Constellation Aquarius diagram for children. Andrey Klimkovsky - composer, astronomer, marathon runner: constellation Aquarius. Aquarius sign, Sun and planets

The last post in the series about zodiac signs is about the constellation Aquarius.
12 signs of the zodiac circle - 12 sectors of 30°, into which the zodiac belt is divided in astrology
The division of the ecliptic into twelve parts goes back to the sexagesimal number system and astronomy of ancient Babylon, which served as the basis for dividing the year into twelve months, just as the division of the celestial circle into 360 angular shares (approximately in accordance with the number of days in the year) was adopted there. source for dividing a circle into 360 degrees in geometry.

The names of the zodiac signs correspond to the zodiac constellations in which the Sun is alternately located in its annual movement. In fact, these concepts differ significantly, because Constellation is an astronomical concept, meaning a section of the celestial sphere with boundaries established by historical tradition.
For modern astronomy, the signs of the zodiac, as an element of astrology, are interpreted by modern scientists most likely as a strange and unnecessary misunderstanding, not related to true science. But historical meaning There is no way to ignore the zodiac signs.
Although ordinary admirers of the zodiac constellations are least concerned about the historical significance, give us the practical! After all, they were called upon to reveal the most intimate and secret things - the destinies of people.

Zodiac clock of the Clock Tower in St. Mark's Square, Venice, 15th century

Constellation Aquarius in astronomy

Aquarius is included in the catalog of the starry sky of Claudius Ptolemy “Almagest”.

The constellation Aquarius is located in the southern hemisphere of the starry sky, where it is surrounded by various water inhabitants - the constellations Cetus, Dolphin, Eridanus and others, due to which the area it occupies is often called the sea. Aquarius, as the ancient Greeks called it, is one of the oldest and largest constellations. To be precise, by the area occupied in the starry sky, namely 980 square degrees.

The Sun is in the constellation from February 16 to March 11. The sun enters Aquarius precisely at the moment when spring replaces winter, and the season of regular light spring rains begins outside the window.
Unfortunately, there are not many stars in the constellation that can be seen with an ordinary telescope.
The most significant in this constellation are three stars - alpha, beta and delta Aquarius - Sadalmelik, Sadalsuud, and Skat, respectively.

Sadalsuud is a third magnitude star - its apparent magnitude is 2.91m. This celestial body is quite rare, because it belongs to the hot supergiants.

Sadalmelik- the second brightest star in Aquarius after Sadalsuud. Its light is only slightly weaker than that of Beta Aquarius. As usual, the name of the star is rooted in Arabic. The name of Alpha Aquarius means "lucky star of the king." Sadalmelik is 750 light years away from Earth. From here, thanks to simple calculations, we can conclude that its luminosity is 3000 times greater than the Solar one, but its diameter is only 60 times greater than the Solar one.

Scat is a blue-white star, its mass of Skat is approximately twice that of the Sun.

In addition to stars and meteor showers, globular clusters and nebulae can be recognized in Aquarius. For example, the planetary Helix Nebula, commonly referred to as NGC 7293

Photos of the Helix Nebula

The constellation Aquarius also “contains” within its borders the beautiful globular cluster M2, which is larger in size than many similar objects. There is also an open cluster here.

Cluster NGC 7089

Cluster NGC 7089

Although Aquarius is a dim celestial design, it is worthy of the significance that astronomy gives it. Constellations like it are not easy to spot in the sky, but when studied through a telescope, amazing secrets and beauties of the Universe are revealed.

Aquarius in mythology

Among the ancient Sumerians, Aquarius was one of the most important constellations, since it personified the sky god An, who gives life-giving water to the earth. According to the Greeks, Aquarius depicts several mythical characters at once, for example, Ganymede, the Trojan youth who became a cupbearer on Olympus; Deucalion - the hero of the flood; Cecrops - the ancient king of Attica.

