I See Stars Trivia Quiz

Answer: Cepheus

Cepheus was a son of Agenor and ruler of the land of Aethiopia. Cepheus's wife, Cassiopeia, angered the gods by bragging her daughter, Andromeda, was more beautiful than the Nereids. As punishment for this boasting, Poseidon sent the sea monster, Cetus, to destroy Aethiopia. In a panic, Cepheus consulted an oracle who instructed him to sacrifice his daughter to the sea monster, chaining her to a rock near the sea. Before this could happen though, the hero Perseus turned the sea monster to stone with Medusa's head, saving the princess (who he later made his wife).

Alpha Cephei is sometimes called "Alderamin", which is Arabic meaning "the right arm". Alpha Cephei's proximity to the pole star, Polaris, helps the viewer locate it, as it is easily visible in the northern hemisphere.

Answer: Hercules

Hercules is the Romanized name of the Greek hero, Heracles. Hercules and his twin, Iphicles, were born of the mortal woman, Alcmene, and the god Zeus, who had impregnated the woman disguised as her real husband. Zeus's wife, Hera, recognized Hercules as a demigod and took it upon herself to torture the boy for his father's failures. As an adult, Hercules, crazed by Hera's torment, killed his own children. As penance for this deed, Hercules took on twelve labors, including slaying the Hydra, capturing Cerberus, and stealing Hesperides' apples.

Kornephoros, sometimes called Beta Herculis, is a binary star that is considered the brightest within the constellation. The primary star is said to be 17 times the size of Earth's sun, although the secondary star is only 90% the size of Earth's sun.

Answer: Orion

Of all of the heroes, the story of Orion remains one of the most hazy. The tales of his birth and death vary from myth to myth. Some believe Orion to be the son of Poseidon, the sea god. Others speak of a trio of gods wishing for sons, resulting in Orion being spawned from the combined seed of Hermes, Poseidon and Zeus.

Orion's death is also a mixed bag. There are two variations of how he died during a hunting party on Crete. One theory is that a scorpion killed him (resulting in the constellation Scorpio being added to the heavens), the other that he was shot by Artemis for his boasting.

The constellation Orion is one of the most well recognized of all constellations. Its primary structure is made up of seven main stars, all bright, with Rigel and Betelgeuse the brightest. Another recognized feature is the Orion Nebula, an easily visible haziness near Orion's belt that is our closest region of star formation.

Answer: Argo

Argo was the ship sailed by the hero Jason and his group of Argonauts (themselves, also heroes). The ship accompanied Jason and his team around the Greek world in search of adventures and the Golden Fleece. The ship was constructed by Argus and blessed by the goddess Hera to accompany its crew safely.

As a constellation, Argo became Argo Navis and it was one of forty-eight constellations described by Ptolemy. However, due to the ship's large size, it was eventually split into three smaller parts, constellations that are named after parts of boats. The keel of Argo became the constellation Carina, with its brightest star, Canopus. The aft deck became the constellation Puppis, with its brightest star, Zeta Puppis. Lastly, the sails of Argo became the constellation Vela, with its bright star system, Gama Velorum.

Answer: Perseus

Perseus was the son of Zeus and the princess, Danae. His conception was rather miraculous as his grandfather, King Acrisius, locked his only child in a chamber because the oracle of Delphi prophesied that his grandson would kill him. Alone and neglected, the girl caught the eye of Zeus who impregnated her in the form of a golden rain shower.

When the child was born, Perseus's grandfather was outraged, casting his daughter and her child into the sea. The gods smiled upon them though, and the duo washed up on shore to be taken into the family of a fisherman named Dictys. Dictys raised Perseus as his own until the boy was of age to defend his mother's honor.

Perseus the constellation was identified among those detailed by Ptolemy. It is located close to the constellation Andromeda, Perseus's wife and a marriage made in the heavens. The brightest star in the constellation is Alpha Persei, a supergiant, nestled among its own star cluster.

Answer: Ophiuchus

Ophiuchus, the Serpent Bearer, is perhaps one of the less popular constellations, nevertheless, it was one of the 48 constellations identified by Ptolemy in the 2nd century.

The large constellation Ophiuchus straddles the equator, appearing in both hemispheres. The constellation appears as a man intertwined with snakes, including the related constellation Serpens. The brightest star within the constellation is Rasalhague, the "Head of the Serpent Charmer".

Answer: Eridanus

Phaethon, son of Helios, made a boast to his peers that he could drive his father's chariot (also known as the Sun) across the sky. The horses drawing the chariot, not feeling the weight of their usual driver, bolted, causing chaos everywhere they went. That is, until Zeus stepped in to cast Phaethon from the sky via lightning bolt. The foolish boy fell to his watery grave into the river, Eridanus.

Eridanus the constellation is also among the constellations identified by Ptolemy. It is a celestial river visible in the southern hemisphere. The peculiar star, Achernar, marks the river's end. The constellation also plays host to a meteor shower that occurs in early September every year.

Answer: Centaurus

Centaurus, son of Ixion, was produced when Ixion thought he was bedding Zeus's wife, Hera. Instead, Zeus tricked Ixion, bringing the nymph, Nephele, in the form of Hera to test Ixion's loyalty. Ixion failed this test and was cursed to bear a flaming wheel across the heavens for all eternity. Furthermore, the child, Centaurus, was born of the forbidden union, half man and half horse. Centaurus felt quite at home among the horses and spent his days mating with the splendid Magnesian mares of Pelion. These unions created the Centaurs.

Centaurus himself placed himself in the heavens to guide the Argonauts. The constellation Centaurus is represented by a half-man-half-horse configuration containing many bright stars, including Proxima Centauri, the closest star to Earth's sun. The constellation was among those identified by Ptolemy in the 2nd century.

Answer: Aries

Aries was sent by Nephele to rescue her husband's twins from the clutches of Ino, King Athamas's second wife. Aries gathered Phrixos and his sister, Helle, and started toward Colchis. Along the way, Helle fell off of the ram and drowned at the Dardanelles. Aries managed to secure Phrixos all the way to safety. In an odd twist of fate, Aries was then sacrificed in Phrixos's place, his golden fleece consecrated and guarded by a dragon. That same fleece was stolen by Jason and the Argonauts as part of their quests.

The constellation Aries, the ram's head, has been identified and revered by many ancient cultures, despite the constellation containing mostly faint stars. Several stars have been reclassified as part of other constellations. The brightest star is Hamal, a red giant. Aries was also included in Ptolemy's 48 identified constellations.

Answer: Andromeda

Andromeda was the daughter of King Cepheus and Queen Cassiopeia (both prominent constellations in their own right). When Cassiopeia spent too much time bragging on the beauty of her daughter, Poseidon became jealous and sent the sea monster, Cetus, to exact revenge on the kingdom. The only cure to the affront was the sacrifice of Andromeda, and so the girl was chained naked to a rock. Perseus eventually came along and rescued the girl by using the head of Medusa to turn Cetus to stone.

A huge, bright constellation, Andromeda is best seen in the autumn of the Northern Hemisphere. Some of the brightest stars in the sky are contained within the constellation, including Alpha Andromedae. The Andromeda Galaxy is contained within the constellation, a spiral galaxy visible to the naked eye. The constellation was also among Ptolemy's ancient list.