DEAN:
HEY THERE STAR GAZERS.
I'M DEAN REGAS, ASTRONOMER FOR THE CINCINNATI
OBSERVATORY.
JAMES:
AND I'M JAMES ALBURY, DIRECTOR OF THE KIKA
SILVA PLA PLANETARIUM IN GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA.
WE'RE HERE TO HELP YOU FIND YOUR WAY AROUND
THE SKY TONIGHT.
THE SUMMER TRIANGLE
IS RIDING HIGH IN THE SKY THIS WEEK AND IF
YOUVE WATCHED OUR SHOW OVER THE YEARS,
YOU'LL KNOW THAT WE OFTEN TALK ABOUT TWO OF
ITS CONSTELLATIONS; CYGNUS THE SWAN AND LYRA
THE HARP.
DEAN:
BUT THERES A THIRD CONSTELLATION THAT
WE HAVEN'T REALLY DISCUSSED IN DETAIL AND
THATS AQUILA THE EAGLE.
JAMES:
THATS RIGHT, DEAN!
SO THIS WEEK, WE'VE DECIDED TO SHOW AQUILA
SOME LOVE
AND INTRODUCE YOU TO THE CONSTELLATION THAT
REPRESENTS ZEUS
PET EAGLE.
LETS SHOW YOU!
JAMES:
OK, WE HAVE OUR SKIES SET UP FOR AN HOUR AFTER
SUNSET,
FACING SOUTHEAST.
LOOKING HIGH IN THE SKY, WE SEE THE SUMMER
TRIANGLE.
THE THREE BRIGHTEST STARS ARE VEGA, ALTAIR
AND DENEB.
WE'RE GOING TO FOCUS ON ALTAIR, BECAUSE THAT
IS THE BRIGHTEST STAR IN THE CONSTELLATION
AQUILA THE EAGLE.
DEAN:
AQUILA IS BEST KNOWN AS THE PET EAGLE BELONGING
TO ZEUS,
THE KING OF THE GREEK GODS.
AQUILA HAD THE JOB OF HOLDING ZEUS LIGHTNING
BOLTS, BUT HE WAS ALSO KNOWN FOR KIDNAPPING
GANYMEDE AND BRINGING HIM TO MOUNT OLYMPUS
TO BE ZEUS DIVINE DRINK SERVER.
JAMES:
THE BRIGHTEST STAR IN AQUILA IS ALTAIR.
ALTAIR IS
17 LIGHT YEARS FROM EARTH AND IS ONE
OF THE CLOSEST STARS VISIBLE TO THE
NAKED EYE.
DEAN:
ALTAIR HAS THE RARE DISTINCTION OF BEING THE
FASTEST ROTATING STAR IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
OUR SUN FOR EXAMPLE TAKES 25 DAYS TO SPIN
ONCE, BUT ALTAIR SPINS ONCE IN ONLY 9 HOURS!
THIS HAS RESULTED IN ALTAIR BEING SO DISTORED
THAT IT RESEMBLES AN M&M.
DEAN:
THE SEMI-BRIGHT STAR ABOVE ALTAIR IS TARAZED.
ITS AN ORANGE GIANT STAR 460 LIGHT YEARS FROM
US AND OVER 2500 TIMES AS BRIGHT
AS OUR SUN.
JAMES:
THE SEMI-BRIGHT STAR BELOW ALTAIR IS ALSHAIN
ITS A BINARY STAR SYSTEM 45 LIGHT YEARS FROM
EARTH.
THE PRIMARY STAR,
IS A YELLOW SUBGIANT ONLY 30% MORE MASSIVE
THAN OUR SUN, AND THREE TIMES THE RADIUS.
DEAN:
THE SMALLER COMPANION STAR IS A RED DWARF
ONLY A THIRD THE MASS OF THE SUN WITH ONLY
2% OUR SUNS LUMINOSITY.
TALK ABOUT A TINY STAR!
JAMES:
YOU MIGHT BE SURPRISED TO KNOW THAT AQUILA
THE EAGLE HAS 143 STARS THAT ASTRONOMERS CONSIDER
NOTEWORTHY.
HOWEVER, ONLY A HANDFUL OF THEM YOU CAN SEE
FROM A LIGHT POLLUTED CITY.
DEAN:
AQUILA IS ALSO ONE OF THOSE CONSTELLATIONS
WHERE THE BAYER DESIGNATION GETS A LITTLE
WEIRD.
DEVELOPED BY ASTRONOMER JOHANN BAYER, THE
GREEK LETTER DESIGNATION FOR STARS MOST OF
THE TIME WAS BASED
ON THE STARS BRIGHTNESS;
ALPHA BEING THE BRIGHTEST, BETA THE SECOND
BRIGHTEST
AND SO ON.
WELL, IN AQUILA THATS NOT THE CASE.
JAMES:
THE SEVEN BRIGHTEST STARS IN ORDER OF BRIGHTNESS
ARE,
1.
ALTAIR IS
ALPHA
2.
TARAZED IS
GAMMA
3.
OKAB IS -
ZETA
4.
ALMIZAN 3 IS
THETA
5.
ALMIZAN 1 IS
DELTA
6.
AL THALI-MAIN PRIOR
IS LAMBDA
AND LASTLY,
7.
ALSHAIN IS
BETA.
DEAN:
WEIRD.
JAMES:
DID YOU KNOW THAT AQUILA THE EAGLE THAT WE
RECOGNIZE TODAY
IS ACTUALLY A COMBINATION OF THE ORIGINAL
AQUILA AND
A NOW OBSOLETE CONSTELLATION THAT WAS NEARBY?
DEAN:
THATS RIGHT, JAMES.
LIKE BOOTES THE HERDSMAN
(THAT NOW INCLUDES THE DEFUNCT CONSTELLATION
QUANDRANS MURALIS), AQUILA ACQUIRED THE STARS
OF THE EQUALLY DEFUNCT CONSTELLATION ANTINOUS
.
JAMES:
ANTINOUS WAS CREATED BY THE ROMAN EMPEROR
HADRIAN IN 132 A.D.
IN HONOR OF HIS YOUTHFUL COMPANION OF THE
SAME NAME .
AS THE CENTURIES PASSED, ANTINOUS WAS LATER
DEMOTED TO AN ASTERISM WITHIN AQUILA AND EVENTUALLY
DISCARDED WHEN THE INTERNATIONAL ASTRONOMICAL
UNION FORMALIZED THE CONSTELLATIONS IN 1930.
DEAN:
THE STARS ALMIZAN 3, ALMIZAN 2 AND ALSHAIN
ARE WHERE ANTINOUS USED TO BE.
YOU CAN FIND THEM IN THE EASTERN PORTION OF
AQUILA.
DEAN:
SO CHECK OUT AQUILA THE EAGLE AND IT'S MANY
INTERESTING STARS TONIGHT.
JAMES:
WOW!
SO MANY NEAT THINGS TO SEE WHEN YOU REMEMBER
TO
BOTH:
KEEP LOOKING UP!