{"id":14395,"date":"2022-07-04T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-07-03T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/?post_type=purple_issue&p=14395"},"modified":"2022-09-16T09:05:48","modified_gmt":"2022-09-16T07:05:48","slug":"astronomy-for-beginners-5","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/2022\/07\/04\/astronomy-for-beginners-5\/","title":{"rendered":"Astronomy for beginners"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
<\/div>
\n

ASTRONOMY FOR BEGINNERS<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

THE TEAPOT AND TEASPOON<\/span><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
WHEN: JULY AND AUGUST<\/span><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

At this time of year, low above the southern horizon, lurk two tea-related asterisms. An asterism is a pattern of stars which hasn\u2019t been officially recognised. In essence, anyone can create an asterism, but only the really relatable ones gain traction and stick. The tea-related asterisms both belong to Sagittarius the Archer.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sagittarius is so far south that from the UK it never fully rises. The bit that does rise contains a set of stars that resemble a teapot. It may take you a few minutes to sort out the view, but once you do, the pattern is quite striking. The two stars that form the apex and western base of the lid, along with the star marking the base of the spout, form the mythological centaur\u2019s bow. They are called, from north to south, Kaus Borealis, Kaus Meridionalis and Kaus Australis. \u2018Kaus\u2019 means \u2018bow\u2019, so here you have the northern, middle and southern bow. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have binoculars, take a look at where you\u2019d expect to see the steam rising out of the teapot\u2019s spout. This is a part of the sky where you can see a lot of deep-sky objects. This is because when you look out into space in this direction, you\u2019re facing the very heart of our Milky Way. Here you\u2019ll find the bright Lagoon Nebula (M8) and fainter Trifid Nebula (M20) above it, together with numerous rich clusters and star cloud regions further to the north. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To the northeast (upper-left) of the teapot sits a fainter and smaller asterism which is known as the Teaspoon. Although together the Teaspoon and Teapot may appear to trivialise the majesty of one of the night sky\u2019s constellations, their purpose is to make it easier to navigate around what would otherwise be a visually confusing part of the sky. PL <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section>\n\n

ILLUSTRATION: PETE LAWRENCE<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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