Constellation
Represents the sails of the ship Argo, part of the ancient constellation Argo Navis.
| Type | Constellation |
|---|---|
| Area of sky | 500 sq° |
| Brightest star magnitude | mag 1.83 |
| Hemisphere | Southern |
| Zodiac constellation | No |
| Discovered | 1756 |
A constellation is a pattern drawn on the sky rather than a physical grouping: its stars are usually unrelated and sit at wildly different distances, just lined up as seen from Earth.
Vela covers 500 square degrees of sky, which is 1.2 percent of the whole celestial sphere.
That makes it the 32nd largest of the 88 constellations the International Astronomical Union recognises.
It sits in the southern sky.
Its brightest star reaches magnitude 1.83, bright enough to pick out with the naked eye under a dark sky.
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