Constellations of Sagittarius and the Southern Crown - Constellations of Sagittarius and Corona Australis -...

Constellations of Sagittarius and the Southern Crown - Constellations of Sagittarius and Corona Australis - From ancient times the constellation of Sagittarius (the Archer) was represented as a Centaur, half man, half horse, ready to fire his/its bow and arrow at the heart of Scorpius, the Scorpion. The constellation is the 15th largest in the sky and covers about 867 square degrees, including the brightest part of the Milky Way. It contains no fewer than 15 Messier objects. Sagittarius is a zodiacal constellation, so the ecliptic, the apparent path of the Sun, among the stars, pases through it, between M8 and M20. The much smaller constellation of Corona Australis (the Southern Crown) is quite distinctive to the eye though its stars are fainter than those in neighbouring Sagittarius. It is quite ancient having be recognised by Ptolemy, and one legend has it that it represents the coronet worn by Sagittarius. Who knows. It is 80th in size among the 88 constellations and covers 128 square degrees