Ara Constellation: The Ultimate Guide
Ara (The altar)
Ara is one of the constellations located in the southern celestial hemisphere. The name of the constellation comes from Latin and means "Altar."
Usually, this constellation is represented with a round altar similar to the one used by the Greeks to venerate the gods.
The location of the constellation Ara is essentially in the southern hemisphere, so it is not possible to visualize it in most countries of the northern hemisphere.
The constellation Ara is one of the minor constellations. It ranks 63rd in size among the 88 constellations in the night sky.
The brightest star in the constellation Ara is Beta Arae (β Ara / HD 157244 / HR 6461) with an apparent magnitude of +2.85.
The constellation Ara is home to deep-sky objects such as nebulae and star clusters.
There are no occurrences of meteor showers within the boundaries of the constellation.
The Mythology And History Of The Ara Constellation
Ancient China
In Chinese astronomy, the stars corresponding to the constellation Ara lie within the region of the Eastern Blue Dragon (Dōng Fāng Qīng Lóng in Chinese).
The five main stars of Ara formed "Guī," a turtle, while three less notable ones formed "Chǔ," a mortar typical of the Chinese region.
Greek Mythology
In Greek culture, the constellation Ara was associated with the shape of an altar where the gods made offerings for the first time and formed an alliance before defeating the Titans.
Astrophysicist Bradley Schaefer's astrologers from ancient Greece may have seen the main stars of the constellation Ara traveling south searching for a new stellar pattern.
Nowadays
During the twentieth century, the constellation Ara was named by the International Astronomical Union as one of the 88 constellations officially recognized worldwide.
In this way, it remains with its limits intact from then on, occupying an area of 237 square degrees and staying with 63rd place in size among the 88 constellations of the night sky.
The constellation Ara is also a region teeming with deep space bodies of paramount importance to modern science and astronomy in scientific research.
How To Find The Ara Constellation?
Visibility By Region
Ara resides in the third quadrant of the Southern Hemisphere (SQ3) at latitudes between 25° N and 90° S. It means that we can see the constellation in the night sky from all countries of the southern hemisphere of the earth and some countries of the northern hemisphere.
Ara is visible in America, Asia, Australia, and Antarctica.
Ara is not visible in areas above 25° N latitude, such as the USA, Europe, Egypt, Japan, Canada, and Russia.
Visibility By Season
Ara is a constellation that can be seen in the most southern hemisphere; however, July is the best month to visualize it. The constellation Ara is visible only during the summer in the northern hemisphere.
Finding Ara Constellation
Ara is essentially close to the celestial equator, so if you are in the northern hemisphere, you will have to direct your gaze to the south. You can reach the constellation Scorpius to find Ara since both constellations are very close.
One way to locate the Ara constellation is by finding its brightest star Beta Arae, which is in the central part of the constellation.
The easiest way to locate the Ara constellation is by drawing an imaginary straight line from the constellation of Scorpius to the constellation Triangulum Australe; in the middle of the road between the two, you will find the constellation, Ara.
Related Constellations
The constellations bordering Ara are Corona Australis, Scorpius, Norma, Triangulum Australe, Apus, Pavo, and Telescopium.
In addition, it belongs to the Hercules family of constellations, including Aquila, Centaurus, Corona Australis, Corvus, Crater, Crux, Cygnus, Hercules, Hydra, Lupus, Lyra, Ophiuchus, Sagitta, Scutum, Serpens, Sextans, Triangulum Australe, and Vulpecula.
Stars in Ara Constellation
The constellation Ara officially contains 71 stars, of which 8 form the central figure of the constellation; these are Beta Arae, Alpha Arae, Zeta Arae, Gamma Arae, Delta Arae, Theta Arae, Eta Arae, and Epsilon-1 Arae.
Beta Arae (β Ara / HD 157244 / HR 6461)
It is the brightest star in the constellation Ara, with an apparent magnitude of +2.85, located 603 light-years away from the Solar System.
