JOURNAL ARTICLE

What Are the Greek Letters on Star Charts?

  • Published In: Sky & Telescope, 2023, v. 145, n. 2. P. 76 1 of 3

  • Database: Academic Search Ultimate 2 of 3

  • Authored By: Hannikainen, Diana 3 of 3

Abstract

To properly denote stars' names using Bayer's system, you'll also need to know Latin grammar - a star's complete designation consists of the Greek letter followed by the constellation's genitive case. Most importantly for our discussion, Bayer introduced the letters of the Greek alphabet to label the brightest stars in a constellation. In addition, Bayer's constellations reproduce the stars as we see them looking up into the night sky - until then, many star atlases and globes showed the constellations as if we were looking down onto the celestial sphere. [Extracted from the article]

Additional Information

  • Source:Sky & Telescope. 2023/02, Vol. 145, Issue 2, p76
  • Document Type:Article
  • Subject Area:Language and Linguistics
  • Publication Date:2023
  • ISSN:0037-6604
  • Accession Number:160123525
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