Saturday, April 22, 2017

S is for summer constellations: Scorpius and Sagittarius

We’re looking for heavenly bodies in our A-Z tour during the month of April.  S is for Summer, which has two delightful constellations: Scorpius and Sagittarius.  We’ve met these guys when we looked at Orion, as their stories ties to Orion, but today we can spend a little more time on each.
Scorpius is the easiest to spot as it looks like a scorpion with two pinchers and a curved tail ready to sting.  In the summer, from North America, it is seen on the southern horizon.  It is the southern-most constellation in the Zodiac.  If you are too far north, like northern Michigan, you won’t see the full tail.  But here in Georgia, when I’m out on the water in the evening or have a clear view to the south, the pesky insect is clearly seen.  It is also in a rather dark part of the Milky Way, which is appropriate as scorpions like to hang out in dark cracks.  As we learned at Orion, the scorpion bite the great hunter, mortally wounding him, which is why you never see Orion and the scorpion in the sky at the same time. 

Not far from Scorpius is Sagittarius, a centaur, half human and half horse.  This constellation is the Comanche of the sky.  The Comanche became feared warriors not only to soldiers and settlers in West Texas, but also to neighboring tribes as they mastered the art of war from the back of a horse.  In a way, they were at one with their horse, while soldiers and even other Native American tribes used horses as transportation but would generally dismount to fight.  As there is another constellation featuring a centaur, named Centaurus, it creates some confusion. There is even a debate about which centaur is Chorion, with some saying it is Sagittarius and others saying it is Centaurus.  Chorion was married to Rhea, who was so jealous that he changed himself into a horse/man as a way to escape her, showing that there is at least 51 ways to leave your lover. 
 Although many people envision a teapot from the key stars in Sagittarius, I see a bow drawn back and aiming at the red star Antares, the heart of Scorpius.  To the east of Scorpius, Sagittarius is chasing the scorpion from the sky.  Sometime this summer, find yourself with a dark and uncluttered southern horizon and see if you can make out these constellations.  Of course, if you live in the southern hemisphere, you will find these constellations high in the northern sky.


Have you ever seen these two constellations?  

Should I have included the Sun in the letter S or is it too obvious?

22 comments:

  1. What I wonder about is how people see these shapes in the sky. Growing up in New York City, I barely knew there was such a thing as a constellation. All kidding aside, it had to be pretty bright and prominent. Alana ramblinwitham.blogspot.com

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  2. I wish I'd gained a love of watching the night sky growing up. So much city lights now. We own a telescope, but never get around to using it much. Finding a place away from all the light is difficult. Visiting from
    If I Only Had A Time Machine

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  3. Living in a big city and all these bright lights, I don't see the stars all that often anymore. It has to be dark in order to see them very well.

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    1. Mary, you need to get out of Vegas. Drive down to Searchlight and find a side road that leads out into the Joshua Trees where you'll have a great view!

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  4. Next time I'm out in the desert at night, I'm taking all these diagrams with me. Thank you shining light on these stars:)
    S is for Silver Serendipity

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  5. I didn't know that about the Comanche. Very interesting! I have lots of trees around my house, so they can't be too close to the horizon for me to be able to spot.

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  6. I'm a Scorpio, (born in November) so I've been waiting for you to get to this one.

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  7. Well, Scorpio is my sign. And the bite is real! :-)

    Greetings from London.

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  8. Another interesting post, thank you for sharing. I can’t say that I have consciously looked for Scorpius or Sagittarius, but I will have to see if I can find them when the weather turns nicer.

    Stopping by from A to Z: S for Strange Games
    Shari

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  9. No, I haven't located these constellations, Sage. Just need that dark sky! Thanks for an informative post!

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  10. Never spotted these constellations, Sage. Don't know if I can manage to do so for all. May be a step-by-step guide about "How to spot" should help :)
    I see the symbols in the horoscope part of the newspaper :) Need help for the sky part though!
    'Simplicity' #AtoZChallenge

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  11. I’ve seen these! Scorpius actually does look a little like a scorpion.

    Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  12. How cool is that? I'm never really sure what constellations I'm actually seeing but what a treat it is to see any of them, while in the city. This is an interesting series you are presenting, glad I stopped in to read another installment today. :-) Have a good week,G

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  13. Another great post! The words, "at least 51 ways to leave your lover," made me smile. I'm a Paul Simon fan. :)

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  14. I live in the Southern Hemisphere and I have a special memory of Scorpio. When Halley's Comet was in town(yes, I'm that old!) I went to the Planetarium for a show about it. It ended with advice about where to look for the comet that night, as it was very difficult to see, especially in the city. But you could see it, with binoculars, if you knew which way to look. And Scorpio was where you looked that night. A friend came along to the show and took me home, where we chatted and drank tea till three am. Walking her out to her car, I took along my binoculars and we both looked up at Scorpio - and Lo! There it was.

    It's fascinating to think of Native Americans being so connected to their horses. I have read that horses are indigenous American animals which crossed the land bridge, went extinct in Ameruca thousands of years ago and came back with the Spanish. And NTive Americans like the Comanche made them their own, just as they took Venetian beads they got in trade and made that their own craft! Wonderful!

    https://suebursztynski.blogspot.com.au/2017/04/t-is-forharriet-tubman-civil-war.html
    T Is For Harriet Tubman




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  15. Looking at that last constellation chart, Sagittarius totally looks like a teapot to me! Maybe Chorion was short and stout. ;)

    A to Z 2017: Magical and Medicinal Herbs

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  16. That's amazing! I wish I could identify these in real life!

    http://tropicalcolours.blogspot.com.au

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  17. Friend Sage, I am a star constellation illiterate ... sigh ... but love Sagittarius, since that's my star ... smiles ... Love, cat.

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  18. I'd love to see these two, especially as I'm a Scorpio!

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  19. Oh Sage, I miss living out in the countryside. I don't think I've seen either constellation. Shame on me, as I am a Sagittarian. You tell some wonderful stories based on traditional "myths". Alana ramblinwitham.blogspot.com

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  20. Attempting to catch up.... I'll start here with the scorpion, which we have on the ground here in Eastern Washington (about half an inch long), but not the dangerous kind. I wonder if we're too far north to see the scorpion's tail. Would love to see ir this summer!

    "Female Scientists Before Our Time"
    Shells–Tales–Sails

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  21. It's so good when you get the opportunity to visit somewhere in the countryside or coast and take time to look up at the stars ...

    All the best Jan

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