The constellation of Cetus, the Sea Monster // E. Slawik/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/M. Zamani
Click below for some info about this constellation, its mythology, and the named stars here! And, of course, an annotated image!
Cetus, the Sea Monster (also called the Whale), is one of the original 48 constellation laid down by Greek astronomy Ptolemy in the 2nd century.
It shares its name with the sea monster from Greek mythology. In the most well-known story, Queen Cassiopeia boasted that she and her daughter, Andromeda, were more beautiful than the Nereids, invoking the wrath of Poseidon who sent Cetus to terrorize their lands of Ethiopia. In order to save their kingdom, King Cepheus and Queen Cassiopeia were told to sacrifice their daughter to the monster, chaining her to a cliffside in full view of the monster.
Thankfully, Perseus happened to be flying by after having slain Medusa, and managed to slay Cetus as well.
The named stars, in order of brightness, are:
Diphda (β Ceti), the brightest star in Cetus and an orange giant star about 96 light years away. Its name comes from the Arabic phrase aḍ-ḍifdaʿ aṯ-ṯānī meaning "the second frog."
Menkar (α Ceti) is a red giant star about 249 light years from Earth. Its name comes from the Arabic word manħar meaning "nostril," marking its place in the body of Cetus.
Mira (ο Ceti) is a binary star system about 300 light years from Earth. It is a very well-known star system, and is the prototype of a class of variable stars. The system consists of a red giant and a white dwarf, where the white dwarf is accreting the upper layers of the red giant's atmosphere. Its name comes from the Latin word mira meaning "wonderful."
Kaffaljidhma (γ Ceti) is a triple star system about 80 light years away. The system consists of two blue-white giants and a red dwarf star. The name comes from the Arabic phrase al-kaf al-jaðmāʾ meaning "the cut-short hand."
Baten Kaitos (ζ Ceti) is a binary star system consisting of at least one orange giant star. The entire system lies about 253 light years away. Its name comes from the Arabic phrase batn qaytus meaning "belly of the sea monster."
Hydor (2 Ceti) is a solitary blue giant star about 272 light years away. Its name comes from the Greek word hydor meaning "water."
Axólotl (HD 224693) is a solitary Sun-like star about 308 light years away. It has a single confirmed planet orbiting it named Xólotl, slightly less massive than Jupiter. Both names were given by the people of Mexico: Axólotl meaning "water animal" in the native Nahuatl language, and Xólotl means "animal".
Felixvarela (BD-17 63) is a solitary red dwarf star about 112 light years away. It has a single confirmed planet orbiting it named Finlay, about 5 times more massive than Jupiter. Both names were given by the people of Cuba: Felixvarela is named after Cuban independence leader and priest Felix Varela (1788-1853), while Finlay is named after Cuban epidemiologist Carlos Juan Finlay (1833-1915) who pioneered research in yellow fever.
Mpingo (WASP-71) is a solitary Sun-like star about 1,160 light years away. It has a single planet orbiting it named Tanzanite, about twice the mass of Jupiter. Both names came from the people of Tanzania: Mpingo refers to the mpingo tree whose wood is used in musical instruments, and Tanzanite refers to the mineral of the same name.
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