are faint. A complete constellation can be observed only at night, when the moon does not interfere. Throughout our country, you can see the Lizard in late summer in August and early fall in September.
The arrangement of faint stars is chaotic, so they are not able to form a geometric figure. The constellation Lizard almost does not have objects that attract the attention of observers. But on moonless nights, without any telescope, you can see the closest dark nebula located to us called the “Bag of Coal”.