Crux Constellation | Constellations In The Southern Hemisphere
CRUX CONSTELLATION – In this topic, we are going to know and learn about the southern constellation Crux, the Cross.
It is a prominent constellation in the southern sky and the smallest of the 88 constellations.
It is one of the best known constellations in the southern hemisphere which is easily recognizable for the cross-shaped asterism known as the Southern Cross, which is formed by its five brightest stars.
It is also associated with a number of stories and it figures prominently in different mythologies in the southern hemisphere.
It houses the Coalsack Nebula, The Jewel Box, among others.
As the name suggests, it means “the cross” in Latin. The Greeks considered to be a part of the constellation Centaurus.
It is the smallest constellation and occupies an area of about 68 square degrees. It lies in SQ3, the third quadrant of the southern hemisphere.
Crux belongs to the Hercules family, along with Aquila, Ara, Centaurus, Corona Australis, Corvus, Crater, Cygnus, Hercules, Hydra, Lupus, Lyra, Ophiuchus, Sagitta, Scutum, Sextans, Serpens, Triangulum Australe, and Vulpecula.
Stars
Among the stars include:
- Acrux
- BZ Crucis
- Delta Crucis
- Epsilon Crucis
- Gacrux
- Ginan
- Imai
- Iota Crucis
- Lambda Crucis
- Mimosa
- NGC 4349-127
- Theta Crucis
- Tupã
- Zeta Crucis
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