Aquila (constellation)
| Constellation | |
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| Abbreviation | Aql |
|---|---|
| Genitive | Aquilae |
| Pronunciation |
/ˈækwᵻlə/ Áquila, occasionally /əˈkwɪlə/; genitive /ˈækwᵻliː/ |
| Symbolism | the Eagle |
| Right ascension | 18h 41m 18.2958s–20h 38m 23.7231s |
| Declination | 18.6882229°–−11.8664360° |
| Family | Hercules |
| Area | 652 sq. deg. (22nd) |
| Main stars | 10 |
|
Bayer/Flamsteed stars |
65 |
| Stars with planets | 9 |
| Stars brighter than 3.00m | 3 |
| Stars within 10.00 pc (32.62 ly) | 2 |
| Brightest star | Altair (α Aql) (0.76m) |
| Nearest star |
Altair (α Aql) (16.77 ly, 5.13 pc) |
| Messier objects | 0 |
| Meteor showers |
June Aquilids Epsilon Aquilids |
| Bordering constellations |
Sagitta Hercules Ophiuchus Serpens Cauda Scutum Sagittarius Capricornus Aquarius Delphinus |
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Visible at latitudes between +90° and −75°. Best visible at 21:00 (9 p.m.) during the month of August. |
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Aquila is a constellation on the celestial equator. Its name is Latin for 'eagle' and it represents the bird who carried Zeus/Jupiter's thunderbolts in Greco-Roman mythology.
Its brightest star, Altair, is one vertex of the Summer Triangle asterism. The constellation is best seen in the northern summer as it is located along the Milky Way. Because of this location along the line of our Galaxy, many clusters and nebulae are found within its borders, but they are dim and there are few galaxies.
Aquila was one of the 48 constellations described by the 2nd century astronomer Ptolemy. It had been earlier mentioned by Eudoxus in the 4th century BC and Aratus in the 3rd century BC.
It is now one of the 88 constellations defined by the International Astronomical Union. The constellation was also known as Vultur volans (the flying vulture) to the Romans, not to be confused with Vultur cadens which was their name for Lyra. It is often held to represent the eagle who held Zeus's/Jupiter's thunderbolts in Greco-Roman mythology. Aquila is also associated with the eagle who kidnapped Ganymede, a son of one of the kings of Troy (associated with Aquarius), to Mount Olympus to serve as cup-bearer to the gods.
Ptolemy catalogued nineteen stars jointly in this constellation and in the now obsolete constellation of Antinous, which was named in the reign of the emperor Hadrian (AD 117–138), but sometimes erroneously attributed to Tycho Brahe, who catalogued twelve stars in Aquila and seven in Antinous. Hevelius determined twenty-three stars in the first and nineteen in the second.
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