Dorado
Encyclopedia
Dorado is a constellation
in the southern sky. It was created in the late 16th century
and is now one of the 88 modern constellations. Its name refers to the dolphinfish
(Coryphaena hippurus), which is known as dorado in Spanish, although it has also been depicted as a swordfish
. Dorado is notable for containing most of the Large Magellanic Cloud
, the remainder being in the constellation Mensa
. The South ecliptic pole
also lies within this constellation.
Even though the name Dorado is not Latin
but Spanish, astronomers give it the Latin genitive form Doradus when naming its stars; they are treating it (like the adjacent constellation Argo Navis
) as if it were a feminine proper name of Greek origin ending in -ō (like Io or Callisto or Argo), names that have a genitive ending in -ūs.
from the observations of Pieter Dirkszoon Keyser
and Frederick de Houtman
, and it first appeared on a 35-cm diameter celestial globe published in 1597 (or 1598) in Amsterdam by Plancius with Jodocus Hondius
. Its first depiction in a celestial atlas was in Johann Bayer
's Uranometria
of 1603 where it was also named Dorado. The constellation was also known in the 17th and 18th century as Xiphias, the swordfish
, first attested in Johannes Kepler
's edition of Tycho Brahe
's star list in the Rudolphine Tables
of 1627. The name Dorado ultimately become dominant and was adopted by the IAU
.
, it is rich in deep sky objects. All coordinates given are for Epoch J2000.0.
, the stars of Dorado are located in two of Xu Guangqi
's Southern Asterisms (近南極星區, Jìnnánjíxīngōu): the White Patches Attached (夾白,Jiābái) and the Goldfish (金魚, Jīnyú ).
Constellation
In modern astronomy, a constellation is an internationally defined area of the celestial sphere. These areas are grouped around asterisms, patterns formed by prominent stars within apparent proximity to one another on Earth's night sky....
in the southern sky. It was created in the late 16th century
16th century
As a means of recording the passage of time, the 16th century lasted from 1501 to 1600. It is regarded by historians as the century in which the rise of the West occurred....
and is now one of the 88 modern constellations. Its name refers to the dolphinfish
Coryphaenidae
The Coryphaenidae are a family of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the Order Perciformes. The family contains only one genus, Coryphaena, which contains two species, both of which have compressed heads and single dorsal fins that run the entire length of the fish's bodies...
(Coryphaena hippurus), which is known as dorado in Spanish, although it has also been depicted as a swordfish
Swordfish
Swordfish , also known as broadbill in some countries, are large, highly migratory, predatory fish characterized by a long, flat bill. They are a popular sport fish of the billfish category, though elusive. Swordfish are elongated, round-bodied, and lose all teeth and scales by adulthood...
. Dorado is notable for containing most of the Large Magellanic Cloud
Large Magellanic Cloud
The Large Magellanic Cloud is a nearby irregular galaxy, and is a satellite of the Milky Way. At a distance of slightly less than 50 kiloparsecs , the LMC is the third closest galaxy to the Milky Way, with the Sagittarius Dwarf Spheroidal and Canis Major Dwarf Galaxy lying closer to the center...
, the remainder being in the constellation Mensa
Mensa (constellation)
Mensa is a constellation in the southern sky, created in the 18th century. Its name is Latin for table. It covers a keystone-shaped wedge of sky stretching from approximately 4h to 7.5h of right ascension, and −71 to −85.5 degrees of declination. Other than the south polar constellation...
. The South ecliptic pole
Ecliptic pole
The ecliptic pole is the point on the celestial sphere where the sphere meets the imaginary line perpendicular to the ecliptic plane, the path the Earth travels on its orbit around the Sun.There are two ecliptic poles:...
also lies within this constellation.
Even though the name Dorado is not Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
but Spanish, astronomers give it the Latin genitive form Doradus when naming its stars; they are treating it (like the adjacent constellation Argo Navis
Argo Navis
Argo Navis was a large constellation in the southern sky that has since been divided into three constellations. It represented the Argo, the ship used by Jason and the Argonauts in Greek mythology...
) as if it were a feminine proper name of Greek origin ending in -ō (like Io or Callisto or Argo), names that have a genitive ending in -ūs.
History
Dorado was one of twelve constellations created by Petrus PlanciusPetrus Plancius
Petrus Plancius was a Dutch astronomer, cartographer and clergyman. He was born as Pieter Platevoet in Dranouter, now in Heuvelland, West Flanders. He studied theology in Germany and England...
from the observations of Pieter Dirkszoon Keyser
Pieter Dirkszoon Keyser
Pieter Dirkszoon Keyser , a.k.a. Petrus Theodori, was a Dutch navigator who mapped the southern sky....
and Frederick de Houtman
Frederick de Houtman
Frederick de Houtman , or Frederik de Houtman, was a Dutch explorer who sailed along the Western coast of Australia en route to Batavia.-Biography:...
