Aries, the Ram, is a small zodiac constellation of the northern autumn sky, a short bent line of stars led by the orange giant Hamal.
At a glance
| stars in the figure | 4 |
|---|---|
| nearest star of the figure | Sheratan, 58.7 light-years (18 pc) |
| farthest star of the figure | Bharani, 166 light-years (50.8 pc) |
| depth | the farthest is 2.8 × farther than the nearest |
| zodiac | ♈ the ecliptic runs through it |
Read off the piece’s own catalogue, the same values it draws with.
About Aries
Aries is the ram of the golden fleece in Greek myth, the fleece Jason and the Argonauts sailed to find. Its figure is just a short crooked line: Hamal, an orange giant and the brightest star, then Sheratan and Mesarthim, a double easily split in a small telescope. Bharani, fainter, sits apart.
In antiquity the Sun crossed the celestial equator in Aries at the spring equinox, so that point is still called the First Point of Aries. The slow wobble of Earth’s axis has since carried it into neighbouring Pisces. The ecliptic runs through the figure, and Aries is best seen on northern autumn and winter evenings.
What you see in the piece
Flown out to, the short line of the ram stays fairly compact: Sheratan is the nearest and Bharani lies only a few times deeper, among the shallowest figures in the sky.
Questions
What is the First Point of Aries?
The point where the Sun crosses the celestial equator at the March equinox. It lay in Aries in antiquity; the wobble of Earth’s axis has since moved it into Pisces.
How far away are the stars of Aries?
They range from Sheratan, 58.7 light-years (18 pc), to Bharani, 166 light-years (50.8 pc): the farthest is 2.8 × farther than the nearest.