Perseus is a constellation in the northern hemisphere. Perseus spans 28 degrees of the zodiac in the signs of taurus and gemini, and contains 12 named fixed stars. Understanding the constellations 5 constellation creation rubric 5 3 1 constellation created a new constellation was created. And that with us the seasons of the sky they thus alternately divide, and thus do pass the night coequal to our days. The perseus can be tuned to optimize its performance for even the most exotic phono cartridges. The hebrew word for this constellation is peretz, from which is derived the greek form perses, or the name perseus rom. Constellation perseus the champion, is a northern constellation sitting above constellation taurus and below constellation cassiopeia, and between constellation andromeda and constellation auriga u.
In greek mythology, perseus was the son of zeus and danae, daughter of acrisius, the king of argos. Perseus is near several constellations whose names derive from the adventures of the greek hero, known as the perseus group. The annual perseids meteor shower emanates from the direction of the constellation. The fall 2009 issue of the earth scientist, which includes articles on student research into building design for earthquakes and a classroom lab on the composition of the earths ancient atmosphere, is available in our online store. A project done at shsu for the stars and galaxies lab. On the nature of things has been divided into the following sections. Historymythical origin perseus was one of the great heroes of classical mythology. Perseus, the 24thlargest constellation, is located in the northern sky. Books two and three deal mainly with the finer details of the zodiac. Perseus is relatively bright and can be at least partially viewed even in well lit areas. This constellation is of a mighty man, picturing christ the warrior.
In fact, if you look at perseus under dark skies, you may be able to see three of the spiral arms that enfold the milky way. Dec 16, 2008 positioned north of the ecliptic plane, the constellation of perseus was one of the original 48 constellations listed by ptolemy, and endures as one of the 88 modern constellations. Commentary references to this page 3 john conington, commentary on vergils aeneid, volume 1, 1. It is located near several other constellations named after ancient greek legends surrounding perseus, including andromeda to the west and cassiopeia to the north. This is the list of notable stars in the constellation perseus, sorted by decreasing brightness. Perseeus the constellation of perseus, the hero son of zeus, is best viewed in winter during the month of december. The poemwhich seems to have been inspired by lucretiuss epicurean poem. Perseus constellation simple english wikipedia, the free. The cultural and historical story behind the constellations is a subject all its own, and there are numerous books on the subject for the curious. Book i 94k book ii 106k book iii 95k book iv 117k book v 9k book vi 122k download. What do you think a poet like lucretius, disillusioned with his city, and disappointed by corruption in his time, would do. The title of lucretius s work translates that of the chief work of epicurus, peri physeos on nature.
Epicureanism was a missionary philospohy, aiming to give man happiness by making him selfsufficient. The goddess athena placed the image of andromeda among the stars as a reward for keeping her parentspromise. Many of its stars are immersed in the faint glow of our galaxy, the milky way. An xml version of this text is available for download, with the additional restriction that you offer perseus any modifications you make. Positioned north of the ecliptic plane, the constellation of perseus was one of the original 48 constellations listed by ptolemy, and endures as one of the 88 modern constellations. However, as far back as ptolemys time, perseus was seen as holding the head of medusa, with algol beta persei being the evil eye of the gorgon.
Proem o thou who first uplifted in such dark so clear a torch aloft, who. Study science in order to rid yourself of unneccesary fears, especially of the gods and death. As a whole, the constellation is said to give a bold, courageous and intelligent nature, but the group depicting the head of the gorgon is considered quite evil. Perseus constellation simple english wikipedia, the. How to find perseus night sky guide we the curious. The constellation perseus, the hero, can be seen in late summer and autumn in the northern hemisphere. Like menkib, the system is very far away at a distance of 1,125 light years, and shines with a combined magnitude of 3. The internet classics archive on the nature of things by. Perseuso 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 gunters space page. I wander afield, thriving in sturdy thought, through unpathed. Lucretius refers to memmius by name four times in the first book, three times in the second. Frontpanel controls allow adjustment of source impedance and load capacitance for the ideal performance from any cartridge you choose. Perseus has been recognized as a constellation for at least 2,000 years.
