Ophiuchus+-+Rocky+McGredy

Rocky McGredy Prof. Adkins ASTRO 010-0047 5/05/2015 Ophiuchus



Ophiuchus is a large constellation—with an area of 948 square degrees— in the night sky, appearing along the ecliptic with the other Zodiac signs; although not formally considered part of the Zodiac until 2011 (Zimmermann, 2013). Ophiuchus is located northwest of the center of the milky way. Some adjacent constellations are Aquila, Serpens, and Hercules. The constellation opposite of Ophiuchus is Orion. (Zimmermann, 2013). The constellation was first observed in the second century, along with the other Zodiac constellations. It was noted by Greek astronomer, Ptolemy. The name Ophiuchus is Greek for “serpent-bearer,” and the image associated with the constellation is of a man holding a serpent. In Greek mythology, Ophiuchus is associated with Asclepius; son of Apollo. Asclepius had the ability to raise the dead and heal people (Ophiuchus Constellation, 2015). In the myth, Asclepius learned the secret to immorality by watching serpents treat one another with herbs. This mythology is likely the reason why images of Ophiuchus and the serpent are associated with the health care professions in modern society. (Zimmermann, 2013). In other cultures today, Ophiuchus is generally identified as such— since it is one of the oldest recorded constellations; but ancient cultures had other interpretations of Ophiuchus as well. These interpretations also involved serpents. Ancient Babylonians spoke of the serpent god Nirah, a human with serpents for legs (Ophuichus Constellation, 2015). This is thought to be an even earlier depiction of what is now known as Ophiuchus. In Islamic astronomy, Ophiuchus is known as “Al Hawwa” the snake charmer (Allen, 2015). Ophiuchus contains many different notable stars and celestial bodies. Barnard’s star, a red dwarf star, is the second closest star to the Earth— and it is contained within the constellation. The head of Ophiuchus, alpha Ophiuchi, is an A-type giant. It is notable that alpha Ophiuchi is a binary formation. This star is also known as “Rasalhague,” the name is derived from “Ras Al Hawwa,” which pertains to the Islamic origin mentioned earlier. The constellaion contains many star clusters. One notable cluster is M10— because of it’s brighter magnitude of 6.6, it is sometimes viewable by the naked eye (Zimmermann, 2013). Ophiuchus also houses the closest observable supernova. The supernova was first discovered by Johannes Kepler on October 9th in 1604AD, and is appropriately named Kepler’s supernova. Kepler’s supernova is a Type Ia supernova— it is the result of an exploded white dwarf star. The remnants are still viewable today. The celestial body is assymetrical, composed of iron-rich materials. (Kepler’s Supernova, 2015) Aside from being a great candidate for an observable supernova, Ophiuchus also contains many binary stars. Eta Ophiuchi, Lambda Ophiuchi, Xi Ophiuchi, Rho Ophiuchi, Tau Ophuchi, 36 Ophuchi, 70 Ophiuchi, and Struve 2276 are all binary stars contained within Ophiuchius (Dibon-Smith, 2015). There is also a pipe nebula, B78, located two degrees southeast of Theta Ophiuchi— another star within Ophiuchus. (Dibon-Smith, 2015) As you can see, Ophiuchus is a very dense constellation with all sorts of different observable phenomena— so do yourself a favor and point your telescope towards Ophiuchus!

Bibliography "Kepler's Supernova, a Supernova Remnant in Ophiuchus." Annes Astronomy News. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 May 2015. .

Dibon-Smith, Richard. "Ophiuchus." The Constellations. N.p., 2015. Web. 5 May 2015. .

"Ophiuchus Constellation." Constellation Guide. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 May 2015. .

Zimmermann, Kim A. "Ophiuchus: Facts about the Snake Bearer." Space.com. Space.com, 27 June 2013. Web. 5 May 2015. .

Allen, Richard H. "The History of the Star: Ras Alhague." Constellationsofwords.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 5 May 2015. .