Triangulum Constellation: The Ultimate Guide

In Egyptian mythology, the constellation Triangulum appears under the name "MULAPIN," meaning "The Plow," because its first appearance in the sky in February marked the beginning of the first to begin plowing the land for crops.

The ancient Greeks called this constellation Triangulum Deltoton because it resembled the Delta letter "Δ."

Eratosthenes later related the constellation Triangulum to the Nile River Delta.

In the seventeenth century, the European community of astronomers classified the constellation with the name "Triangulus Septentrionalis"; thus, it is easier to differentiate it from the constellation "Triangulum Australe" (The Southern Triangle).

Years later, the Polish astronomer Johannes Hevelius decided to separate three stars with lower brightness to form the triangle-shaped constellation he named Triangulum Minus. At the same time, the giant triangle was called "Trangulum Majus."

In 1920 the International Astronomical Union only considered the giant triangle a constellation ignoring Hevelius's proposal.

After the twentieth century, the constellation Triangulum did not undergo significant changes in its boundaries or borders, designated as a northern constellation.

Triangulum currently ranks 78th in size among the 88 constellations in the night sky, being one of the smallest and most challenging to find with the naked eye in overly polluted skies.

The constellation Triangulum resides in the first quadrant of the Northern Hemisphere (NQ1), at latitudes between 60° S and 90° N. We can see the constellation in the night sky all countries of the world, the only exception being the Antarctic.

Triangulum is visible in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia.

The location of the constellation Triangulum is essentially in the northern hemisphere. In the northern hemisphere, it is visible during winter and in the southern hemisphere during summer. The best month to see the constellation Triangulum in the northern hemisphere is December.

Triangulum is a small constellation with dim stars; for that reason, it is difficult to locate.

An easy way to find the constellation Triangulum is by navigating through the constellations of Aries and Andromeda, as Triangulum is located right in the middle of the two.

Another way is by drawing an imaginary line from the constellation Perseus to the constellation Pisces; in the middle of the road, you will find the stars that make up the triangle of the constellation.

The bordering constellations of Triangulum are Andromeda, Pisces, Aries, and Perseus.

The Triangulum belongs to the Perseus family of Andromeda, Auriga, Cassiopeia, Cepheus, Cetus, Lacerta, Pegasus, and Perseus.

Triangulum officially has 25 stars within its boundaries, one of the constellations with the fewest stars. Of all its stars, only three form the central figure of the triangle, these are:

With a magnitude of 3.0, it is the brightest star in the constellation Triangulum, located 124 light-years from Earth.

It is a binary star where the main component is a subgiant spectral type A5IV.

Located at a distance of 64 light-years from the solar system, it is the second brightest solar system with an apparent magnitude of +3.42.

It is a white-yellowish subgiant three times larger than the sun, of spectral type F6IV.

With an estimated temperature of 9200 K, Gamma Trianguli is the third most luminous star in the constellation Triangulum with an apparent magnitude of +4.03.

Triangulum is also home to several deep-sky objects. Deep-sky objects are celestial bodies different from stars, such as nebulae (interstellar cloud bodies) or galaxies.

In the case of Triangulum being a tiny constellation that only has six deep-sky objects, these are:

• Triangle Galaxy (M33), an Sc-type spiral galaxy, is a satellite of the Andromeda galaxy. It is located 2.8 light-years from our galaxy and contains between 30 billion and 40 billion stars.
• NGC 604, Ionizing nebula located 2,700,000 light-years away.
• NGC 925, Spiral Galaxia, located approximately 31 million light-years away.
• NGC 672, Dwarf Galaxy
• IC 1727, Dwarf Galaxy
• 3C 48, Quasar

• Triangulum means "Triangle" in Latin. Its name originates in ancient Greece, where the Greeks associated the constellation with the capital letter delta "Δ."
• Triangulum is a constellation mainly located in the Northern Hemisphere. Still, it is observed from all countries globally, the only exception being Antarctica.
• The constellation Triangulum is the tenth smallest constellation. Its stars are not so bright, so it is challenging to locate compared to other constellations.
• The best way to locate the constellation Triangulum is to navigate through the constellations of Aries and Andromeda, as Triangulum is located right in the middle of the two.
• Triangulum's brightest star is Beta Trianguli, with an apparent magnitude of 3.0.
• The most notable deep-sky body within the boundaries of the constellation Triangulum is the Triangle Galaxy (M33)
• Triangulum has no associated meteor shower within its boundaries.

1. https://www.constellation-guide.com/constellation-list/triangulum-constellation/
2. https://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/advice/triangulum-constellation/
3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triangulum_Galaxy