Constellation Andromeda: legend, location, interesting objects

According to ancient legends, most of the known constellations represent immortal events of the distant past. Powerful gods put heroes and various creatures in the sky in memory of their accomplishments, and sometimes in punishment for misdemeanors. Often in this way, eternal life was granted. The constellation of Andromeda is included in the number of similar celestial drawings. It is famous, however, not only for its legend: on its territory is the famous neighbor of the Milky Way and several other interesting space objects.

Mythological plot

Andromeda in the ancient Greek legends was the daughter of the king of Ethiopia Kefei (Cepheus) and his wife Cassiopeia. There are several variants of the legend associated with the constellation. According to one of them, the beautiful Andromeda was so beautiful that the Nereid maidens envied her. They suffered and withered in front of their eyes. Poseidon decided to correct the situation by sending a terrible monster to Ethiopia. It every day went ashore and destroyed villages, killing residents. Cafey turned to the Oracle for advice and learned that to stop the disaster, you need to give the monster Andromeda. Sad parents still chained her daughter to the rock and left it until the monster arrived. However, the tragedy did not happen: Perseus came to the aid of the beauty, flew past and fell in love with Andromeda at first sight. He defeated the monster with the help of the head of Medusa Gorgon and married a beautiful virgin. Since that time there is this constellation. Perseus and Andromeda are now shining in heaven. The gods immortalized in the boundless expanses of the cosmos also Cassiopeia, Cefei and even a sea monster.

Location

The constellation of Andromeda has a well recognizable form: three chains of luminaries diverging from one point. This heavenly figure occupies a vast area and is one of the largest in both hemispheres. The brightest star in the constellation Andromeda, the one from which the chains begin, is located on the border with the image of Pegasus. Until the 17th century, the star was considered to belong to both celestial drawings. This star is the northern corner of Pegasus Big Square.

Andromeda can be admired throughout the vast territory of Russia. In summer and in September it is located on the eastern side of the sky, and in late autumn and early winter - in the southern part of it.

Alpha

The brightest point of this heavenly figure is Alferac (alpha Andromeda). Finally, it was fixed in the constellation described in 1928. In Ptolemy, Alferac belonged to Pegasus. The name itself testifies to the history of the luminary: it means in translation from Arabic "navel horse".

The Alferac is a white and blue sub-gigant, emitting 200 times more light than the Sun. In addition, it is the main component of the binary system. His companion shines 10 times less.

Alfarats A is one of the brightest representatives of an unusual class of mercury-manganese stars. The high concentration in the atmosphere of metals in the name of the type is explained by the difference in the effect of the gravity of the light and its internal pressure on various chemical elements.

Alferac also refers to variable stars. The range of gloss is from +2,02 m to +2,06 m. Changes occur with a period of 23.19 hours.

Nebula

The constellation Andromeda is known to many not because of the impressive size or beauty of the luminaries, but because of the M31 galaxy located on its territory. The famous neighbor of the Milky Way - one of the few such objects that can be seen with the naked eye. The Andromeda nebula is located somewhat higher than the Mirah (Beta Andromeda) star. In order to consider the structure of the galaxy, at least binoculars will be required.

The Andromeda nebula is more than twice the size of the Milky Way and has about 1 trillion stars. Next to it are also two satellites: galaxies M32 and NGC 205. The distance from the Sun to three objects is more than 2 million light years.

Supernova

The constellation Andromeda became the object of observation of many astronomers in 1885. Then it lit up with a supernova flash . It was the first such object found outside the Milky Way. Supernova S Andromeda is located in the eponymous galaxy and is still the only such space body in it. The maximum brightness shone reached 21-22 August 1885 (it was 5.85 m). After six months, it decreased to 14 m.

Today, the Andromeda is classified as a type Ia supernova, although its orange color and the light curve do not correspond to the accepted description of such objects.

The constellation Andromeda, photos of objects, its components, the image of the neighboring galaxy quite often flashes in the media. And it is not surprising: the vast space occupied by the heavenly figure can tell a lot about the laws of the cosmos and the interconnection of its separate parts. Many telescopes are aimed at here in the hope of obtaining new information about remote objects.