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Sky Chart and Artist Rendering of Canis Minor
Origin:
Canis Minor is an ancient constellation containing one of the brightest
stars visible in the Earth's sky, Procyon, and has always been associated
as the second of Orion's hunting dogs..
Procyon literally means "before the dog", so called because it
rises before Canis Major, even though it's by
only a few minutes. Canis Minor is one of the 48 constellations
described by Ptolemy in the Almagest (A.D. 140).
Information:
Canis Major transits at around 9 pm early in March. Despite having
only two bright stars (Procyon, a-CMi, and Gomeisa, b-CMi), Canis minor is difficult to miss since it is so near Orion and Canis Major
(the Great Dog) in a field of otherwise fainter stars. It contains
the bright blue-white star Procyon (the 8th brightest star) with a
magnitude of 0.4. Canis Major is somewhat of a disappointment for
binocular and telescope observers even though there are a few multiple
stars. Beyond the two bright stars, there are no naked-eye objects
found in Canis Minor.
Procyon is one of the three stars in
the "Winter Triangle", the others being Betelgeuse (Orion) and Sirius (Canis
Major).
Mythology:
Canis Major and Canis Minor, Orion's hunting dogs, are merely footnotes in
mythology. See Canis Major for a more detailed discussion of Orion's
Hunting Dogs. |
