Name that constellation

Name that constellation

Author
Discussion

Scabutz

Original Poster:

8,164 posts

87 months

Wednesday 19th December 2018
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I was pointing out some constellations to my daughter the other night, the main ones I know, others I was using the Sky map app.

There was one that took our interest that we couldn't work out what it was. It's too small to get a fix from the app. Its a cluster of lots of stars very tight together, shapped kinda like a squashed P. It's positioned to the right of Orion as you look at it. A little way to the right. Quite faint.

Can someone tell us what it's called please?

Beati Dogu

9,193 posts

146 months

Wednesday 19th December 2018
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Sounds like the Pleiades cluster in the Taurus constellation.

Mykap

643 posts

195 months

Wednesday 19th December 2018
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Yep. Commonly known as the Seven Sisters

Scabutz

Original Poster:

8,164 posts

87 months

Wednesday 19th December 2018
quotequote all
Yes that's it, thanks guys. My dad will be annoyed. He was big into star gazing when I was young and I remember now him talking about the 7 sisters.


stew-STR160

8,006 posts

245 months

Thursday 20th December 2018
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Also used by Subaru on their badge/logo.

Eric Mc

122,856 posts

272 months

Thursday 20th December 2018
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Unlike most constellations - which are simple "join the dot exercises" of stars which are not really close to each other, the Pleiades is a genuinely associated group of stars known as an "open cluster". It is a group of hundreds of young stars which are emerging out of their birth nebula. Telescopic images show the gas cloud still surrounds the cluster.


Beati Dogu

9,193 posts

146 months

Thursday 20th December 2018
quotequote all
stew-STR160 said:
Also used by Subaru on their badge/logo.
Indeed. Subaru is the Japanese name for the Pleiades.

Gandahar

9,600 posts

135 months

Saturday 29th December 2018
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Beati Dogu said:
stew-STR160 said:
Also used by Subaru on their badge/logo.
Indeed. Subaru is the Japanese name for the Pleiades.
I once owned a Ford Orion, 1.6i Ghia . GM has the Saturn of course.

What space named cars have you owned?

Beati Dogu

9,193 posts

146 months

Saturday 29th December 2018
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None that I can think of.

Saturn as a car brand got the chop back in 2010. Likewise Ford's Mercury brand, which stopped production in 2011.

Eric Mc

122,856 posts

272 months

Saturday 29th December 2018
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There is a brand of motorhome called Luna.

eharding

14,148 posts

291 months

Saturday 29th December 2018
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Ford Galaxy?

Edited: ...never owned one though.

julianm

1,592 posts

208 months

Saturday 29th December 2018
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You could always get a Royal Enfield Constellation:

Eric Mc

122,856 posts

272 months

Saturday 29th December 2018
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Aircraft are a better bet when it comes to space related names. Lockheed in particular used star and constellation type names for many of their aircraft.

Orion
Vega
Constellation
Neptune
Starfighter
Tristar
Shooting Star
Starlifter
Galaxy

67Dino

3,630 posts

112 months

Saturday 29th December 2018
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Mitsubishi had the Colt Starion. Always thought it’s an urban myth that the name comes from a Japanese attempt to pronounce stallion, and indeed a quick search suggests it is a shorted form of "Star of Arion”.

Plus there was a Mercury Comet...


Eric Mc

122,856 posts

272 months

Saturday 29th December 2018
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67Dino said:
and indeed a quick search suggests it is a shorted form of "Star of Arion”.
What is Arion?

Beati Dogu

9,193 posts

146 months

Sunday 30th December 2018
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Eric Mc said:
What is Arion?
Hercules' horse (among other owners from Greek mythology). He was immortal, so I'm not sure who owns him now.

Eric Mc

122,856 posts

272 months

Sunday 30th December 2018
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Is he in the sky somewhere?

Beati Dogu

9,193 posts

146 months

Thursday 3rd January 2019
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No, sadly not.

Another Arion from Greek mythology was a human poet & musician who escaped from pirates on a dolphin (as you do). This particular dolphin was later "catasterised" (placed among the stars) as the constellation Delphinus (Latin for dolphin).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delphinus