Sagittarius Constellation, Zodiac Sign #4
by Science Source
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Sagittarius Constellation, Zodiac Sign #4
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Science Source
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Sagittarius constellation from Johannes Hevelius' Prodromus astronomiae, Firmamentum Sobiescianum, sive Uranographia, 1687. Sagittarius is a constellation of the zodiac, the one containing the galactic center. Its name is Latin for the archer. It is one of the 48 constellations described by the 2nd century astronomer Ptolemy, and remains one of the 88 modern constellations defined by the International Astronomical Union. Sagittarius is commonly represented as a centaur drawing a bow. It lies between Ophiuchus to the west and Capricornus to the east. In Greek mythology, Sagittarius is identified as a centaur half human, half horse. Sagittarius is the ninth astrological sign, which is associated with the constellation Sagittarius. It spans the 240-270th degree of the zodiac, between 234.75 and 270 degree of celestial longitude, which the Sun transits on average between November 23 to December 21 each year. The Hevelius Firmamentum was the first star atlas to rival Bayer's Uranometria in accuracy, utility, innovation, and influence. Hevelius was perhaps the most active observational astronomer of the last half of the seventeenth century. His star atlas is notable for many reasons. It contains 56 large, double page engraved star maps. The star positions for the charts were derived from his own star catalog, based on his own observations, which was first published along with the atlas. It is unique among the Grand Atlases in choosing to depict the constellations as they would appear on a globe, that is, from the outside looking in, rather than from a geocentric point of view, as Bayer and most others adopted.
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July 7th, 2014
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