The Winged Horse
| Abbreviation: | Peg |
| Genitive: | Pegasi |
| Origin: | [antiquity] |
| Fully Visible: | 53°S – 90°N |
Pegasus, the divine pure white winged stallion of Greek mythology, was born from the blood of his mother, the Gorgon, Medusa, when she was decapitated by Perseus. He was captured by the Greek hero Bellerophon and the two shared many adventures. However, Bellerophon grew proud and decided to ride to Mount Olympus, the home of the gods. The king of the gods, Zeus, was understandably annoyed and sent a fly to sting Pegasus, causing Bellerophon to fall back to Earth where he lived out his days as a homeless cripple. Eventually Zeus placed Pegasus in the sky as a constellation.
The asterism known as the 'Great Square of Pegasus' is comprised of the stars α Peg, β Peg, α And, and γ Peg.
Notable Features
| Visible Named Stars | ||
|---|---|---|
| α Peg | Markab | This star appears as Djenubi al Mukdim (from the Arabic janūbiy al‑fargh al‑mutaqaddam meaning 'the southern anterior spout of the water bucket') in Mohammad Al Achsasi Al Mouakket's calendarium. In Hindu astronomy, α Peg and β Peg together are known as Purva Bhadrapada, from the Sanskrit pūrva bhādrapadā meaning 'the first of the blessed feet'. |
| β Peg | Scheat | This star appears as Shimalih al Mukdim (from the Arabic shamāliy al‑fargh al‑mutaqaddam meaning 'the northern anterior spout of the water bucket') in Mohammad Al Achsasi Al Mouakket's calendarium. |
| γ Peg | Algenib | This star appears as Djenubi al Muchir (from the Arabic janūbiy al‑fargh al‑muʾakhkhar meaning 'the southern posterior spout of the water bucket') in Mohammad Al Achsasi Al Mouakket's calendarium. In Hindu astronomy, γ Peg and α And/δ Peg together are known as Uttara Bhadrapada, from the Sanskrit uttara bhādrapadā meaning 'the second of the blessed feet'. |
| δ Peg | Alpheratz | This star forms part of the asterism known as the 'Great Square of Pegasus'. However, it is no longer identified as δ Peg but as α And. Despite this, the name refers to the navel of the horse. It appears as Shimalih al Muchir (from the Arabic shamāliy al‑fargh al‑muʾakhkhar meaning 'the northern posterior spout of the water bucket') in Mohammad Al Achsasi Al Mouakket's calendarium. |
| ε Peg | Enif | This star is a wide double when viewed through binoculars. It appears as Fam al Feras (from the Arabic fum al‑faras meaning 'the mouth of the horse') in Mohammad Al Achsasi Al Mouakket's calendarium. |
| ζ Peg | Homam | This star appears as Nir Saad al Bahaim (from the Arabic al‑nayyir saʿad ul‑biham meaning 'the bright lucky star of the young beasts') in Mohammad Al Achsasi Al Mouakket's calendarium. |
| η Peg | Matar | This third-magnitude star is actually a spectroscopic binary. |
| θ Peg | Biham | This fourth-magnitude A-type star has a red dwarf companion. |
| μ Peg | Sadalbari | This is a G-type giant star, shining at third magnitude and exhibiting a high proper motion. |
| τ Peg | Salm | This star sometimes appears as Kerb (from the Arabic al‑karab meaning 'the bucket rope') in older star atlases and catalogues. |
| υ Peg | Alkarab | The derivation of this name is explained above. |
| 51 Peg | Helvetios | This fifth-magnitude star is known to have at least one exoplanet. |
| Other Interesting Stars | ||
| BD+14 4559 | Solaris | This tenth-magnitude star is known to have at least one exoplanet. It is located south of 1 Peg. |
| WASP‑21 | Tangra | Found north of Markab (α Peg), this twelfth-magnitude star is known to have at least one exoplanet. |
| WASP‑52 | Anadolu | This twelfth-magnitude star is known to have at least one exoplanet and is found south of the galaxy C44. |
| WASP‑60 | Morava | This twelfth-magnitude star is known to have at least one exoplanet. It lies just north of the 'Great Square of Pegasus'. |
| Deep Sky Objects | ||
| M15 | Binoculars will be needed to see this globular cluster. It is one of the oldest known globular clusters, with an estimated age of 12 billion years. | |
| C30 | A medium-size telescope will be necessary to see this spiral galaxy. It is interesting in that the central bulge is rotating in the opposite direction to the rest of the disc! It is found in the New General Catalogue at number 7331. | |
| C43 | This edge-on spiral galaxy, also known as NGC 7814, looks a bit like a miniature version of the famous Sombrero Galaxy. A medium-size telescope is required to observe this object. | |
| C44 | NGC 7479 is a barred spiral galaxy shining at magnitude 12. It was discovered by William Herschel in 1784. | |
| Meteor Shower Radiants | ||
| 175 JPE | July Pegasids | There are no major meteor showers associated with this constellation. This minor shower is active in July, peaking around 10 July. Its parent body may be Comet C/1979 Y1 Bradfield which has a period of just over 300 years. |
Copyright © 1995–2023 by L.M. Stockman and David Harper