When was constellation virgo discovered

If you think about it, we could travel to Heze and back to Earth twice before we would reach Spica — if it was possible! Big and bright — two exciting words to describe the Virgo constellation. But there are even more exciting Virgo facts you should know about:.

What is brighter than Spica? Not sure? The eye of your loved one if you name a star after them. You can name a star after anybody you like as a present or as a gesture of remembrance.

Learn the different ways to name a star after someone by visiting Star Name Registry , soon! Got it! Home » Constellations » virgo. Virgo Stary Constellation Mytholog Virgo is Latin for Virgin, which helps to explain some of the mythological stories connected to Virgo.

Source: Wikipedia. What Is the Brightest Star of Virgo? Here are some more cool facts about Spica: It is over light years away from Earth It is made up of two stars in close orbit It is a navigation star one of just 58 bright navigational stars! Where Is Virgo in the Sky? But there are even more exciting Virgo facts you should know about: The constellation includes a cluster of galaxies known as The Virgo Cluster.

This cluster may include as many as galaxies. Spica is found on the Brazilian national flag. It is not until late August or September when Virgo begins her descent under the horizon. Virgo is one of the 12 zodiac constellations that was first cataloged by the Greek astronomer Ptolemy in the 2nd century and it is the second-largest constellations in the sky; Hydra being the largest.

As the largest zodiac constellation, the Sun takes 44 days to pass through it, longer than any other on the ecliptic path.

Virgo also contains the autumn equinox point, which lies close to the star Beta Virginis they are east from the star Spica. This is due to the effects of precession. The autumn equinox is one of the two points in the sky where the celestial equator crosses the ecliptic; the other point is in the constellation Pisces. Virgo occupies an area of square degrees. Virgo lies between Leo to the west and Libra to the east. From there continue to follow that same curvature to locate Spica.

Virgo also has 20 stars with known planets, more than any other constellation. There are also two meteor showers associated with the constellation; the Virginids and the Mu Virginids. Spica is the brightest star in Virgo and also one of the brightest stars in the sky. It is a spectroscopic binary star and rotating ellipsoidal variable. This means it is a system whose two stars are so close together they are egg-shaped rather than spherical, and they can only be separated by their spectra.

The primary is a blue giant, as well as a variable star of the Beta Cephei type. However some sources differentiate instead of Denebola, the star Regulus the brightest star in Leo is the third star to make up the spring triangle. Although it is dimmer, Denebola is more equilateral for the asterism.

The Spring Triangle is an astronomical asterism involving an imaginary triangle drawn upon the celestial sphere. It is visible rising in the southeastern sky of the northern hemisphere between March and May. Beta Virginis belongs to the spectral class F9 V. It is only Porrima , Gamma Virginis, is a binary star. Both stars in the Gamma Virginis system are of the spectral type F0V and have similar visual magnitudes, 3. It is approximately light-years distant. Having an apparent magnitude of 3.

Delta Virginis is a high-velocity star. It has a visual magnitude of 2. Zeta Virginis is a main-sequence star of the spectral type A3 V. It is Eta Virginis is a triple star system in Virgo. This star can be seen with the naked eye. It has a visual magnitude of 3. This is a yellow star belonging to the spectral class F2III. It has an apparent magnitude of 3. It has a visual magnitude of 5. The star is believed to be evolving into a subgiant because it is brighter than most stars of its spectral type.

Chi Virginis is a binary star. It is approximately light-years distant, with an apparent magnitude of 4. Chi Virginis belongs to the spectral class K2 III, meaning that it is an orange giant, one that has a mass double that of the Sun.

It is times more luminous than the Sun. It has a magnitude of 4. It is approximately Virgo is the second largest constellation in the sky.

The only constellation larger in size is Hydra. Virgo is the second largest constellation in the sky, occupying an area of square degrees. It is one of the 15 equatorial constellations. Virgo also has 20 stars with known planets, more than any other constellation. The brightest star in the constellation is Spica, Alpha Virginis , with an apparent magnitude of 0.

The constellation Virgo contains 15 named stars. There are two meteor showers associated with the constellation; the Virginids and the Mu Virginids. The constellation Virgo is usually associated with the Greek goddess of justice, Dike. Dike was the daughter of Zeus and Greek Titaness Themis. Virgo is usually depicted with angel-like wings, with an ear of wheat in her left hand, marked by the bright star Spica. She is located next to Libra , the constellation representing the scales of justice.