Perseus, in greek mythology, the slayer of the gorgon medusa and the rescuer of andromeda from a sea monster. There are 11 stars that make up the main constellation. He was the son of jupiter and danae, and is best known for his killing of the gorgon medusa. On the nature of things work by lucretius britannica. Constellation families are collections of constellations sharing some defining characteristic, such as proximity on the celestial sphere, common historical origin, or common mythological theme.
Founded on andrews edition of freunds latin dictionary. The modern library of the worlds best books previous 1 20 of 39 next. Lucretius, on the nature of things loeb classical library. Draw a line from that star to the second star in the w and continue that line for about three times the distance between the two stars to find mirfak, the brightest star in perseus. In six books compounded of solid reasoning, brilliant imagination, and noble poetry, he expounds the scientific theories of the greek philosopher epicurus, with the aim of dispelling fear of the gods and fear of. This makes it the 24th largest constellation in the night sky. This page was last changed on 17 november 2014, at 05.
It was first charted by the greek astronomer ptolemy in the 2nd century. Dauria aerospace, a multinational aerospace company providing global data, communication and remote sensing information, and elecnor deimos, the technologyfocused subsidiary of elecnor, announced in may 2014 a joint partnership to develop deimos perseus, the first satellite constellation to provide frequent imaging of the entire earth. Start over series the modern library of the worlds best books remove constraint series. It is one of the 48 ancient constellations listed by the 2ndcentury astronomer ptolemy, and among the 88 modern constellations defined by the international astronomical union iau. Dottodot pattern a dottodot pattern was made and easily seen.
The constellation is one of the original constellations that was devised by the ancient grecoegyptian astronomer ptolemy who lived between 90 a. The characters in his story are represented by six constellations that occupy a substantial part of the sky. For one, mithras and perseus wore the socalled phrygian cap, which was only worn in the olden times by either persians or someone oriental, and, like perseus, mithras looks away from their victims. Perseus the breaker, two comets and the head of satan. In the western tradition, most of the northern constellations stem from ptolemys list in the almagest which in turn has roots that go back to mesopotamian astronomy, and most of the far southern. Content is available under the creative commons attributionsharealike license. These cards show 52 of the modern 88 constellations as designated by the international astronomical union. Perseus constellation jump to navigation jump to search. Perseus was the son of zeus and danae, the daughter of acrisius of argos. Andromeda insisted that their wedding be celebrated. It is visible at latitudes between 90 degrees and 35 degrees. The constellation depicting perseus lies in a prominent part of the milky way, which is perhaps why aratus termed him duststained. From east to west this constellation extends from roughly ra4h 50m to ra1h 30m.
After the marriage, andromeda left her country to live with perseus who later became the king of tiryns and mycenae. Perseus was believed to be from the underground chamber and mithras was born from the rock, both from underground caverns. Perseus constellation facts, mythology and how to find. Perseus is a northern constellation which appears highest in the evening sky in the months around november. Per, the hero and rescuer of andromeda from the jaws of cetus, is a large northern constellation, bordering on aries to the north and taurus to the south. Perseus is a midsized constellation with a total area of 615 square degrees. The boundary of the perseus constellation contains 7 stars that host known exoplanets. Perseus flew on until he spotted the beautiful maiden andromeda, who was chained to the rocky shore as a sacrifice to a sea monster. It is prominent from dark sites, having 16 stars of fourth magnitude or brighter. All 48 constellation figures from enoch depict the gospel of jesus christ. Book i book ii book iii book iv book v book vi card. Perseus is the 24th largest in terms of size in the night sky. On the nature of the universe is a didactic epic poem. Constellations activity book color and learn jacobson, ryan, nitzsche, shane on.