Ganymede by Benedetto Gennari The Younger (1633-1715, Italy)

Ganymede(ancient Greek “starter of fun”) - in Greek mythology, a beautiful young man, the son of the Trojan king Tros (after whom Troy was named) and the nymph Callirhoe
Because of his extraordinary beauty, Ganymede was kidnapped by Zeus and carried by the eagle of Zeus to Olympus (according to another version, Zeus himself turned into an eagle),
On Olympus he was granted immortality, and Zeus appointed him heavenly cupbearer. During the festivals, Ganymede offered nectar, pouring out of a jug like water, to the Olympian deities.
Whether Ganymede was the lover of Zeus is a debatable question, and different authors have answered it differently.

Throughout the Middle Ages, Ganymede symbolized homosexuality, and the "pro" and "contra" of the two types of love are discussed in the frivolous Latin poem "The Dispute between Helen and Ganymede." Only the Neoplatonist allegorists of the Renaissance read something more spiritual in the myth and found in it a symbol of the ascent of the soul to the absolute, and there were even theologians who compared the ascending Christ with Ganymede. Similarly, Goethe’s Ganymede ascends into the ethereal embrace of the all-loving Father.

Peter Paul Rubens The Rape of Ganymede

Deucalion is also considered an Aquarius, son of Prometheus. On the advice of his father Prometheus, Deucalion built a huge box, put food supplies in it and entered it with his wife. For nine days and nights, Deucalion’s box rushed along the waves of the sea that covered the entire land. Finally, the waves drove him to the double-headed peak of Parnassus. The rainfall sent by Zeus stopped. Deucalion and Pyrrha came out of the box and made a thanksgiving sacrifice to Zeus, who preserved them among the stormy waves. The water subsided

Aivazovsky Ivan Konstantinovich. global flood

Aquarius in astrology

The ancients gave a very large place to astrology. Zodiac signs were even used in medicine.


Illustration from the 15th century Book of Hours of the Duke of Berry, showing the relationship of the zodiac signs with the Hippocratic temperaments in accordance with the “hot-cold” and “wet-dry” zodiac constellations
In the 20th and 21st centuries they have not moved far from the ancients. We continue to check health, characters, and even fate with horoscopes.

AQUARIUS
January 21 - February 18
pictographic symbol - two wavy lines that represent the serpent of wisdom.
This zodiac sign represents change and challenge.

Element: air

Planet: Saturn, Uranus

Stone: obsidian, sapphire

Talisman: icon, key

Color: silver, blue

Since Aquarius is ruled by two planets at once, its character is ambiguous.
Uranus is the main ruler of Aquarius. It is he who fuels interest in various kinds of innovations and gives strength to make radical changes in his own life.
Saturn is the minor ruler of the sign Aquarius. It can balance the unpredictability of Uranus and deprive the representative of this sign of formalism. It is manifested by the rigor of thinking, the ability to formulate clearly and adhere to traditions that feed their creativity.

The favorite activities of the representative of this zodiac sign are gaining new knowledge and traveling. He tends to analyze everything that happens around him. He never betrays his principles and boldly enters the fight if he encounters obstacles.

Aquarius is a sociable zodiac sign. He has many friends, but he can only call one or two people a friend. People are attracted to him by his goodwill and ability to help at any moment. At the same time, others consider him tactless because he often directly asks personal questions. Such accusations are false. Aquarius does not seek to offend his interlocutor, but wants to solve difficult riddle human relations.

Aquarians are attractive, energetic and sociable people. They are endowed with strong intuition. These signs know how to be friends, it is always interesting to communicate with them. They are excellent organizers. Aquarians love risks, so they boldly take on promising projects. They know how to make money.

Representatives of the sign love to receive guests. They organize leisure time in an interesting way. That's why their house is always full of friends. They understand people well. Aquarians take full responsibility for themselves and their loved ones. They are wonderful parents. Their children grow up surrounded by love and affection.

Aquarians are avid realists, despite the fact that their address is tomorrow. You must always be prepared for any surprises with this sign. Generally kind and calm by nature, they take great pleasure in challenging public opinion and they secretly enjoy shocking conservative people with their unusual behavior.

