Pate 1

Laura Pate
Dr. Steward
Astronomy
Dec. 6
Astronomy Research
Project Overview
For my final project in this class I researched the constellations and selected several to
learn about their history, location in the sky, and the Greek mythology surrounding each of the
constellations. My project includes a picture of some (5-8) of the most well-known 88
constellations in the sky. I selected several of the more famous constellations like Orion, Leo,
and Scorpius as well as several others not so well known. To support my research I have
developed a web site that holds many resources for educators to use when teaching the K-12
science standards for astronomy. This e-project in Weebly includes lesson plans and numerous
teaching resources suitable for K-12 grade level students.
The reason that I would like to include the educational side of astronomy is that I feel
cheated myself by not having earlier studies in astronomy which would have helped me to
understand what we are learning in this class. I used a Weebly to collect my resources since they
are e-resources that a teacher would likely be using to teach this subject. This is a free e-website
for study projects for collecting electronic resources and used by students and teachers. By
developing this website I am learning to use technology to teach science as well as the actual
content of science.
This project connects to my past because one of my favorite memories is when I was a
little girl laying down in the ground with all the kids from the orphanage looking up on the stars
and trying to make signs out of them. We made up stories for each star we saw. We did not

Pate 2

realize that we were doing what had been done thousands of years before by early astronomers.
Study of the stars is also mentioned in the Bible and God has used the stars to communicate to
people throughout history such as the Star of Bethlehem. My research paper follows.

Constellations
History of Constellations
The earliest records seem to indicate that around 4000 BC the people of the
Mesopotamian culture studied the celestial objects including the sun, moon and stars. These
stories were passed from generation to generation and eventually the constellations became part
of the historical record. Homer mentioned constellations in his Odyssey poem and four hundred
years later constellations were mentioned by Eudoxus of Cnidus. Ptolemy observed celestial
bodies and made his own records based on his observations about 120-150 AD. He listed 48
constellations in his book called the Almagest. These early records were the beginning of current
constellation history (modern constellations) in 1536 the German globe maker, Vopel, added two
new constellations that he named Coma Berenices and Antinous to Ptolemys list of 48
constellations.
In 1919, the International Astronomical Union (IUA) was formed for the purpose of
sharing information about study of the constellations. At that time the IUA listed 88 official
constellations and those constellations became known to the astronomers around the world. This
organization helps astronomers keep the records and accurate information about stars together so
it is accessible for other researchers. In this way the history of constellations continues to grow
year by year.

Pate 3

What is a Constellation?
Constellations are patterns made up of nearby stars that are visible from planet Earth.
These stars form a pattern that people can easily recognize and name according to what they
know in nature. The constellations are not real patterns but a general pattern that helps scientists
navigate the sky. Over the years, people have attributed different stories to each constellation.
The constellations provide a sky map for astronomers to specify areas of space and regions of the
sky. Throughout history constellations have been studied and documented for scientific purposes.
What is a star?
Stars have been studied more thoroughly in the recent decades because of advanced
photography instruments. In 1990 the Hubble Telescope was launched and it provided the most
detailed and deep view of the universe. According to Choi (2014), Stars are giant, luminous
spheres of plasma. Scientists believe that there are billions of stars and billions of galaxies in
the universe. The largest and most visible stars have been given names that stem from cultural
stories and myths that have been passed down generation to generation. Stars give off light from
energy that it makes in its core like the sun which is the most famous star in our galaxy.
Betelgeuse is an example of a guide star. Guide stars serve as markers in the sky from which
other stars can be located. Scientists believe that high-mass stars can form and die quickly. Lowmass stars use hydrogen so slowly that they can shine for 100-million years. Stars make up the
constellations which form the patterns that are in the sky maps.

Five constellations A short study of each follows:

Pate 4

Orion

Orion the Hunter is visible during the Northern hemisphere winter in the Southern sky.
Orion is noted to have three super stars in his belt. He is a hunter attacking a bull. His shoulder
has a red superstar and his leg has a blue-white supergiant star. The myth has Orion and Scorpius
placed opposite to one another so they cannot be seen at the same time since they are enemies in
the sky.
Aquarius

Pate 5

Aquarius is one of the oldest constellations and some have begun to fade. It is located in
the Southern hemisphere and is the 10 largest constellation in the sky. The main star in Aquarius
is actually hard to see and find at night because it is one of the rare superstar giants. It has a
magnitude of 2.9 which is low for a star. In spite of this, Aquarius remains one of the most wellknown constellations in the sky. It is said in Greek mythology that Aquarius, known as
Ganymede was a handsome guy. Zeus invited him to Olympus to be the cupbearer for the gods
because of his pretty face. He did a good job and for that he was given the gift of youth and a
place in the sky. Unfortunately, Aquarius is hard to find in the sky because it is in the belt of the
Milky Way so its beauty is hard to appreciate.
Aquila

Pate 6

Aquila, an eagle, was one of Zeus pets, and is also the one to fly Ganymede to Olympus.
Aquila is next to the Milky Way band. Altair is the largest star in Aquila and it is the closet one
we can see from earth with the naked eye. From the ground we can see an upside down V which
represents the head and the wings, of the eagle, followed with a line of stars with represents the
body of Aquila. There are seven major stars in the Aquila constellation. Altair is one of these
stars and it is also the 12th brightest star in the sky.
Leo

Leo is located in the Northern hemisphere and is one of the earliest and most
recognizable constellations in the sky. It is easy to see Leo in the sky because the pointer star of
the Big Dipper points to Leo. It is the most visible in March through May. The myth that goes
with Leo is about the lion that had a thick skin that could not be punctured so he was very strong.
Hercules conquered Leo to save the humans from being eaten. Then Hercules put Leo up in the
sky as a reminder not to mess with humans any more.
Hercules Son of Zeus

Pate 7

Hercules is the Roman name for the Greek mythological figure, the son of Zeus. The
myths surrounding this constellation report the outrageous stories and adventures that Hercules
took. Hercules is located in the Northern hemisphere and is the fifth largest constellation in the
sky. This constellation has no first magnitude stars meaning that there are no stars in this
constellation that are majorly bright stars. Greek astronomers first categorized this constellation
in the second century. It can be seen in both the Northern and Southern hemispheres. It is in the
Northern hemisphere from April to November. It is visible in the Southern hemisphere between
June and September.
Astronomy K-12 e-Project
To learn more about constellations, please go to the following link to see my e-project
which features teaching resources for teaching astronomy in K-12 grades. I have selected K-12
teaching materials suitable for meeting the current science standards. The resources in my eproject web site include Ted Talks, U-Tube videos (for all ages of students), pictures, lesson
plans and supporting articles. This resource will be useful for teachers in preparation for teaching
the new science content K-12 standards. Young students will also enjoy using the resources

Pate 8

because they are fully engaging and informative. Kids like interactive resources and games that
help them learn difficult content. I like the beautiful pictures that can only be seen through the
lenses of the telescopes used by astronomers unless published in these websites. The use of these
resources make the photos and space exploration available to all people and not just the
scientists.

Pate 9

Resources
The supporting articles for my paper are included in my web site. I also like the following
websites as good resources for basic information.
1. Read more at: http://www.ducksters.com/science/physics/constellations.php
2. Star Facts: The Basics of Star Names and Stellar Evolution
By Charles Q. Choi, Space.com Contributor | December 16, 2014 09:41pm ET