Download Draco: The Dragon - Courtney Stookey

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Draco: The Dragon
Courtney Stookey
Astronomy 1010
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Mythology:
The name Draco comes from the Latin term ‘draconem’, which means ‘huge serpent’. The Draco
constellation quite literally looks like a snake slithering through the northern sky. While it’s not a very
prominent constellation, it is still the 8th largest.
There are quite a few versions of Greek mythology that are linked to Draco. There are 3 main
contenders though. The most well-known myth is that the Draco constellation represents the story of
Ladon, a dragon that Heracles used to protect an apple tree. The Hercules constellation actually
neighbors the Draco constellation.
In this myth Hera received a wedding present when she married Zeus. The present was a golden
apple tree. Hera decided that she wanted to plan the tree in her garden, and asked Atlas’ daughter to
guard it. Hera was worried that Atlas’ daughers, the Hesperides, would end up picking apples from her
tree, so she decided to place the dragon Ladon near the tree to protect it from the Hesperides as well.
As part of 12 labours, Heracles we asked to steal apples from Hera’s tree. He ended up killing
Ladon using poisoned arrows to steal the apples. Hera was so upset with the death of Ladon that she
placed its image in the sky.
There is another legend of Draco that depicts him as the dragon that was killed by the goddess
Minerva. After killing the dragon, Minerva tossed him up into the sky to keep him there forever. After
she threw him, Draco became all twisted in himself and froze in the sky as he was so close to the North
Celestial Pole.
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In traditional Arabic astronomy Draco is viewed a little differently. Draco is depicted as two
hyenas that are represented by Eta Draconis and Zeta Draconis. They’re seen attacking a baby camel
which is represented by Beta Draconis. The baby camel is being protected by 4 other camels. The
owners of the camels are camped nearby, represented by a tripod composed of Upsilon, Tau, and Sigma
Draconis.
The Constellation and Stars
The Draco constellation is found in the northern hemisphere. Originally, it was charted by
Ptolemy in the 2nd century. The constellation is found in an area that is 1083 square degrees. “It can be
seen at latitudes between +90° and -15° and is best visible at 9 p.m. during the month of July. For many
observers in the northern hemisphere, Draco never sets below the horizon.” (TopAstronomer.com par.
4) Draco neighbors the following constellations; Bootes, Camelopardalis, Cepheus, Cygnus, Hercules,
Lyra, Ursa Major, and Ursa Minor.
At this time, we know that the Draco constellation is home to at least 9 stars that have known
planets. (Constellation Guide. par. 7). 3438 gamma Draconis, or Eltanin is the brightest star in the
constellation. The star is referred to as ‘the serpent’. This is an orange giant that is about 148 light years
distant. While Eltanin is the brightest star in the constellation, Thuban, or 3445 alpha Draconis, is not
very noticeable in comparison. This star is referred to as ‘the basilisk’. Thuban is a binary star that
includes a white giant and a red or white dwarf. These stars are more than 300 light years away from
Earth.
The Cat’s Eye Nebula, NGC 6543, is a planetary nebula that was formed by a bright, hot star. It is
about 3,000 light years away from Earth. This nebula was originally discovered by William Herschel back
in 1786. It got its name from its appearance in the Hubble Space telescope. This nebula is found in the
Draco galaxy as well.
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Cat’s Eye Nebula
There are quite a few smaller galaxies in the Draco galaxy. They aren’t quite as luminous, they’re
really rather faint. You’ll find the Draco Dwarf galaxy, and another dwarf galaxy named PGC 39058.
You’ll also find The Spindle Galaxy NGC 5866.
The Draco Galaxy is a satellite galaxy to the Milky Way. It only has a little bit of interstellar dust
because it mainly contains older stars. There are quite a few red giants, only 5 carbon stars, and 260
other variables.
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Objects of Interest
There are many stars worth mentioning in the Draco constellation. Thuban was actually the
northern pole star back in 3942 BC until 1793 BC. Egyptian Pyramids were designed to face the North
Star, and had special passages so that you could see Thuban at night. Based on the movement of
Thuban, it will be the North Pole star again in 21000 AD. This star is a blue-white giant star and has a
magnitude of 3.7. Thuban means ‘head of the serpent’ and lies about 309 light years away from Earth.
Gamma Draconis is the brightest star in the constellation. It is traditionally called Etamin or
Eltanin, but shares the meaning of its name with Thuban. Gamma Draconis has a magnitude of 2.2 and
is an orange giant star lying about 148 light years from Earth.
Constellations in Draco
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Works Cited
“Astronomy Picture of the Day.” NASA. 16 Oct. 2013. Web. 20 Nov. 2014.
“Draco.” Top Astronomer. n.d. Web. 20 Nov. 2014.
“Draco (Constellation).” Wikipedia. n.d. Web. 20 Nov. 2014.
“Draco Constellation.” Constellation Guide. n.d. Web. 20 Nov. 2014.
“Draco Constellation: Facts About the Dragon.” Space.com. 25 July 2012. Web. 20 Nov.
2014.