AND . A famous asterism in Aquarius is the "Jug", a small Y-shaped group of five stars straddling the celestial equator. The central one of these stars, ζ Aquarii, is a double star. Also interesting are the globular cluster M2 and the planetary nebulae Saturn and Helix (NGC 7009 and NGC 7293). Aquarius is home to the radiant of the Delta Aquarids meteor shower, active in late July.

The symbol of the constellation Aquarius is ♒︎

The Sun is in Aquarius from February 16 to March 11, and best conditions to observe the constellation, they occur in August-September. If you are lucky enough to live in the central and southern regions of Russia, at this time you will be able to observe this constellation in all its glory without any problems. An observer will easily be able to see approximately 90 stars from the constellation Aquarius. It is worth noting that only seven of these ninety have a magnitude greater than four. These stars form a kind of curved arc, in the middle of which the five brightest stars are concentrated. This five forms a kind of prototype of a jug with a stream of water flowing from it. It is not easy to see the stars in this arrangement young guy with a jug of water, but this is exactly how the constellation Aquarius was depicted on ancient star atlases.

The Legend of the Constellation Aquarius

There is a mythical legend that this young man is none other than the son of the ruler of Troy - Ganymede. The young man was known as a handsome man, and one day, while he was tending sheep, Zeus saw him from the top of Olympus and ordered his Eagle to bring Ganymede up. On Olympus he was granted immortality, and Zeus appointed him heavenly cupbearer. During the festivals, Ganymede offered nectar, pouring out of a jug like water, to the Olympian deities. This is how the image of a young man with a jug appeared in ancient atlases.

Among the ancient Sumerians, Aquarius was one of the most important constellations, since it personified the sky god An, who gives life-giving water to the earth. According to the Greeks, Aquarius depicts several mythical characters at once, for example, Ganymede, the Trojan youth who became a cupbearer on Olympus; Deucalion - the hero of the global flood and Cecrops - the ancient king of Attica. Aquarius is included in the catalog of the starry sky of Claudius Ptolemy “Almagest”.

In the form of Aquarius, they depicted a young guy pouring water (nectar) from an amphora into the mouth of the Southern Pisces. Usually, Ganymede, the child of King Tros in Greek myths, appeared in his image. He was very handsome and caught the eye of Zeus. He decided to disguise himself as an eagle and kidnap him so that he would serve the other gods on Olympus. There is another version. This guy was the son of Prometheus Deucalion, who managed to save the lives of himself and his wife during the great flood.

In Babylonian mythology he was called GU.LA (great). For the Egyptians it was the god of the Nile.

It is difficult to see in the stellar outlines of this constellation a person pouring water from a jug. But you can see a large space spider, spreading its furry legs, which in the spring at dawn begins to climb the sky in the south-eastern part. At the beginning of winter, in the evenings it obediently crawls under the horizon. Aquarius is visible almost all summer and autumn, and is located exactly at the intersection of summer and autumn constellations. For the most part, Aquarius is located in the southern celestial hemisphere and therefore is visible in the northern latitudes of our Motherland. On the star map, it borders on the constellations Capricorn, Southern Pisces, Whale, Pisces, Pegasus, Lesser Horse, Dolphin and Eagle - it has many neighbors.

Finding the constellation Aquarius in the sky is not difficult - on summer nights it is located immediately below the extended and noticeable Pegasus. Our ancient ancestors saw a lot of different things here and therefore there was no single legend about Aquarius. Perhaps this ambiguity gives astrologers today the opportunity to weave to this place on the star chart all sorts of fables about the coming era of Aquarius and the incredible abundance and prosperity accompanying this milestone. In fact, there are no objective prerequisites for this. Aquarius will take the baton of accepting the point of the spring equinox within its borders very, and not soon, according to human ideas. No significant planets begin their long-term positioning in Aquarius (Neptune is already urgently leaving this constellation, and Uranus will soon enter it, but will stay only for a few years, which is in no way comparable to the concept of “Era”; Pluto “goes” to Aquarius for another hundred years , Jupiter will enter the expanses of Aquarius at the beginning of 2010 and will stay there for a year, Saturn could stay for two and a half, but only after ten years).

