Hand Me a Constellation Trivia Quiz

Answer: Horologium

Horologium is a constellation found in the southern celestial hemisphere. It was named in 1756 by French astronomer Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille. He observed the constellation from the Cape of Good Hope in what is now the country of South Africa. It was described by de Lacaille as a "clock with a pendulum and seconds hand". Thus, the constellation was given the name Horologium which is the Latin word for clock.

Answer: Pictor

The constellation Pictor was also first observed by Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille in 1756. It was initially given the name Equuleus Pictoris "the Painter's Easel", but the name was shortened to simply Pictor. The shortened form of the name may intentionally be a misnomer most likely because there is not an equivalent Latin term for easel. Equuleus is Latin for "Little Horse" and was already the name of a constellation.

The word pictor in Latin means painter. Pictor can be found in the southern celestial hemisphere.

Answer: Antlia

Antlia is yet another constellation to be named by French astronomer Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille. He has been credited with the naming of fourteen constellations in the southern celestial hemisphere and named all of them after inanimate objects. Antlia was initially given the name Antlia Pneumatica "Pneumatic (air) Pump" and was later shortened to simply Antlia.

Answer: Scutum

Scutum is a constellation found in the southern celestial hemisphere. Scutum was first observed by Polish astronomer Johannes Hevelius in 1684. The constellation was originally given the Latin name Scutum Sobiescianum "Shield of Sobieski". The name was chosen in honor of Polish king John III Sobieski, who had led his faction to victory in the Battle of Vienna a year before the constellation's founding.

Answer: Caelum

Caelum is another southern celestial hemisphere constellation to have been observed by Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille during his stay near the Cape of Good Hope. This one was initially given the name Caelum Sculptorium "the Engravers' Chisel", and was later shortened to just Caelum.

Answer: Fornax

Fornax, yet another of Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille's observations, is the shortened form of the name Fornax Chimiae "the Chemical Furnace". It can also be found in the southern celestial hemisphere. The Fornax constellation has given astronomers a glimpse into some of the oldest objects in the universe.

The Hubble Space Telescope has obtained images in this region of space with stars and galaxies that may have been formed approximately 13 billion years ago.

Answer: Lyra

Lyra is one of 48 constellations documented by the Roman astronomer Ptolemy. It was named after the harp of Orpheus, a legendary Greek musician. Lyra is found in the northern celestial hemisphere. Its most prominent star, Vega (α Lyrae) used to be the North Star over 12,000 years ago, before Polaris moved to its current position in the sky. Vega is expected to become the North Star again in about 14,000 years from now.

Answer: Sagitta

Sagitta, "the Arrow" is another constellation that was documented by Ptolemy. It can be found in the northern celestial hemisphere. Despite its name it has no physical connection to the zodiac constellation Sagittarius, "the Archer", which is located in the southern celestial hemisphere.

Answer: Pyxis

Pyxis is another southern hemisphere constellation to be documented by Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille. It was originally named Pyxis Nautica "the mariner's compass". Pyxis is located near three constellations that used to form the defunct Argo Nevis constellation, which was named for the ship used by Jason and the Argonauts in Greek mythology. Argo Nevis was split into three separate constellations in 1930: Carina (the keel), Puppis (the stern) and Vela (the sails), which were also proposed by de Lacaille in 1756.

Answer: Crater

The constellation Crater is located in the southern celestial hemisphere and takes the form of a cup. It is another of the 48 constellations that were first listed by Ptolemy. Crater can be found riding on the back of Hydra, "the Sea Serpent".