The Chameleon
| Abbreviation: | Cha |
| Genitive: | Chamaeleotis |
| Origin: | Frederick de Houtmann, Pieter Dirkszoon Keyser, Petrus Plancius |
| Fully Visible: | 90°S – 6°N |
Near the end of the sixteenth century, the observations of Dutch explorers Frederick de Houtman (c.1571–1627) and Pieter Dirkszoon Keyser (c.1540–1596) allowed Dutch astronomer Petrus Plancius (1552–1622) to place this constellation on his 1598 celestial globe. Its position is such that if it were to flick its tongue out, it would catch nearby Musca, the fly.
Notable Features
| Visible Named Stars | ||
|---|---|---|
| The brightest star in the constellation, α Cha, is only fourth-magnitude. None of the visible stars in this constellation have an official name. | ||
| Other Interesting Stars | ||
| HD 63454 | Ceibo | This ninth-magnitude star is known to have at least one exoplanet which is named Ibirapitá. Both the star and the planet are named for native Uruguayan trees. The star is found a little south of α Cha and θ Cha. |
| Deep Sky Objects | ||
| C109 | This planetary nebula is the most southerly of the bright planetary nebula. It appears about the same angular size as Jupiter in a medium-size telescope and is known by its New General Catalogue number of 3195. | |
Copyright © 1995–2023 by L.M. Stockman and David Harper