, and it first appeared on a 35-cm diameter celestial globe published in 1597 (or 1598) in Amsterdam by Plancius with Jodocus Hondius
Jodocus Hondius
Jodocus Hondius , sometimes called Jodocus Hondius the Elder to distinguish him from his son Henricus Hondius II, was a Flemish artist, engraver, and cartographer...
. Its first depiction in a celestial atlas was in Johann Bayer
Johann Bayer
Johann Bayer was a German lawyer and uranographer . He was born in Rain, Bavaria, in 1572. He began his study of philosophy in Ingolstadt in 1592, and moved later to Augsburg to begin work as a lawyer. He grew interested in astronomy during his time in Augsburg...
's Uranometria
Uranometria
Uranometria is the short title of a star atlas produced by Johann Bayer.It was published in Augsburg, Germany, in 1603 by Christophorus Mangus under the full title Uranometria : omnium asterismorum continens schemata, nova methodo delineata, aereis laminis expressa. This translates to...
of 1603 where it was also named Dorado. The constellation was also known in the 17th and 18th century as Xiphias, the swordfish
Swordfish
Swordfish , also known as broadbill in some countries, are large, highly migratory, predatory fish characterized by a long, flat bill. They are a popular sport fish of the billfish category, though elusive. Swordfish are elongated, round-bodied, and lose all teeth and scales by adulthood...
, first attested in Johannes Kepler
Johannes Kepler
Johannes Kepler was a German mathematician, astronomer and astrologer. A key figure in the 17th century scientific revolution, he is best known for his eponymous laws of planetary motion, codified by later astronomers, based on his works Astronomia nova, Harmonices Mundi, and Epitome of Copernican...
's edition of Tycho Brahe
Tycho Brahe
Tycho Brahe , born Tyge Ottesen Brahe, was a Danish nobleman known for his accurate and comprehensive astronomical and planetary observations...
's star list in the Rudolphine Tables
Rudolphine Tables
The Rudolphine Tables consist of a star catalogue and planetary tables published by Johannes Kepler in 1627 using data from Tycho Brahe's observations.-Previous tables:...
of 1627. The name Dorado ultimately become dominant and was adopted by the IAU
IAU
IAU may refer to:*International Astronomical Union*International American University*International American University College of Medicine*International Association of Universities*International Association of Ultrarunners...
.
Stars
- S DorS DoradusS Doradus is the brightest star in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a satellite of the Milky Way. A hypergiant, it is one of the most luminous stars known , but so far away that it is invisible to the naked eye.This star belongs to its own eponymous S Doradus class of variable stars S Doradus is the...
9.721 – hypergiant in the Large Magellanic CloudLarge Magellanic CloudThe Large Magellanic Cloud is a nearby irregular galaxy, and is a satellite of the Milky Way. At a distance of slightly less than 50 kiloparsecs , the LMC is the third closest galaxy to the Milky Way, with the Sagittarius Dwarf Spheroidal and Canis Major Dwarf Galaxy lying closer to the center...
, S Dor variable prototype - Supernova 1987A is the closest supernova since the invention of the telescope.
- The variable star R DoradusR DoradusR Doradus is the name of a red giant Mira variable star in the far-southern constellation Dorado, although visually it appears more closely associated with the constellation Reticulum. Its distance from Earth is 204 ± 9 light-years...
5.73 – has the largest apparent size of any star.http://simbad.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/cdsbib?1997MNRAS.286..957B - HE 0437-5439HE 0437-5439HE 0437-5439 is a massive, unbound hypervelocity star , also called HVS3. It is a main sequence B-type star located in the Dorado constellation. It was discovered in 2005 with the Kueyen 8.2 meter telescope, which is part of the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope array. HE...
, a hypervelocity star escaping from the Milky WayMilky WayThe Milky Way is the galaxy that contains the Solar System. This name derives from its appearance as a dim un-resolved "milky" glowing band arching across the night sky...
/Magellanic Cloud system - γ DorGamma DoradusGamma Doradus is the third brightest star in the constellation of Dorado. It has an apparent visual magnitude of approximately 4.25 and is a variable star, the type star of the class of Gamma Doradus variables...
, prototype of the γ Dor variableGamma Doradus variableGamma Doradus variables are variable stars which display variations in luminosity due to non-radial pulsations of their surface. The stars are typically young, early F or late A type main sequence stars, and typical brightness fluctuations are 0.1 magnitudes with periods on the order of one day...
stars - See also the list of stars in Dorado
Deep sky objects
Because Dorado contains part of the Large Magellanic CloudLarge Magellanic Cloud
The Large Magellanic Cloud is a nearby irregular galaxy, and is a satellite of the Milky Way. At a distance of slightly less than 50 kiloparsecs , the LMC is the third closest galaxy to the Milky Way, with the Sagittarius Dwarf Spheroidal and Canis Major Dwarf Galaxy lying closer to the center...
