The snake belongs to the equatorial constellations. It contains 106 bright stars, distinguishable even with the naked eye. It occupies an area equal to 636.9 square degrees in the sky. This is the only constellation that is divided into 2 parts: the "head" and "tail" of the Snake.
Constellation Snake: what time of year is the best time to observe?
Asterism is visible throughout the year. But for full observation of the object, you need to know at what time it is better to observe the constellation Snake. According to astronomical sources, the most successful hour falls on the summer months. The optimal period is July and August. The constellation is visible throughout the Russian Federation.
On a moonless and clear night, both parts of the constellation are visible above the southern part of the horizon. The brightest stars form a winding, long chain, which is clearly visible to the observer - this is the serpent's desired asterism. The constellation contains many beautiful objects (according to astronomers), but only 60 of them are clearly visible in the night sky.
About a dozen of them are smaller than the fourth and third magnitude. The remaining objects of the Snake are invisible to the human eye. Other stars can only be seen with a telescope.
In order to find the constellation of the Snake, you will need to find the Ophiuchus. It is formed in the form of an irregular circle shape and is easy to detect, starting from the neighboring constellations - Scorpio and Hercules.
Constellation history
The snake was first discovered and combined into a star group by the astronomer Ptolemy in the II century BC. After some time, he introduced it into the star catalog "Almagest". Ancient scholars did a great job of classifying and defining constellations, including the asterism of the Serpent. The constellation has undergone a number of modifications during the course of history.
The first mention of this group of stars is noted in ancient times. At one time it stood out as a separate Snake. The constellation at that time was considered an integral part of Ophiuchus asterism. It was finally isolated in a separate constellation only in 1922.
Nearest neighbors
The constellation is divided into two unrelated parts: the head (western) and the tail (eastern) of the Snake, separated by the asterism of Ophiuchus. To find it, it’s easier to navigate through neighboring objects.
The Head of the Snake borders Boroughs Bootes, Virgo, Libra, Hercules, the Northern Crown and Ophiuchus. And the nearest neighbors of the tail are Sagittarius, Shield, Ophiuchus and Eagle.
Legend
The constellation of the Snake and Ophiuchus asterism are united by a common legend. The history of the appearance of their names is associated with the God of healing - Asclepius.
Legend has it that Asclepius was the son of Coronis and Apollo. In infancy, he was given to the education of the centaur Chiron. He taught him various sciences, including medicine. When Asclepius grew up, Chiron gave him all the secrets of healing using snake venom.
Having achieved mastery in the treatment of people, he decided to learn how to resurrect the dead. Athena came to the rescue and donated the blood of the Gorgon Medusa. She had miraculous power, raised the dead. Asclepius, using the gift, returned several people to the world of the living. For which Hades and Zeus were very angry with him, because only they controlled the lives of people.
A thunderbolt fiercely struck him with lightning and transferred him to heaven in the guise of the constellation Ophiuchus. As a warning, Asclepius was entrusted with becoming the patron saint of all doctors - the god of medicine.
The ancient Greeks depicted Asclepius in the form of a bearded God, who held in his hand a rod with a snake entwining him. It was from here that the symbol of medicine subsequently arose - a snake entwining a cup. Further, the constellation "Kite" has become a kind of symbol in modern medicine.
Visible and "invisible" objects of asterism
The snake - the constellation is quite bright. However, there are no stars of the first magnitude. Alpha is the brightest star. It is a triple formation. Two of them have their own names. The first is known as Unukalnai. In translation - the "neck" of the Snake, and the second as Cor Serpentis - the "heart" of the Snake.
The main of the three is considered a giant in orange. The brightness exceeds our luminary by 70 times. The object is located at a distance of 73.2 light years from Earth.
This is the second brightest star. It is an orange giant, has a satellite. This twin star is located 61.8 light years from us. The Chinese name for the luminary - Tang got its original name in honor of the famous Chinese Tang family.
Mu Snakes or Leiolepis (smooth or scaly) is considered the third brightest star. This is a white dwarf . The object is located about 156 light years from Earth.
The "brass" snake of Moses
Xi is an integral star of the constellation Snake. She is known as Nekhushtan. This name is identified with the copper snake of Moses. The main component is a giant of yellow color. It consists of a spectrally binary star and has a faint satellite of the 13th magnitude.
The Snake Beta constellation is a multi-star system consisting of a satellite and one white dwarf. The distance from Earth to the star is approximately 153 light years. Interestingly, beta refers to the shifting group of Big Bucket stars.
The delta consists of two paired stars and is located at a distance of approximately 210 light-years. Received the name Chin in honor of the Chinese Jing Dynasty. The main object is the white-yellow subgiant. According to its classification, it is a variable star of the Shield delta. The dim companion is represented by the F-class subgiant.
Gamma is a yellow-white dwarf known as the "eye" of the Snake - Ainalhai. It is noteworthy that the star has two optical satellites.
Epsilon or the “good” Nulla Pambu Snake is a white dwarf. It is located at a distance of about 70.3 light years from Earth.
Theta of the constellation or Alya - “sheep’s tail”, represents the completion of the “tail” of the Snake. The object is a multi-star system and is located 132 light years from our Earth. It is noteworthy that the two main components are white dwarfs, and the third star is of the G type.
Kappa is a red giant with a magnitude of 4.09. The subject is located at a distance of 348 light years.
Nebulae and clusters in the constellation Snakes
The Eagle Nebula, also known as Monsieur 16, is a fairly young star cluster. Its shape resembles something similar to a bird. The cluster contains the famous area “Pillars of Creation”. This is a fairly large area of star formation, similar to the "Mountains of Creation", located in the constellation Cassiopeia.
The Eagle Nebula is considered part of the emission nebula IC 4703. The snake constellation (photo below) is saturated with various similar nebulae. It represents an active region of star formation. It is located approximately 6,500 light years from our sun.
Monsieur 5 is a globular cluster with a diameter of 165 light years. It is clearly visible in the sky with the naked eye in the form of a dim star. Monsieur 5 is considered one of the largest globular clusters ever discovered. The brightest stars in the cluster have a luminosity of 12.2.
The cluster contains more than a hundred variable stars. NGC 5904 - refers to one of the ancient clusters of the Milky Way. According to scientists, the age of "Monsieur 5" is equivalent to 13 billion years.
Also located here is MWC 922, known as the Red Square Nebula. This symmetrical bipolar region contains a number of hot stars. It forms the shape of a perfect square. The nebula is located near the "Monsieur 16".
Conclusion
During the course of history, astronomers united the stars into groups and called them constellations. Today, there are eighty-eight constellations.
Perhaps the asterism of the Serpent is not the most significant object. But it belongs to part of the entire mosaic of the starry sky and creates an integral picture of the cosmos visible to us.