November 2003
Pegasus

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Pegasus, the Winged Horse,  is an easily recognizable constellation that is perfectly positioned for Northern Hemisphere skywatchers in November. Pegasus contains an asterism, or grouping of stars called The Great Square. Another example of an asterism is the Big Dipper, which is actually part of the constellation Ursa Major. Look high in the south, almost overhead, in early evening to find Pegasus. The Winged Horse is located in a part of the sky that I call the "Greek Myth Constellations." This group also contains Andromeda, Perseus, Cassiopeia, Cepheus, and farther south, Cetus. To see a map of the sky in November, visit Sky Maps and download a chart in PDF format. PDF files require that you have Adobe Acrobat Reader, a free and easy to use program. Click here to download it.

The story of Pegasus goes something like this: Perseus was a mortal man, one of the many "illegitimate" sons of Zeus and a mortal woman. When he was grown, Perseus was sent off on a seemingly impossible quest by the woman's jealous husband. Perseus had to slay Medusa, the ugliest woman around. Her gaze would turn anyone to stone. With the help of Athena and a magic shield, Perseus succeeds, and out of Medusa's severed neck Pegasus comes leaping out. Perseus goes on to have more adventures, and Pegasus' story is continued thus:

(From Chris Dolan's Stars and Constellations Site:) "Pegasus was later brought to Mount Helicon by Bellerophon and with one kick of his hoof, he caused the spring of Hippocrene to flow. Hippocrene is said to be the source of inspiration to poets. Bellerophon, who slayed the hideous beast Chimaera, became so headstrong that he ordered Pegasus to fly him up to Mount Olympus, the home of the gods. This impudence angered Zeus, who sent an insect to sting the winged horse, who bucked Bellerophon off its back. Needless to say, Bellerophon did not survive the fall to Earth. Pegasus went on to greatness, however, as the "Thundering Horse of Jove" who carried lightning bolts for Zeus."
 




The above view of Pegasus is adapted from Norton's Sky Atlas 2000.0. Click the link to find out more info about this great resource book for amateur astronomers. Using this guide, we'll take a closer look at some of the interesting sights in Pegasus. Our tour goes in order of Right Ascension, which is right to left on this map. The symbols below show how an object is best viewed:

with your naked eye;
with binoculars, and
with a telescope.

M15. This is one of the finest globular clusters in the Northern Sky. At magnitude 6.4, it is visible in binoculars, appearing as a small, fuzzy patch. A telescope of any size shows great detail- M15's bright, dense core and "halo" of stars. M15 is located near the bright star Enif. From Enif, hop 2 and 1/4 degrees northwest, and you will land right on it. More info about M15.

NGC 7217. This is one of several galaxies in Pegasus worth a look through your scope. At magnitude 10.2, NGC 7217 is a very photogenic face on spiral galaxy, which appears as a round blob with a faint halo. We recommend a 4.5 inch to 6 inch scope to view the galaxies in this article. More info about NGC 7217.

NGC 7331. This is the largest, brightest galaxy in Pegasus (mag. 9.5, size 10.7 arcminutes). It lies nearly edge on to our point of view. More about NGC 7331. For those galaxy hunters interested in a challenge, try finding Stephan's Qunitet, a group of 13 and 14 magnitude galaxies located just half a degree west of NGC 7331.

Xi (x) Pegasi. This double star is about 5 degrees southwest of Markab, or Alpha (a) Pegasi. Its components are magnitudes 4.2 and 12.2 respectively, and they are separated by only 11.5 arcseconds. You will probably have to use medium or high power to split this pair.

NGC 7448. This irregular, elongated galaxy shines faintly at magnitude 11.7. Its easy to find, only 1.2 degrees northwest of Markab.

NGC 7479. This is another galaxy near Markab, 2 1/2 degrees directly south and magnitude 11. Its an irregular, barred spiral, and in larger scopes some structure in the spiral arms might be glimpsed.

NGC 7619 and 7626. This pair of galaxies is actually part of a group of galaxies called the Pegasus I Cluster. 7619 and 7626 are the brightest of the group at magnitudes 11.1 and 11.2 respectively. Nearby members 7611 and 7623 are harder to spot at 12.6 and 12.4, respectively. The whole group lies about 2 1/2 degrees east of an asterism of 4 stars in the shape of a lopsided square.

NGC 7743. This galaxy is a barred spiral, shining faintly at mag. 11.2. It is less than 1/3 of a degree southeast of the 5th magnitude star 77 Peg, shown on the map above.

NGC 7772. We end our tour of Pegasus with an open star cluster. 7772 is just inside the boundaries of the Great Square. Its a pretty nondescript cluster except for a faint group of 6 stars that forms an almost perfect V. More info and link to a photo here.

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