Reticulum, the Reticle, is a small southern constellation near the Large Magellanic Cloud, named after the crosshairs in an astronomer’s eyepiece.
At a glance
| stars in the figure | 4 |
|---|---|
| nearest star of the figure | Epsilon Reticuli, 59.5 light-years (18.2 pc) |
| farthest star of the figure | Delta Reticuli, 526 light-years (161 pc) |
| depth | the farthest is 8.8 × farther than the nearest |
Read off the piece’s own catalogue, the same values it draws with.
About Reticulum
Reticulum was named by Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille after the reticle, the grid of fine threads in a telescope eyepiece that he used to measure the positions of stars. It is a compact diamond of stars, faint but neat, lying between Dorado, Horologium and Hydrus, close to the Large Magellanic Cloud.
Its best-known pair is Zeta Reticuli, two Sun-like stars wide enough apart to be seen separately with the naked eye under a dark sky, travelling through space together. Epsilon Reticuli, the nearest star of the figure, is an orange star accompanied by a white dwarf.
Reticulum lies far enough south to stay above the horizon all night from much of the southern hemisphere, where it is highest on summer evenings. From most of the northern hemisphere it is never seen.
What you see in the piece
With CONSTELLATIONS (N) on, leave the HUMAN EYE view (E) and fly: the little diamond comes apart, its nearest drawn star many times closer than its farthest.
Questions
What does Reticulum represent?
Reticulum represents a reticle, the grid of crosshairs in a telescope eyepiece that Lacaille used to measure star positions.
How far away are the stars of Reticulum?
The nearest star of the figure is Epsilon Reticuli, 59.5 light-years (18.2 pc); the farthest is Delta Reticuli, 526 light-years (161 pc). The farthest is 8.8 × farther than the nearest.