, it is rich in deep sky objects. All coordinates given are for Epoch J2000.0.
- NGC 1566NGC 1566NGC 1566 is an intermediate spiral galaxy in the constellation Dorado. It is the dominant member of the Dorado Group and also its brightest member. It is the second brightest Seyfert galaxy after NGC 1068. Its absolute luminosity is 3.7 L☉...
(RARight ascensionRight ascension is the astronomical term for one of the two coordinates of a point on the celestial sphere when using the equatorial coordinate system. The other coordinate is the declination.-Explanation:...
04h 20m 00s DecDeclinationIn astronomy, declination is one of the two coordinates of the equatorial coordinate system, the other being either right ascension or hour angle. Declination in astronomy is comparable to geographic latitude, but projected onto the celestial sphere. Declination is measured in degrees north and...
-56° 56.3′) Skyview image is a face-on spiral galaxy. It gives its name to the NGC 1566 Group of galaxies. - NGC 1755 (RA 04h 55m 13s Dec -68° 12.2′) Skyview image is a globular cluster.
- NGC 1763 (RA 04h 56m 49s Dec -68° 24.5′) Skyview image is a bright nebula associated with three type B stars.
- NGC 1820 (RA 05h 04m 02s Dec -67° 15.9′) Skyview image is an open cluster.
- NGC 1850NGC 1850NGC 1850 is an open cluster in the Dorado constellation. It was discovered by James Dunlop in 1826. It is an unusual cluster of stars because the distribution of its stars is like a globular cluster, but unlike the globular clusters of the Milky Way it is composed of young stars. Thus, it is a...
(RA 05h 08m 44s Dec -68° 45.7′) Skyview image is a globular cluster. - NGC 1854 (RA 05h 09m 19s Dec -68° 50.8′) Skyview image is a globular cluster.
- NGC 1869 (RA 05h 13m 56s Dec -67° 22.8′) Skyview image is an open cluster.
- NGC 1901 (RA 05h 18m 15s Dec -68° 26.2′) Skyview image is an open cluster.
- NGC 1910 (RA 05h 18m 43s Dec -69° 13.9′) Skyview image is an open cluster.
- NGC 1936 (RA 05h 22m 14s Dec -67° 58.7′) Skyview image is a bright nebula and is one of four NGC objects in close proximity, the others being NGC 1929, NGC 1934 and NGC 1935.
- NGC 1978 (RA 05h 28m 36s Dec -66° 14.0′) Skyview image is an open cluster.
- NGC 2002 (RA 05h 30m 17s Dec -66° 53.1′) Skyview image is an open cluster.
- NGC 2027 (RA 05h 35m 00s Dec -66° 55.0′) Skyview image is an open cluster.
- NGC 2032 (RA 05h 35m 21s Dec -67° 34.1′) (Seagull Nebula) Skyview image is a nebula complex that contains four separate NGC designations: NGC 2029, NGC 2032, NGC 2035 and NGC 2040.
- NGC 2070 (RA 05h 38m 37s Dec -69° 05.7′) is better known as the Tarantula NebulaTarantula NebulaThe Tarantula Nebula is an H II region in the Large Magellanic Cloud . It was originally thought to be a star, but in 1751 Nicolas Louis de Lacaille recognized its nebular nature....
.
- NGC 2164 (RA 05h 58m 53s Dec -68° 30.9′) Skyview image is a globular cluster.
Equivalents
In Chinese astronomyChinese astronomy
Astronomy in China has a very long history, with historians considering that "they [the Chinese] were the most persistent and accurate observers of celestial phenomena anywhere in the world before the Arabs."...
, the stars of Dorado are located in two of Xu Guangqi
Xu Guangqi
Xu Guangqi , was a Chinese scholar-bureaucrat, agricultural scientist, astronomer, and mathematician in the Ming Dynasty. Xu was a colleague and collaborator of the Italian Jesuits Matteo Ricci and Sabatino de Ursis and they translated several classic Western texts into Chinese, including part of...
's Southern Asterisms (近南極星區, Jìnnánjíxīngōu): the White Patches Attached (夾白,Jiābái) and the Goldfish (金魚, Jīnyú ).
Namesakes
- USS Dorado (SS-248)USS Dorado (SS-248)USS Dorado , a Gato-class submarine, was the first submarine of the United States Navy to be named for the dorado, also known as the dolphinfish or mahi-mahi....
and USS Dorado (SS-526)USS Dorado (SS-526)USS Dorado , a Tench-class submarine, was the second submarine of the United States Navy to be named for the dorado, the Spanish language name for the fish also known as the dolphinfish and the mahi-mahi. Her keel was laid down, but construction was canceled on 29 July 1944.-References:...
, two United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Navy ships, are named after the constellation.