The constellation Carina can be found in the southern sky. It was the southern foundation of the larger constellation of Argo Navis (the ship Argo) until it was divided into three sections, the other two being Puppis (the poop deck) and Vela (the sails of the ship).
Mythology
Carina was formerly a member of Argo Navis, Jason's and the Argonauts' mighty ship that set out in search of the Golden Fleece. In ancient Greece, the constellation Argo was introduced. Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille separated Argo Navis into three portions in 1763, including Carina, due to its immense expanse and the overwhelming quantity of stars that required separate naming (the hull or keel). [3] These three constellations were developed as independent constellations in the nineteenth century and were formally included in the list of 88 contemporary IAU constellations in 1930. [4] Lacaille used a single set of Greek letters for the entire book and three different sets of Latin letter designations for each section. |