Seema's blog

  Chamaeleon constellation Since Chamaeleon was unknown to the ancient Greeks and Romans, it has no mythology associated with it, but it’s not hard to understand how it came about its fanciful name.  As exploration of the southern hemisphere began, what biological wonders were discovered!  Can you imagine how odd a creature that could change its skin color to match its surroundings would be to someone who wasn’t familiar with lizards? This constellation was appropriately named, given its ability to blend into the background!  Small wonder that a constellation that blended right in with the background stars could be considered a “chamaeleon” or that it might be pictured sticking its long tongue out to capture its insectile constellation neighbor – Musca the “fly”! Musca  constellation The constellation name means The Fly .  There are 6 stars that make up the main constellation.  The hipparcos satellite scanned and detailed 604 stars.  There are 66 stars that can be seen with the naked e

  Hydrus is a small constellation in the deep southern sky.   Its name means "male water snake", as opposed to Hydra, a much larger constellation that represents a female water snake.  You can read about it in my another  post "Hydra". Irregular in shape,Hydrus is bordered by Mensa to the southeast, Eridanus to the east, Horologium and Reticulum to the northeast, Phoenix to the north, Tucana to the northwest and west, and Octans to the south;  Lacaille had shortened Hydrus' tail to make space for this last constellation he had drawn up.  Hydrus is not associated with any myths.  It remains below the horizon for most Northern Hemisphere observers It is a southern constellation, one that wasn’t visible to the ancient Greeks or Romans.  The constellation was mapped by Dutch navigators and it represents the sea snakes they would have seen on their voyages. Eridanus   Eridanus  is a constellation in the southern celestial hemisphere.  It is represented as a river. 

  Dorado is a constellation in the southern sky. Its name refers to the dolphinfish, which is known as dorado in Spanish,  although it has also been depicted as a swordfish.  The South Ecliptic pole also lies within this constellation . the location of the South Ecliptic pole, which lies near the fish's head. The pole was called "Polus Doradinalis" by Willem Jansson Blaeu. This constellation contains more than half of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), a satellite of the Milky Way Galaxy and one of the nearest galaxies to Earth at a distance of 160,000 light-years.  The LMC is home to S Doradus, one of the most luminous stars, and Supernova 1987A, the nearest supernova to Earth in more than 350 years.                                         S Doradus                                                                        Supernova 1987A   Its name comes from the Spanish word for the dolphinfish, which lives in the Pacific Ocean and is also commonly known by the Hawaiian nam