The constellation is circumpolar, so it is visible throughout the year, but best in winter and spring. Perseus is a constellation in the northern sky, being named after the greek mythological hero perseus. The figure of perseus ist thought to held the head of medusa in his hand the star beta per represents the evil eye of her. Myth about andromeda and perseus windows to the universe. Wikimedia commons has media related to perseus constellation. Ross exton of the live science team shows you how to find the constellation, along with algol the demon star. All the stars are beyond naked eye visibility, and all the planets are gas giants unlikely to harbour life. Pliny and hipparchus referred to this as a separate constellation and it was usual for the whole group to be referred to as perseus and the gorgons head. Perseus gives name to one of the constellation families. The constellation was named after the mythical hero perseus.
The figure of perseus is thought to hold the head of medusa in his hand the star beta per representing her evil eye. However, only two of these are prominent from lightpolluted locations. Perseus, the hero, arcs high overhead in fall and early winter. These perseus o satellites will be built by canopus. Perseus is visible from august to march in the northern hemisphere. All the stars are beyond naked eye visibility, and all.
This was a rather complex task, as anyone who saw her hideous face would be turned immediately to. The fall 2009 issue of the earth scientist, which includes articles on student research into building design for earthquakes and a classroom lab on the composition of the earths ancient atmosphere, is available. Constellation perseus astrology perseus constellation gives an intelligent, strong, bold. The stellar configuration is thought to resemble the greek hero perseus raising a diamond sword above his head with one hand while holding the decapitated head of the gorgon medusa in the other. Perseus promptly fell in love with her, killed the monster, and married the princess. In book ii, lucretius says instead that matter is always in the habit of. But much more than that, the book of enoch states that the angel uriel revealed them to the prophet enoch, long before the great flood. Perseus provides credit for all accepted changes, storing new additions in a versioning system. The constellation perseus represents the greek hero perseus in the sky and is one of the six constellations associated with the myth of perseus. The astronomica also known as the astronomicon, is a latin didactic poem about celestial. Oct 22, 2007 throughout the first three books of on the nature of the universe lucretius walks a thin line between philosophy, science and poetry.
Nov 20, 20 a project done at shsu for the stars and galaxies lab. The star figures in the sky form a very precise map of the heavens and display many allegories which have been preserved as greek myths. When you find perseus, look for the constellations cassiopeia, cepheus and andromeda. Perseus, constellation in the northern sky at about 4 hours right ascension and 40 north in declination. This work is licensed under a creative commons attributionsharealike 3. Perseus, named efter the greek meethological hero perseus, is a constellation in the northren sky. Perseus provides credit for all accepted changes, storing new additions in a versioning.
Swift tides of ether are by sky enclosed, and whirl around, seeking a passage out, and everywhere make roll the starry. On the nature of things by lucretius, part of the internet classics archive. It is visible in northerly areas of the southern hemisphere from mid spring to early summer. In six books compounded of solid reasoning, brilliant imagination, and noble poetry, he expounds the scientific theories of the greek philosopher epicurus, with the aim of dispelling fear of the gods and fear of death and so enabling man to attain peace of mind and happiness. An xml version of this text is available for download, with the additional restriction that you offer perseus any modifications you. Other constellations in the perseus group include andromeda, cassiopeia and pegasus. Constellation perseus the constellations on sea and sky. Locate the third star forming the w shape in cassiopeia, starting from the part of the constellation farthest from polaris. Lucretius regarded him as the spiritual savior of mankind. How to identify the perseus constellation thoughtco. Metamorophoses transformations is a narrative poem in fifteen books by the. In book 4 he sets out to prove once again that the universe is composed only of physical bits of matter called atoms and that gods did not create the cosmos nor do they intervene in human affairs. In his hand he holds the head of medusa, which is represented by the star algol. Learn more about the traditional story of perseus in this article.
There are six known planetary systems in the constellation perseus. These set the stage for his explanation of the diversity of bodies. Many of them have remained unchanged since antiquity, while others have been added in the past. Unfortunately, her parents had forgotten their promise to perseus.
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