Boötes
Boötes, pronounced with both 'O's as 'boötez',[1] is one of the 88 modern constellations in the northern sky. The name is from the Greek word Βοώτης, which means herdsman – someone who takes care of animals.
 Click for larger image | |
| List of stars in Boötes | |
| Abbreviation: | Boo |
| Genitive: | |
| Symbology: | |
| Right ascension: | 15 h |
| Declination: | +30° |
| Area: | 907 sq. deg. (13th) |
| Main stars: | 7, 15 |
| Bayer/Flamsteed stars: | 59 |
| Stars known to have planets: | 9 |
| Bright stars: | 3 |
| Nearby stars: | 3 |
| Brightest star: | Arcturus (α Boo) (−0.04m) |
| Nearest star: | Wolf 498 ( ly) |
| Messier objects: | |
| Meteor showers: | |
| Bordering constellations: | |
| Visible at latitudes between +90° and −50° Best visible at 21:00 (9 p.m.) during the month of June | |
| Other designations: Arctophylax | |
Shape
The constellation's shape is like a kite. Boötes has the third brightest star in the night sky, called Arcturus (α Bootis).[2] The astronomer Ptolemy listed it in the 2nd century when he made a list of 48 constellations.[3]
The Cloverleaf quasar is visually in Bootes.
Main stars
- α Bootis (Arcturus) is the brightest and most important star of the constellation, with a magnitude of -0.04, the 3rd brightest star of the sky. It is an orange giant star
- β Bootis (Nekkar), yellow giant with magnitude 3.49 and 219 light years from the Earth
- y Bootis (Ceginus), Delta Scuti variable with magnitude 3,04
- δ Bootis (Princeps), another yellow giant.
Deep-sky objects
- NGC 5248, spiral galaxy, 10º south of Arcturus
- NGC 5466, globular cluster, 9º northwest of Arcturus, near M3, a globular cluster in the constellation Canes Venatici.
Boötes Media
The constellation of Boötes overlaid on the ancient Egyptian foreleg constellation
The constellation Boötes as it can be seen by the naked eye
A digital rendering of Tau Boötis b
Evolution of the HD 128311 system over time
Hubble Space Telescope image of SDSSCGB 10189, three colliding galaxies
A Quadrantid captured by an all-sky camera during a 4-second exposure
A bright Quadrantid observed at twilight
References
- ↑ Thompson, Robert Bruce; Thompson, Barbara Fritchman (2007). Illustrated Guide Astronomical Wonders. O'Reilly Books. ISBN 978-0-596-52685-6.
- ↑ Jim Kaler. "Boötes". Stars. Retrieved 27 January 2013.
- ↑ Fuchs, Jim. "Constellation History". Modern Constellations. Archived from the original on 25 May 2012. Retrieved 27 January 2013.