Constellation
From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A constellation is a group of stars. Together, the stars look like a picture. Some examples of constellations are the Big Dipper (Ursa Major), Orion, and Andromeda.
People began to make constellations to help to remember where stars were located. Different places in the world may have different constellations, but today astronomy has a fixed set of 88 constellations. This set is based on the Greek set and later some southern constellations were added, for example Antlia - the air pump. Most constellations have names that come from Greek mythology, like Orion or Andromeda.
There are twelve constellations in the Zodiac. The Sun travels through the Zodiac once each year. There is also a thirteenth constellation Ophiuchus - the carrier of a serpent, which the Sun goes through. However, most people do not think that it is in the Zodiac.
