Taurus (constellation)
Taurus is a constellation in the northern sky. "Taurus" means "bull" in Latin. It is a constellation of the zodiac, which means that it crosses the ecliptic. The astronomer named Ptolemy listed Taurus when he made a list of 48 constellations. It is one of the 88 modern constellations that were made by the International Astronomical Union.
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| List of stars in Taurus | |
| Abbreviation: | Tau |
| Genitive: | Tauri |
| Symbology: | |
| Right ascension: | 4.9 h |
| Declination: | 19° |
| Area: | 797 sq. deg. (17th) |
| Main stars: | 19 |
| Bayer/Flamsteed stars: | 132 |
| Stars known to have planets: | 7 candidates |
| Bright stars: | 4 |
| Nearby stars: | 1 |
| Brightest star: | Aldebaran (α Tau) (0.85m) |
| Nearest star: | Gliese 176 ( ly) |
| Messier objects: | 2 |
| Meteor showers: | |
| Bordering constellations: | |
| Visible at latitudes between +90° and −65° Best visible at 21:00 (9 p.m.) during the month of January | |
The star clusters Pleiades and Hyades are in Taurus. Taurus also contains the Crab Nebula, which is a supernova remnant. The brightest star in Taurus is a red giant star called Aldebaran.
Taurus (constellation) Media
The constellation Taurus as it can be seen by the naked eye. The constellation lines have been added for clarity.
HP Tauri, a T Tauri variable star and triple system
Central area of constellation Taurus, showing Aldebaran at the lower left.
IRAS 05437+2502, a nebula
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