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Alpha Hydri, Latinized from α Hydri, is the second brightest star in the southern circumpolar constellation of Hydrus. It is readily visible to the naked eye with an apparent visual magnitude of +2.9. It is sometimes informally known as the Head of Hydrus. This should not be confused with Alpha Hydrae (Alphard) in the constellation Hydra. Alpha Hydri is one of only three stars in the constellation Hydrus that are above the fourth visual magnitude. This star can be readily located as it lies to the south and east of the prominent star Achernar in the constellation Eridanus.
Chinese star names are named according to ancient Chinese astronomy and astrology. The sky is divided into star mansions and asterisms. The system of 283 asterisms under Three Enclosures and Twenty-eight Mansions was established by Chen Zhuo of the Three Kingdoms period, who synthesized ancient constellations and the asterisms created by early astronomers Shi Shen, Gan De and Wuxian. Since the Han and Jin Dynasties, stars have been given reference numbers within their asterisms in a system similar to the Bayer or Flamsteed designations, so that individual stars can be identified. For example, Deneb is referred to as 天津四.
The modern constellation Andromeda lies across two of the quadrants, symbolized by the Black Tortoise of the North and the White Tiger of the West, that divide the sky in traditional Chinese uranography.
According to traditional Chinese uranography, the modern constellation Aquarius is located within the northern quadrant of the sky, which is symbolized as the Black Tortoise of the North.
The modern constellation Aquila lies across one of the quadrants symbolized by the Black Tortoise of the North, and Three Enclosures that divide the sky in traditional Chinese uranography.
According to traditional Chinese uranography, the modern constellation Aries is located within the western quadrant of the sky, which is symbolized as the White Tiger of the West.
The modern constellation Boötes lies across one of the quadrants symbolized by the Azure Dragon of the East, and Three Enclosures, that divide the sky in traditional Chinese uranography.
The modern constellation Cepheus lies across one of the quadrants symbolized by the Black Tortoise of the North, and Three Enclosures, that divide the sky in traditional Chinese uranography.
The modern constellation Cetus lies across two of the quadrants, symbolized by the Black Tortoise of the North and the White Tiger of the West, that divide the sky in traditional Chinese uranography.
The modern constellation Draco lies across one of the quadrants symbolized by the Black Tortoise of the North, and Three Enclosures, that divide the sky in traditional Chinese uranography.
The modern constellation Eridanus lies across one of the quadrants symbolized by the White Tiger of the West, and The Southern Asterisms, that divide the sky in traditional Chinese uranography.
According to traditional Chinese uranography, the modern constellation Hercules is located in Three Enclosures
The modern constellation Musca is not included in the Three Enclosures and Twenty-Eight Mansions system of traditional Chinese uranography because its stars are too far south for observers in China to know about them prior to the introduction of Western star charts. Based on the work of Xu Guangqi and the German Jesuit missionary Johann Adam Schall von Bell in the late Ming Dynasty, this constellation has been classified under the 23 Southern Asterisms with the names Bee and Sea and Mountain .
The modern constellation Octans is not included in the Three Enclosures and Twenty-Eight Mansions system of traditional Chinese uranography because its stars are too far south for observers in China to know about them before the introduction of Western star charts. Based on the work of Xu Guangqi and the German Jesuit missionary Johann Adam Schall von Bell in the late Ming Dynasty, this constellation has been classified under the 23 Southern Asterisms with the names Snake's Tail and Exotic Bird.
The modern constellation Hydra lies across two of the quadrants, symbolized by the Azure Dragon of the East and the Vermilion Bird of the South, that divide the sky in traditional Chinese uranography.
The modern constellation Ophiuchus lies across two of the quadrants symbolized by the Azure Dragon of the East and The Black Tortoise of the North, and Three Enclosures, that divide the sky in traditional Chinese uranography.
According to traditional Chinese uranography, the modern constellation Perseus is located within the western quadrant of the sky, which is symbolized as the White Tiger of the West.
The modern constellation Reticulum is not included in the Three Enclosures and Twenty-Eight Mansions system of traditional Chinese uranography because its stars are too far south for observers in China to know about them prior to the introduction of Western star charts. Based on the work of Xu Guangqi and the German Jesuit missionary Johann Adam Schall von Bell in the late Ming Dynasty, this constellation has been classified as two of the 23 Southern Asterisms under the name Snake's Head and White Patches Attached.
The modern constellation Sculptor is not included in the Three Enclosures and Twenty-Eight Mansions system of traditional Chinese uranography because its stars are too far south for observers in China to know about them prior to the introduction of Western star charts. Based on the work of Xu Guangqi and the German Jesuit missionary Johann Adam Schall von Bell in the late Ming Dynasty, this constellation has been classified as one of the 23 Southern Asterisms under the name Firebird, together with the stars in Phoenix.
The modern constellation Serpens lies across one of the quadrants, symbolized by the Azure Dragon of the East, and Three Enclosures, that divide the sky in traditional Chinese uranography.
References
- ↑ Sun, Xiaochun (1997). Helaine Selin (ed.). Encyclopaedia of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures. Kluwer Academic Publishers. p. 910. ISBN 0-7923-4066-3.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 (in Chinese) AEEA (Activities of Exhibition and Education in Astronomy) 天文教育資訊網 2006 年 7 月 27 日