And yet, what did they see in these stars in the era of star myths?

There are several small tales on this topic. The very first and most logical thing is related to the seasonal factor - it was during the period of the appearance of these stars in the morning dawn that agricultural irrigation work became relevant and “Aquarius” irrigating fields and plantings was very, very useful. Another mention of some giant man frantically pouring water from the heavens is associated with the so-called “World Flood” present in the annals of various nations, and if the constellation Aquarius owes its name to this natural disaster, it is unlikely that the whole era of this very Aquarius will be useful to us. It's better somehow without her. Later legends tell about a certain young man, very handsome and noble - the son of one of the Greek kings - Tros - his name was Ganymede. Ganymede was called by Zeus to Olympus as a cupbearer (which is why there are persistent rumors that in fact Aquarius pours not water at all from his jug, but wine or even divine nectar!) to serve the gods during regular “high-mountain” feasts and in return, Zeus promised the young man immortality. But jealous Hera even here found reason to suspect her divine spouse of infidelity and demanded that she quickly get rid of the handsome cupbearer. Zeus had to obey this time too. Ganymede was demoted to the constellation, but thereby gained the promised immortality. There were many other fairy tales about Aquarius, but I’m already pretty tired of them and it’s time to move on to the astronomical essence of this constellation.

There are no very bright stars within the boundaries of the constellation Aquarius, but there are many stars of medium brightness from which its branched figure is completely formed. All these star chains start from the star Zeta Aquarii (it has its own name Arab origin- Sadaltager).

Zeta Aquarius, together with three other stars of this constellation (Gamma, Eta and Pi), forms a “Y”-shaped asterism - a visually close group of stars that are actually very far apart in space. And indeed, Zeta is the closest of them - 105 light years away. Gamma and Eta are noticeably further away - 163 and 191 light years. Pi Aquarii is very far away - more than a thousand light years from the Sun and the three previously mentioned stars of this optical cluster. But from here, from Earth, this three-rayed “propeller” looks nice and is a distinctive feature of the constellation Aquarius, by which it can be unmistakably recognized in the sky.

Already a small telescope, but with a very significant magnification, will show us that Zeta Aquarii is a double star (the distance between the components is 2"). This duality is not optical - both stars are connected by gravitational forces and revolve around the center of mass of this system in 361 years.

In the eastern part of the constellation and much to the south there is another characteristic star formation, quite characteristic of Aquarius - the “Frog's Leg” asterism. The “paw” is formed by five dim stars: Phi Aquarius, Chi Aquarius and three stars located in a chain Psi-1, Psi-2, Psi-3 Aquarius. Located in the middle of the asterism, the dark red Chi of Aquarius is an irregular stellar variable with negligible amplitude, but it is fair to say that on this moment scientists simply do not understand the nature of this star and therefore classify it as one of the many stars that change their brightness in an unpredictable way. At one time I also studied this star, but in Moscow conditions, when the Chi of Aquarius does not rise very high above the horizon, and the number of transparent and clear nights is not enough, I also was not able to somehow advance towards studying the laws by which the Chi of Aquarius changes your shine.

Directly below the red variable there is a double star - Psi-1 Aquarii - its duality can be detected even by the owner of small binoculars, since the distance between the stars is quite large (80"). Very powerful professional telescopes show that in the Psi-1 Aquarius system the forces of universal gravity five stars are connected.Recently, in this complex system of stars, an extrasolar planet was also discovered, orbiting one of the stars and comparable in size to “our” Jupiter.

