Vespa (constellation)
Encyclopedia
Vespa was the name used by Jakob Bartsch
in 1624 for a constellation
, now obsolete, that was originally called Apes (possibly a misspelling of Apis, Latin for bee) by Petrus Plancius
when he created it in 1612. It was made up of a small group of stars, located between the constellations of Aries
and Perseus
. The renaming by Bartsch may have been intended to avoid confusion with another constellation, created by Plancius in 1598, that was called Apis by Bayer in 1603. Plancius called this earlier constellation Muia (Greek for fly) in 1612, and it had been called Musca (Latin for fly) by Blaeu in 1602, although Bayer was evidently unaware of this. The later constellation was also called Musca Borealis
in some later sources.
See also: Apis, Musca
.
Jakob Bartsch
Jakob Bartsch or Jacobus Bartschius was a German astronomer.-Biography:Bartsch was born in Lauban in Lusatia. He was taught how to use the astrolabe by Sarcephalus , a librarian in Breslau...
in 1624 for a constellation
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....
, now obsolete, that was originally called Apes (possibly a misspelling of Apis, Latin for bee) by Petrus Plancius
Petrus 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...
when he created it in 1612. It was made up of a small group of stars, located between the constellations of Aries
Aries (constellation)
Aries is one of the constellations of the zodiac, located between Pisces to the west and Taurus to the east. Its name is Latin for ram, and its symbol is , representing a ram's horns...
and Perseus
Perseus (constellation)
Perseus is a constellation in the northern sky, named after the Greek hero Perseus. It was one of the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd century astronomer Ptolemy, and remains one of the 88 modern constellations defined by the International Astronomical Union...
. The renaming by Bartsch may have been intended to avoid confusion with another constellation, created by Plancius in 1598, that was called Apis by Bayer in 1603. Plancius called this earlier constellation Muia (Greek for fly) in 1612, and it had been called Musca (Latin for fly) by Blaeu in 1602, although Bayer was evidently unaware of this. The later constellation was also called Musca Borealis
Musca Borealis
Musca Borealis was a constellation located between the constellations of Aries and Perseus.It was first described as such by Hevelius in his catalogue of 1690, to distinguish it from the southern fly, Musca Australis....
in some later sources.
See also: Apis, Musca
Musca
Musca is one of the minor southern constellations. The constellation was one of twelve constellations created by Petrus Plancius 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 in Amsterdam by...
.
External links
- http://www.pa.msu.edu/people/horvatin/Astronomy_Facts/obsolete_pages/vespa.htm
- http://www.ianridpath.com/startales/muscaborealis.htm