From this article you will learn about what constellations are and where their names came from.
As you know, there are a great many patterns of stars in the sky, which has always been the object of attention of people in different periods of the existence of mankind. Ancient people sought to know this interesting world and everything that went beyond it. They studied the night sky, and already in the Neolithic period the first groups of stars formed, which received their names. Many of them have long been forgotten. And only historians of astronomy know about some.
Star clusters used to be called star clusters.
So, about 5 thousand years ago, people began to highlight the brightest night luminaries in the night sky and combine them into groups. Now mankind uses modern technologies to study, which did not exist before. Constellations called configurations that were formed from bright stars. They served primarily for navigation, as well as for determining the seasons, time of day, for predictions and for astrological purposes.
What is a constellation?
In the sense that is accepted now, this concept was formed in Ancient Greece a couple of centuries ago. Then the visible sky was mentally divided into parts by groups of stars. In order to make it easier to navigate in space, each site was given a name based on what a particular figure looked like. Between the constellations are areas that the Greeks called "empty places." However, there are also stars there, only they were not assigned to any group. About them, for example, they said: "the area between the Swan and Lyra."
Modern concept
And if earlier any constellation of stars was called constellations, then in the modern world this designation is a little concretized. Now this concept is defined as large sections of the celestial sphere, in each of which there are several bright luminaries visible to the naked eye. These areas most often add up to a specific pattern that is easy to remember.
It is also important to know what territories are called constellations into which the whole sky is divided without intersections and empty spaces. Moreover, areas have certain boundaries. Therefore, one should not confuse a simple cluster of stars with constellations.
Currently, the celestial sphere is divided into 88 constellations, the names and boundaries of which were approved at the first congress of the International Astronomical Union in 1922.
Where do the names come from
As you know, the constellations are named after the mythological Greek heroes, animals, and even by the name of the objects whose shape they resemble. So, for example, legendary characters such as Pegasus, Cepheus, Perseus, Cassiopeia, Andromeda and others "" inhabit "the starry sky. All of them are associated with the myths of ancient Greece, of which there are a great many.
Also in the night sky, you can find Eagle, Dolphin, Dove, Leo, Fox, Peacock and many other animals.
Other constellations are named according to the shape of objects: Pump, Microscope, Furnace, Mesh, Arrow, Compass, Bowl, Clock, etc.
As we see, there is a colossal list of names assigned to heavenly bodies.
Why they called the constellation Ursa Major
Since childhood, each of us has been interested in everything related to celestial bodies. Why does this or that star bear such a name? Why was the Big Dipper named a bucket figure? How and who gives the name to the constellations?
Seven bright stars, which are clearly visible to the naked eye in the night sky, are completely different from the shape of a bear. Why is this constellation so called ? Maybe someone had an imagination, and the meaning of this is understandable and accessible only to people with good imagination?
Let's try to figure this out.
As we already know, clusters of stars were called constellations before. They were called, guided by the shape of an educated figure. Designers who created ancient atlases of stars tried to fit the contour of the animal to the shape of a figure in the sky and often depicted a bear with a long tail. They had to do this so that people with less imagination could “see” this particular beast in the sky, and not another.
The name "Ursa Major" constellation received from the ancient Greeks. In ancient Greek, it sounded like "arctos megale." From here came the name Arctic.
According to one legend, Zeus was captured by the daughter of King Lacion, who accompanied the goddess Artemis on a hunt, and seduced the girl. She became pregnant, and the goddess saw her while swimming and turned her into a bear. The girl in the guise of an animal gave birth to a son, Arcade, who settled among people. But once the hunters, led by Arkad, attacked the bear and wanted to kill her. Then Zeus, remembering his connection with the daughter of Lacion, saved her by placing him in the sky among the constellations. When in a hurry, he lifted the bear into the sky by the tail, he stretched out and became long.