She was the wife of King Cepheus and the mother of Andromeda.Ĭonvinced of her and her daughter's beauty, Cassiopeia claimed they were more beautiful than the daughters of the titan Nereus. In Greek mythology, the constellation represents the vain and self-confident queen Cassiopeia. In astronomical photographs, it appears as a blue nebula with a yellow-orange edge.Įmission nebula NGC 281, Pac-Man Nebula Mythology Its distance from earth is approximately 9,500 light-years. It has the catalog number NGC 281 and the nickname Pac-Man Nebula. In addition to the numerous open star clusters, an interesting emission nebula can also be found in Cassiopeia. As viewed through a telescope, the arrangement of its stars resembles an owl, with the brightest stars forming the eyes. It received its nickname due to its appearance. Even in binoculars, the star cluster can be perceived as a fuzzy patch.Īnother open star cluster is the so-called Owl Cluster, also known as NGC 457. M52 lies on the border to the constellation Cepheus, roughly along the extension of the right arm of the "W" shape. M52 is estimated to be around 60 million years old, and its distance to the sun is approximately 4,600 light-years. It was discovered by the French astronomer Charles Messier in 1774. One of the brightest open star clusters in the constellation is M52 (Messier 52), with an apparent magnitude of about 6.9. The constellation Cassiopeia is traversed by the Milky Way, which provides for a number of open star clusters and an emission nebula. To the west are the two constellations Perseus (southwest) and Camelopardalis. To the south lies the well-known Andromeda constellation. To the north and east lie Cepheus and Lacerta. It is a red giant located around 230 light-years from earth with an apparent magnitude of roughly 2.23.Ĭassiopeia is embedded between five other constellations in the night sky. The brightest star in the constellation is Shedar (Latin: α Cassiopeiae, Alpha Cassiopeiae). The middle tip of the letter points directly toward the direction of the North Star. They are arranged in the letter W or an upside-down M in the sky. The five main stars form the striking shape of Cassiopeia. It stretches over 598 square degrees of the night sky, ranking it 25th among the other 88 constellations. In southern regions, it can be best observed from October to February. In latitudes such as Central Europe or Canada, it is circumpolar, meaning it is visible all year round. This corresponds to places such as the north of Madagascar or Lima in Peru. South of the equator, it is visible only up to the 12th latitude. The constellation Cassiopeia is located in the northern sky and is visible from all regions of the northern hemisphere. It lies in a region of the sky rich in stars, resulting in several interesting deep-sky objects to observe. Cassiopeia symbolizes the seated queen and is one of the 48 constellations described by the Greco-Roman astronomer Claudius Ptolemy in ancient times.
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