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Name _______________________ Date ___________ Pd _______
FAMOUS (BRIGHTEST) STARS OF THE ZODIAC
Constellations are comprised of stars and stars need names, too! To discover the ancient and modern
names of the brightest stars that make up the zodiacal constellations (and how brightness is indicated),
and to give you a chance to explore Stellarium, do this assignment today.
1. Open Stellarium. Moving your cursor up the left side or over the bottom left brings out two bars.
Hovering over a picture tells you what the option is. Under Sky and Viewing Options first
TURN OFF the atmosphere. Then, under Sky and Viewing Options /Markings, select Ecliptic
Line and Equator Line and Show lines, Show labels, Show boundaries of constellations. In
the Landscape menu, unclick Show ground.
2. Here is a pneumonic to remember the twelve constellations in order. It is supposed to help with
memorizing the constellations of the zodiac, in the order that the Sun passes through them
during the year.
The ramble twins crave liverish
Scaly scorpions are good water fish
(ram bull twins crab li-on vir-gin)
(scales scorpion ar-cher goat waterboy fish)
3. Using Stellarium to help you find the names of the zodiacal constellations and their brightest
stars, fill in the chart on the reverse side. The circle is the ecliptic going through the twelve
constellations indicated by big arrows. Label each big arrow with the name of the
constellation and try to start remembering each shape. I have done one for you.
4. The fifteen small arrows indicate the most notable, usually the brightest, stars in each
constellation. Sadly, some zodiacal constellations do not have very bright stars. Label each
small arrow with the COMMON NAME (not just alpha or beta) of each star. Use the cursor
to click on the star and information will show in upper left of screen. I have done one for you.
Notice the magnitude and absolute magnitudes of the stars in the info.
5. Next to each star name, use the web to help you find the english translation of each star name.
You can use the website http://www.naic.edu/~gibson/starnames/starnames.html to discover the
meanings of the names or you can search some other way. Put the english meanings in
parentheses ( ) next to each common star name. I have done one for you.
6. Exit the program, then open Stellarium. Setting the Location Window to Palmer, Ak and the
Date/Time Window between 10pm and 5am, what planets of our solar system would we be able
to see on a clear night? _________________________________________________________
7. Which direction should we look for each object, what time?
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8. Explore stellarium on your own.
Cr. Tony Maranto, alt. Traci Sanders
Hamal (ram)
Aries