asterism

NASA added: "Centered along the horizon is the Plough, the north's most famous asterism, though some might see the familiar celestial kitchen utensil known as the Big Dipper."

To its upper right is the False Cross asterism. The stars of the real Cross are brighter, closer together, and have two bright stars, the Pointers, pointing towards them.

Likewise, this month, the square of Pegasus, an asterism of the constellation of Andromeda, takes center stage in the Philippine night sky after sunset, which is a sign of the arrival of the northern fall.

NGC 6939 is enclosed by a diamond-shaped asterism, 12' by 16' in extent, delineated by four 10th-magnitude stars.

Pictured is the familiar asterism, The Plough, also known as The Big Dipper, in the constellation of Ursa Major, as photographed from my home in County Down, Northern Ireland.

Don't know the difference between an asterism and a constellation?

Martin Steinbach (Steinbach--Gems with a Star, Idar-Oberstein, Germany) covered asterism in gems, noting that 50 gem varieties are known to display asterism when cut as cabochons or spheres, and in 90% of the cases the star is due to rutile 'silk'.

The red star jye.ytha, which the Maitrayani Samhita (2,13,20) ascribes to Varuna, may have represented the mouth of the heavenly crocodile discussed below; mukha 'mouth' also denotes 'beginning' and is used of the first asterism. Thus the heavenly crocodile would be eating the baby sun, newly born at the vernal equinox.

ALESSI J0530.9-4938 is known as an asterism consisting of three magnitude 9 stars slightly more outstanding in a line from north to south.

The radiant is close to Aquarius' 'Water Jar' asterism. This, however, doesn't get particularly high in the eastern sky (12[degrees] by 03h UT) before dawn really begins to brighten the sky: observed rates of 4-5 meteors/hr can be considered a good return, and there are plenty of otherwise experienced meteor-watchers who have never seen an Eta Aquarid!