In the far Southern Sky, there is a little constellation called Octans. Although it is called after the octant, a nautical device, its name is Latin for the eighth section of a circle. Octans, one of the eighty-eight contemporary constellations, was created in 1752 by French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille.
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History and Mythology
In 1752, Nicolas Louis de Lacaille, a French astronomer, named Octans l'Octans de Reflexion ("the reflecting octant") after having observed and recorded nearly 10,000 southern stars during a two-year stay at the Cape of Good Hope. Octans was one of fourteen constellations he created during his expedition to the Cape of Good Hope. In unexplored areas of the Southern Celestial Hemisphere that were inaccessible to observers in Europe, he created fourteen new constellations. All but one of them recognised the artefacts of the Age of Enlightenment. (Wagman 2003)
It was a component of his southern sky catalogue, the Coelum Australe Stelliferum, which was posthumously released in 1763. In recognition of English mathematician John Hadley, who created the octant in 1730, it gained further recognition in Europe under the name Octans Hadleianus. Due in part to its faintness and relative youth, but largely because of its extremely southern latitude, Octans has no meaningful mythology attached to it. (Staal 1988)
In 1752, Nicolas Louis de Lacaille, a French astronomer, named Octans l'Octans de Reflexion ("the reflecting octant") after having observed and recorded nearly 10,000 southern stars during a two-year stay at the Cape of Good Hope. Octans was one of fourteen constellations he created during his expedition to the Cape of Good Hope. In unexplored areas of the Southern Celestial Hemisphere that were inaccessible to observers in Europe, he created fourteen new constellations. All but one of them recognised the artefacts of the Age of Enlightenment. (Wagman 2003)
It was a component of his southern sky catalogue, the Coelum Australe Stelliferum, which was posthumously released in 1763. In recognition of English mathematician John Hadley, who created the octant in 1730, it gained further recognition in Europe under the name Octans Hadleianus. Due in part to its faintness and relative youth, but largely because of its extremely southern latitude, Octans has no meaningful mythology attached to it. (Staal 1988)
Deep-sky Objects
Bayer stars - 27
Stars with planets - 3
Stars brighter than magnitude 3.00 - 0
Stars within 32 Ly - 1
Bordering
constellations
- NGC 2573 – Barred Spiral Galaxy
- NGC 7095 – Barred Spiral Galaxy
- NGC 7098 – Barred Spiral Galaxy
- Collinder 411 – Open Cluster
Bayer stars - 27
Stars with planets - 3
Stars brighter than magnitude 3.00 - 0
Stars within 32 Ly - 1
Bordering
constellations
- Tucana
- Indus
- Pavo
- Apus
- Chamaeleon
- Mensa
- Hydrus