The Northern Fly
| Abbreviation: | MuB |
| Genitive: | Muscae Borealis |
| Origin: | Petrus Plancius, 1612 |
The northern fly underwent a number of name changes before it vanished from the sky. It started out as Apes (the Bees) when placed in the heavens by Petrus Plancius (1552–1622) in his celebrated celestial globe of 1612. Two decades later, German astronomer Jakob Bartsch (c.1600–1633) renamed it Vespa (the wasp) and in 1679, French architect Augustin Royer published an atlas with this group of stars labelled Lilium. The lily (fleur-de-lis), of course, is the emblem of France. At about the same time, German/Polish astronomer Johannes Hevelius (1611–1687) renamed it Musca Borealis. The bee/wasp/lily/fly sits on the back of the ram Aries.
Copyright © 1995–2023 by L.M. Stockman and David Harper