Antlia
Encyclopedia
Antlia is a constellation
in the southern sky. Its name means "pump
" and it specifically represents an air pump. The stars comprising Antlia are faint, and the constellation was not created until the 18th century. Beginning at the north, Antlia is bordered by Hydra
the sea snake, Pyxis
the compass, Vela
the sails, and Centaurus
the centaur.
, who created fourteen constellations for the southern sky to fill some faint regions. It was originally denominated Antlia pneumatica to commemorate the air pump
invented by the French physicist Denis Papin
. The International Astronomical Union
subsequently adopted it as one of the 88 modern constellations. There is no mythology attached to Antlia as Lacaille discontinued the tradition of giving names from mythology to constellations and instead chose names mostly from scientific instruments.
, a magnitude
4.25m orange giant
. Antlia contains the following deep sky objects:
Constellation
In modern astronomy, a constellation is an internationally defined area of the celestial sphere. These areas are grouped around asterisms, patterns formed by prominent stars within apparent proximity to one another on Earth's night sky....
in the southern sky. Its name means "pump
Pump
A pump is a device used to move fluids, such as liquids, gases or slurries.A pump displaces a volume by physical or mechanical action. Pumps fall into three major groups: direct lift, displacement, and gravity pumps...
" and it specifically represents an air pump. The stars comprising Antlia are faint, and the constellation was not created until the 18th century. Beginning at the north, Antlia is bordered by Hydra
Hydra (constellation)
Hydra is the largest of the 88 modern constellations, measuring 1303 square degrees. It has a long history, having been included among the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd century astronomer Ptolemy. It is commonly represented as a water snake...
the sea snake, Pyxis
Pyxis
Pyxis is a small and faint constellation in the southern sky. Its name is Latin for a mariner's compass...
the compass, Vela
Vela (constellation)
Vela is a constellation in the southern sky. Its name is Latin for the sails of a ship, and it was originally part of a larger constellation, the ship Argo Navis, which was later divided into three parts, the others being Carina and Puppis.-Stars:...
the sails, and Centaurus
Centaurus
Centaurus is a bright constellation in the southern sky. One of the largest constellations, Centaurus was included among the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd century astronomer Ptolemy, and it remains one of the 88 modern constellations.-Stars:...
the centaur.
History
Antlia was created by the French astronomer Abbé Nicolas Louis de LacailleNicolas Louis de Lacaille
Abbé Nicolas Louis de Lacaille was a French astronomer.He is noted for his catalogue of nearly 10,000 southern stars, including 42 nebulous objects. This catalogue, called Coelum Australe Stelliferum, was published posthumously in 1763. It introduced 14 new constellations which have since become...
, who created fourteen constellations for the southern sky to fill some faint regions. It was originally denominated Antlia pneumatica to commemorate the air pump
Air pump
An air pump is a device for pushing air. Examples include a bicycle pump, pumps that are used to aerate an aquarium or a pond via an airstone; a gas compressor used to power a pneumatic tool, air horn or pipe organ; a bellows used to encourage a fire; and a vacuum pump.The first effective air pump...
invented by the French physicist Denis Papin
Denis Papin
Denis Papin was a French physicist, mathematician and inventor, best known for his pioneering invention of the steam digester, the forerunner of the steam engine and of the pressure cooker.-Life in France:...
. The International Astronomical Union
International Astronomical Union
The International Astronomical Union IAU is a collection of professional astronomers, at the Ph.D. level and beyond, active in professional research and education in astronomy...
subsequently adopted it as one of the 88 modern constellations. There is no mythology attached to Antlia as Lacaille discontinued the tradition of giving names from mythology to constellations and instead chose names mostly from scientific instruments.
Notable features
Antlia is devoid of bright stars. The brightest star is α AntliaeAlpha Antliae
Alpha Antliae is the brightest star in the constellation of Antlia but it has not been given a proper name. It is approximately 370 light-years from the Solar System. It is a K-type giant star that varies in apparent visual magnitude between 4.22 and 4.29...
, a magnitude
Apparent magnitude
The apparent magnitude of a celestial body is a measure of its brightness as seen by an observer on Earth, adjusted to the value it would have in the absence of the atmosphere...
4.25m orange giant
Giant star
A giant star is a star with substantially larger radius and luminosity than a main sequence star of the same surface temperature. Typically, giant stars have radii between 10 and 100 solar radii and luminosities between 10 and 1,000 times that of the Sun. Stars still more luminous than giants are...
. Antlia contains the following deep sky objects:
- NGC 2997NGC 2997NGC 2997 is a face-on unbarred spiral galaxy about 40 million light-years away in the constellation Antlia. It is the brightest galaxy of the NGC 2997 group of galaxies....
, a spiral galaxySpiral galaxyA spiral galaxy is a certain kind of galaxy originally described by Edwin Hubble in his 1936 work The Realm of the Nebulae and, as such, forms part of the Hubble sequence. Spiral galaxies consist of a flat, rotating disk containing stars, gas and dust, and a central concentration of stars known as...
of type Sc which is inclined 45° to our line of sight. - The Antlia DwarfAntlia DwarfThe Antlia Dwarf is a dwarf spheroidal/irregular galaxy. It lies about 1.3 Mpc from Earth in the constellation Antlia. It is the fourth and faintest member of the nearby Antlia Group of galaxies. The galaxy contains stars of all ages, contains significant amounts of gas, and has experienced...
, a 14.8m dwarf spheroidal galaxyDwarf spheroidal galaxyDwarf spheroidal galaxy is a term in astronomy applied to low luminosity galaxies that are companions to the Milky Way and to the similar systems that are companions to the Andromeda Galaxy M31...
that belongs to our Local GroupLocal GroupThe Local Group is the group of galaxies that includes Earth's galaxy, the Milky Way. The group comprises more than 30 galaxies , with its gravitational center located somewhere between the Milky Way and the Andromeda Galaxy...
of galaxies. It was discovered only as recently as 1997.