The constellation Aquarius contains one of the largest globular star clusters. "Star ball" number M2 (this is the second object included in the famous catalog various kinds comet-like objects by its creator, Charles Messier. The first to introduce, as you remember, the “Crab Nebula” in the constellation Taurus) is located at the northern border of Aquarius with the constellation Pegasus. It can be seen even with small binoculars, but only a telescope will help you see it in detail.

At the western border of Aquarius there is another “Star Ball” (M72), but it contains fewer stars, and it itself is located further away, so even in a telescope it looks very modest.

Next to the object from Charles Monsier's catalog - M72 - is the next object from the same catalog - M73. But this is not a globular cluster, but an open one, I would add - loose and few in number, although with binoculars at low magnification this handful of faint stars may seem interesting.

And again, very close to the two listed clusters there is also an interesting celestial object in the constellation Aquarius - the planetary nebula "Saturn" or more strictly - in scientific terms - NGC 7009.

A planetary nebula is a cosmic formation that has nothing to do with planets. This is the shell of some star scattering in space that has undergone a catastrophe, exploded, if you will. But in that distant era, when absolutely nothing was known about the nature of such nebulae, astronomers of that time dubbed them “planetary” for their visible resemblance to the disks of the distant planets Uranus and Neptune. The nebula NGC 7009 is less worthy of such a comparison and indeed, in small and medium-sized telescopes, looks a bit like Saturn with its ring “ears” protruding in different directions. Pictures taken with very powerful telescopes reveal a slightly different appearance of this nebula.

In the southern part of Aquarius there is another similar object - the planetary nebula "Helix" (in other words - "Snail") or NGC 7293. This is the closest planetary nebula to us and in the sky it occupies a space of half the lunar disk - for a planetary nebula this is so many. The distance to this cloud of glowing gas is 300 light years.

This huge nebula is illuminated by a dying, but very, very hot star. Astronomers do not know of another equally or hotter star in the universe - the surface temperature of this star is 130,000°C. It is clear that the star is even hotter inside.

In addition to stellar and nebulous objects, the constellation Aquarius gave shelter to three meteor radiants. A radiant is an imaginary point in the sky from which meteors sometimes fly out during the action of one or another meteor shower, and in its meaning the radiant is similar to that point on the horizon where parallel running rails run railway.

Since Aquarius is called Aquarius in Latin, the meteor showers operating on its territory have a name similar to the constellation. The Delta and Iota Aquarids (the names of stars located close to the radiant often appear in the name of the stream) are very faint and practically unobservable from the vast expanses of our country. But Eta Aquarites generated by Halley's Comet can be quite active - up to 35 meteors per hour. We just need to add that in the city conditions in the already brightening May sky (the era of maximum activity of the Eta Aquarids falls on May 4-5) you can’t count more than one “shooting star”, but in the southern hemisphere the stream is considered one of the most active and beautiful .

The constellation is in alphabetical order Aquarius. A large and beautiful constellation that harbors the Helix Nebula, the Saturn Nebula, a couple of globular clusters and other interesting deep-sky objects.

Legend and history

Among the ancient Sumerians, Aquarius was one of the most important constellations, since it personified the God of the sky, An, who gives life-giving water to the earth. The Greeks thought it was Zeus who poured the water of life. Many peoples were sure that after the Sun passes through the constellation Aquarius, the rainy season begins.

On Latin Aquarius means "butler". Aquarius is one of the oldest recognized constellations in the sky. The constellation does not have bright stars and clear outlines of the figure.