Beta Arae is a luminous orange supergiant whose spectral type is K3Ib-II. With a surface temperature of 4582 K and 4600 times more luminous than the Sun.
Alfa Arae (α Ara / HD 158427 / HR 6510)
With an apparent magnitude of +2.85, Alpha Arae is the second brightest star in the constellation Ara.
It is a blue-white main-sequence star of spectral type B2Vne, whose luminosity is 2900 times greater than the luminosity of the Sun.
Other Ara Stars:
- γ Arae: A binary star consisting of a hot blue supergiant and a white main sequence star visually separated by 18 arcseconds.
- δ Arae: A bluish-white star of magnitude 3.60.
- ε Arae is a Bayer designation shared by ε² Arae, an orange giant of magnitude 4.07, and ε² Arae, of magnitude 5.27.
- η Arae: An orange giant star of magnitude 3.78.
- θ Arae: Blue supergiant of magnitude 3.66.
- ζ Arae: It is an orange giant star of magnitude 3.13.
- Arae: Blue and variable giant Gamma Cassiopeiae; its brightness fluctuates between magnitude 5.18 and 5.26.
- λ Arae: White-yellow star of magnitude 4.77.
- μ Arae: Yellow dwarf somewhat more luminous than the Sun, where four extrasolar planets have been discovered.
- π Arae: A white star of magnitude 5.25 surrounded by a dust disk.
- 41 Arae: Binary star just 28.7 light-years from Earth, whose components are a yellow dwarf and a red dwarf.
- HD 155117: A white-yellow dwarf of magnitude 8.48 that in the Miocene was only 4.2 light-years from the solar system.
- Gliese 656: Distant orange dwarf 44.6 light-years.
- Gliese 674: Red dwarf 14.8 light-years away from a planet very close to the star discovered.
- Gliese 680: Also a red dwarf but more distant (31.9 light-years).
- R Arae: Eclipsing binary whose brightness varies between magnitude 6.0 and 6.9 over 4.4151 days.
- V870 Arae: Contact binary whose brightness fluctuates between magnitude 9.00 and 9.39.
- CXO J164710.2-455216 (Magnetar Westerlund 1):Magnetar and neutron star in the star cluster Westerlund 1.
Deep Sky Objects
Ara is also known as the home of several deep-sky objects. Deep-sky objects often mean star clusters, nebulae (body of interstellar clouds), or galaxies.
In the case of Ara, it is rich in nebulae and star clusters, being one of the constellations with the most incredible diversity of deep-sky bodies.
Stellar cumulus NGC 6397 or Caldwell 86
Caldwell 86 is the most noticeable deep-sky object in the constellation Ara; it is a stellar cumulus containing more than 400,000 stars.
Other Deep-sky Objects In Ara:
- NGC 6193. AR: Large open cluster containing about 30 stars.
- NGC 6208, NGC 6253, or IC 4651. Other open clusters.
- NGC 6362: Globular cluster.
- Ara cluster or Westerlund 1 is the only known stellar supercluster in our galaxy. It is believed to have formed in a single stage of star formation, implying that the constituent stars have similar ages and compositions.
- Stingray Nebula (Hen 3-1357): A very young planetary nebula; although in 1971, it was a blue supergiant star.
- RCW 114 and SNR G332.5-05.6: Both are supernova remnants with no known pulsar associated with them.
Conclusions
- Ara is a constellation located primarily in the southern hemisphere. The name of the constellation comes from Latin and means "Altar."
- The best month to see the Ara constellation is in July, between the latitudes of 25° N and 90° S.
- The easiest way to locate the constellation Ara is by drawing an imaginary straight line from the constellation of Scorpius to the constellation Triangulum Australe; in the middle of the road between the two, you will find the constellation, Ara.
- The brightest star in the constellation Ara is Beta Arae (β Ara/HD 157244/HR 6461) with an apparent magnitude of +2.85.
- The most notable deep sky body in the constellation Ara is the stellar Cumulus NGC 6397.