Dike was also sometimes known as Astraeia, daughter of Astraeus, considered father of the stars, and Eos, goddess of the dawn. In Greek mythology, Dike lived in the Golden Age of mankind. She was born a mortal and placed on Earth to rule over human justice. The Golden Age was marked by prosperity and peace, everlasting spring, and humans never knowing old age. When Zeus fulfilled the old prophecy and overthrew his father, this marked the beginning of the Silver Age, which was not as prosperous.

Zeus introduced the four seasons and humans no longer honoured the gods as they had used to. Dike gave a speech to the entire race, warning them about the dangers of leaving behind the ideals of their predecessors and saying worse was yet to come. Then she flew to the mountains, turning her back on humans. When the Bronze and Iron Ages came and humans started warring among themselves, Dike left the Earth altogether, and flew to the heavens.

Historians Eratosthenes and Hyginus also associate the constellation Virgo with Tyche, the goddess of fortune, even though Tyche is usually depicted as holding the horn of plenty and not an ear of grain. Spica is the brightest star in Virgo and the 15th brightest star in the sky.

It has an apparent magnitude of 1. It is a rotating ellipsoidal variable star, which is to say a non-eclipsing close binary star system in which the two components do not eclipse each other, but are mutually distorted through their gravitational interaction.

It is one of the nearest massive double stars to the solar system. The primary star is midway between the subgiant and giant stage of evolution spectral class B1 III-IV and about 12, times brighter than the Sun.

The secondary component is a main sequence star of the spectral type B2 V. It is one of the rare examples of the Struve-Sahade effect, which occurs with double-lined spectroscopic binary stars when their spectral lines become weaker and shift toward the red end of the spectrum as the stars move away from the observer. When they approach the observer, however, the lines are shifted toward the blue end of the spectrum. The effect was first observed by the Russian astronomer Otto Struve in Located light years away, the primary star is one of the nearest stars sufficiently evolved and massive enough to go out as a Type II supernova.

Spica is classified as a Beta Cephei type variable star, which is to say a main sequence star that exhibits changes in brightness as a result of pulsations of its surface, and is at its brightest at the point of maximum contraction.

Spica was most likely the star that helped the Greek astronomer and mathematician Hipparchus discover precession of the equinoxes in BC. Nicolaus Copernicus, who was the first to propose a comprehensive heliocentric cosmology, displacing the Earth from the centre of the universe, also made numerous observations of Spica while researching precession.

Beta Virginis belongs to the spectral class F9 V and is only Even though it is designated beta, it is only the fifth brightest star in the constellation. Porrima, Gamma Virginis, is a binary star. Porrima is the name of two goddesses of prophecy, the Carmenae. The star is also sometimes known as Postvarta, Arich and Laouiyet al Aoua. Gamma Virginis has a visual magnitude of 2. Both stars in the Gamma Virginis system are of the spectral type F0V and have similar visual magnitudes, 3.

Delta Virginis is a red giant belonging to the spectral class M3 III, approximately light years distant. It has an apparent magnitude of 3. It has a mass 1. Delta Virginis is a high-velocity star, moving at the speed of more than 30 km s—1 relative to the motion of the neighbouring stars.

The star is classified as a semiregular variable and its brightness varies between 3. It is a suspected binary star with an 11th magnitude star — a K-type dwarf — located 80 arc seconds away. The dwarf is believed to orbit the star with a period of over , years, but this has not been confirmed. Epsilon Virginis is the third brightest star in Virgo. It has a visual magnitude of 2.

The star is a giant belonging to the spectral class G8 III. It is about 77 times more luminous than the Sun. Zeta Virginis is a main sequence star of the spectral type A3 V. The origin of its traditional name, Heze, is unknown.

Eta Virginis is a triple star system in Virgo. It has a visual magnitude of 3. It has the stellar classification A2 V. The system is light years distant. The inner two stars are only 0. The third star is a bit more distant and orbits the inner pair with a period of It has an apparent magnitude of 2.

It has a visual magnitude of 5. The star is believed to be evolving into a subgiant because it is brighter than most stars of its spectral type. Chi Virginis is another binary star in Virgo. It is approximately light years distant and has an apparent magnitude of 4.