Characteristics

The most interesting objects to observe in the constellation Aquarius

Atlas of the constellation Aquarius

1. Globular star cluster M 2 (NGC 7089)

A globular star cluster that can be seen with the naked eye in favorable conditions. weather conditions and the absence of city light. Contains about 150 thousand stars. M 2 is one of the most compact and rich globular clusters. 36,200 light years away from the Sun. The brightness is 6.5 m, the visible angular dimensions are 16′. Today there are 21 known (which change their brightness) in this cluster. It can be found in the sky by making a path in two ways (from the two brightest stars of the constellation):

Search for the globular cluster M 2

2. Planetary Helix Nebula (NGC 7293, C 63)

You've probably come across this memorable image of the planetary Helix Nebula more than once in books or on the Internet ( NGC 7293). Of course, the Hubble telescope managed to take a fantastic picture. Afterwards, astronomers performed post-processing of the image. The nebula is located 500-600 light years from the Sun and is the closest planetary nebula discovered. When observed through small amateur or semi-professional telescopes, it is visible as a round, foggy spot. An example image using the filter is shown below:

The brightness of the nebula is 7.5 m, angular dimensions are 17.57′. At night starry sky to search you have to start from the star Scat with a magnitude of 3.25 m and move in the direction of the southeast, as roughly schematically shown on the map:

The following three objects are located in close proximity to each other and an approximate search route has been compiled for them on one map. But let’s take a closer look at each of them separately.

3. Globular star cluster M 72 (NGC 6981)

M 72- a bright and saturated globular star cluster. It is located at a distance of 53 thousand light years from the Sun and is one of the most distant clusters in the Messier catalog. The brightness is 9.3 m. There are 42 variable stars known in the cluster. In the sky you can find following the route marked with yellow arrows:

Search for M 72, M 73 and NGC 7009

4. Asterism M 73 (NGC 6994)

M 73- this is consisting of four stars. The stars have brightness levels of 10th and 11th. In a telescope they look like a small nebula. As astronomers assume, the stars are physically connected, i.e. gravitational forces. On the map above, first with yellow arrows, and then with red arrows from the star Albami, an approximate route for being in the sky is shown.

5. Planetary Nebula Saturn (NGC 7009, C 55)

The sixth and final object to observe in the constellation Aquarius is this remarkable planetary nebula "Saturn". It owes its name to the planet solar system Saturn with rings, which is very similar when observed through a telescope. The star in the center has a magnitude of 11.5 m. The nebula itself is very small and its surface brightness is - 8.0 m. In a powerful professional telescope it will look something like this:

On the star map above, following the yellow arrows and, starting from the star Albami, following the green ones, you can find the Saturn Nebula.

Although I highly recommend observing the last three objects in one session, try to spot them all. Start with a lower magnification, find M 72 and, moving west, you will find M 73, and then a little to the west and north you will find a nebula NGC 7009. I'm sure you can do it. And don’t despair if you can’t find all three the first time. Patience and persistence will help you a lot.

Small (apparent dimensions 3.5′ × 2.2′), but very beautiful spiral galaxy NGC 7723 turned to face the observer from the Earth. With a telescope of 150 millimeters or more, you can see the arms, shape, and rich central part of the galaxy. Brightness - 11.2 m.

Finding a star ψ 1 Aqr(you’ll see a few more bright ones nearby) and turn the pipe counterclockwise. On the atlas below, red arrows indicate the direction:

Search for the pair of galaxies NGC 7723 and NGC 7727

By the way, an amateur astronomer from Europe in 2015 managed to take a wonderful photo of the galaxy and the bright comet Catalina:

Near the previous galaxy NGC 7723 there is a larger and brighter galaxy NGC 7727. In the image above you can notice both galaxies. Previously viewed galaxy in the background NGC 7727 looks very tiny. Using a wide-angle eyepiece will allow you to view both galaxies in the same field of view.

The brightness of the galaxy in question is 10.6 m, the apparent angular dimensions are 4.7′ × 3.5′.

Multiple star systems

8.1 Double star ζ (zeta) Aquarii

This is a dual system. Both stars are so close together (less than two arcseconds) that it is very difficult to photograph or separate them into two independent ones. Therefore, I apologize for the photo above, but this is the best I found on the Internet, and in the program I couldn’t separate them into two separate stars at all. The brightness of each star is 4.4 m and 4.6 m.

These are the “surprises” presented to us constellation Aquarius. Despite the fact that in our latitudes this constellation is difficult and inaccessible for observation, you should know that it is clearly accessible on a clear night in early September (I was convinced of this myself). You just need to go further outside the city, somewhere in a field or large clearing, so that the trees on the horizon do not cover the stars lying low on the horizon - and you will find everything.

Around Aquarius are the constellations Cetus, Southern Pisces, Capricorn, Eagle, Pegasus and the Lesser Horse.
In the vast area occupied by the constellation Aquarius on the celestial sphere, about 90 stars can be seen with the naked eye on a clear and moonless night, but only seven of them are brighter than fourth magnitude. They are located in the form of a strongly curved arc. In the middle
parts of the five brightest stars form some semblance of a vessel from which a stream of water flows. Still, it is very difficult in this configuration of stars that make up the constellation Aquarius to see a young man holding a large jug from which water flows. This is exactly how this constellation was depicted on ancient star maps and star atlases. This image is a reflection of one natural phenomenon that repeats itself every year. After a period of invisibility, the constellation Aquarius becomes clearly visible above the southern horizon with the onset of autumn, when the autumn rains begin. Noticing this phenomenon, the ancient Greeks, who had a rich imagination, saw in this constellation a man kneeling, holding a jug from which a stream of water was pouring out.
The constellation Aquarius has few objects that can be observed with a regular telescope, but the constellation contains the radiants of five intense meteor showers.

Of interest is the star R Aquarius, which is a long-period variable such as the Mira Ceti star. Its magnitude varies from 5m.8 to 11m.5. The period of change in its brightness is on average 386.92 days, but there are many irregularities in it that have not yet been well studied. This is why the star R Aquarii is an interesting object to observe.
In the constellation Aquarius there is the closest and largest planetary nebula NGC 7293, which is called the Helix. 87 Its integral magnitude is 6m.5 (it can be clearly observed with binoculars), and its angular dimensions are 15"x12", i.e. only half the apparent size of the Moon. The distance from us to this planetary nebula is 660 light years.
The radiant of the η Aquarid meteor shower passes near the star η Aquarii, which is observed from May 1 to May 8. The maximum of this shower occurs on May 5, when up to 36 meteors per hour are observed. The η Aquarid meteor shower is associated with Halley's comet, the brightest comet of the 20th century, which is now approaching the Sun and will appear in 1985. In this regard, the η Aquarid meteor shower can be expected to intensify in the coming years. Therefore, regular observations of this interesting meteor shower are highly desirable, on the basis of which it will be possible to study its structure in more depth.
Not far from the star δ Aquarius is the radiant of the Southern δ Aquarid meteor shower, observed from July 15 to August 15. The maximum of this shower occurs on July 29, when up to 14 meteors per hour are observed.
Near the star δ Aquarius is the radiant of the Northern meteor shower δ Aquarids, observed from July 15 to August 15. Its maximum occurs on July 29, but it is weaker than the maximum of the Southern δ Aquarids.
As can be seen, the Southern and Northern δ Aquarids are observed simultaneously, and even their maxima occur on the same date. This is why regular ongoing observations of these flows have great importance for meteor astronomy, since based on these observations it is possible to reveal characteristics structures of each meteor shower.
Not far from the star ι Aquarius is the radiant of the Southern ι Aquarid meteor shower, observed from July 15 to August 25. The maximum of this shower occurs on August 5, when up to 10 meteors per hour are observed.
Near the star θ Aquarii there is the radiant of the Northern meteor shower ι Aquarids, which can be observed from July 15 to August 25. The maximum occurs on August 5, when up to 10 meteors per hour are observed.
Both meteor shower Northern and Southern ι Aquarids are observed simultaneously, and their maxima occur on the same date. Therefore, regular observations of these flows are desirable in order to more accurately reveal the characteristic features of the structure of each of them.

Mythology connects the constellation Aquarius with the global flood. When there was a Copper Age on Earth, people were very bad and evil. They constantly fought with each other, did not raise livestock, did not make sacrifices to the gods and did not worship them. Therefore, almighty Zeus hated them and decided to destroy the entire human race. Unaware of Zeus's intention, people continued to kill each other, day by day they became more and more evil and became like wild animals. Only two people knew about Zeus's decision and were waiting for the day when he would carry it out. These were the son of Prometheus Leucalion and his wife Pyrrha.
Every year Deucalion went to the distant Caucasus and with pain in his heart looked at his father chained to a huge rock. But Prometheus calmly talked to him, gave him advice and guidance. He foresaw that Zeus was going to destroy people, and advised his son to build a ship and put food in it in anticipation of an ominous day.
Deucalion listened to his father's advice. As soon as he managed to build a ship and stock up on food, the thunderer Zeus sent continuous torrential rain to Earth. He forbade all winds to blow except the humid southern wind Not, which brought fog and rain. Day and night black rainy clouds and storm clouds overtook Not, day and night it rained. Rivers and seas overflowed, the Earth began to flood with water, and the water rose higher and higher. Many fields and forests, villages and cities were under water, and some mountains had already begun to disappear under water. Only here and there the highest mountain peaks could be seen above the water. There was water and water everywhere... And on the boundless waves, driven by the wind, sailed only one ship, on which were Deucalion and Pyrrha. The ship was tossed around the sea for nine days until it reached the peak of Mount Parnassus rising above the water. Here, on a small piece of land, Deucalion and Pyrrha sat down and began to wait. The rain finally stopped, but all the people drowned. Deucalion and Pyrrha realized that they were the only ones left alive, and they were overcome by the fear that they would remain alone among these endless waters. They then made a sacrifice to Zeus, who saved them from this flood.
Gradually, the water began to subside, and the piece of land on which Deucalion and Pyrrha were located began to increase. And after a while all the water disappeared. The land appeared - deserted, without fields and meadows, without flowers and trees, it resembled an endless cracked desert. Deucalion and Pyrrha felt even more lonely in the midst of this dead desert, where not even the sound of a living creature could be heard.
One day, the messenger of the gods, Hermes, appeared to Deucalion and Pyrrha. He was sent by Zeus to find out what Deucalion wished, for because of Deucalion's kindness, Zeus decided to fulfill his every wish. Deucalion thought for a while and answered Hermes: “I have only one desire. I pray to almighty Zeus, if he wants to fulfill my desire, let him populate the Earth with people again!”
Hermes rushed to Olympus and conveyed the words of Deucalion to Zeus. Zeus agreed. Again he sent Hermes to Deucalion and Pyrrha to tell them what they should do. In an instant, Hermes rushed up to them and told Deucalion: “Go down the mountain into the valley and throw back the bones of your mother!”
Deucalion realized that the “bones” were stones. He and Pyrrha picked up stones and, going down the mountainside, without looking back, threw stones behind them. When the stones ran out, they looked around and saw many people. The stones that Deucalion threw turned into tall, slender men, and Pyrrha's stones turned into beautiful women.
The gods turned Deucalion into the constellation Aquarius and raised him to heaven. This constellation recalls the son of Prometheus, who inherited from his father a passionate love for people.

Another myth connects the constellation Aquarius with Ganymede.
The son of the Dardanian king Troy, Ganymede, was a tall and slender young man. He was so handsome that he was almost indistinguishable from the god of sunlight, golden-haired Apollo. One day, when Ganymede was tending his father's flocks and cheerfully humming a song, Zeus saw him from the heights of Olympus and immediately ordered the eagle to deliver Ganymede to him. The eagle of Zeus flew in like a dark cloud, grabbed Ganymede and carried him up to the bright expanses of Olympus. There, Zeus awarded him immortality for the youth’s beauty and made him his cupbearer, entrusting him with the duty of offering ambrosia and nectar to the gods during their feasts. The nectar flowed like water, which Ganymede offered to Zeus and the gods. Therefore, on some star maps, the constellation Aquarius is depicted as a man with a jug (Ganymede), from which a stream of water flows.