Posts Tagged ‘asterism’
coat hanger
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My most recent poetry book, a glimpse of dragon, includes several poems about the mystery and magic of the night sky. One of the most interesting star groupings I have seen is Collinder 399, also known as Brocchi’s Coathanger. Its ten stars look a lot like a little upside-down coat hanger. The grouping is not a true star cluster or constellation, but is considered an asterism — just a random pattern of stars. To see the asterism, you need a dark, summer sky. Find the Summer Triangle (the triangle created by Altair, Vega and Deneb) and Collinder 399 is near the line between Vega and Altair. On my back deck, it can be found by facing south, and looking along the roof ridge of our house, so I can always find it at the right time of year.
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(Source: Wikimedia Commons, Petr Novak)
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Here is a poem about the asterism from a glimpse of dragon:
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coat hangers
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1.
metal hangers aggravate
refuse to cooperate
they are
jangled, tangled
twisted
~
2.
her closet has
grace
padded satin hangers
plumped
muffled
kind to arthritic hands
pearl buttons to keep
her dresses from slipping to the floor
~
3.
Brocchis’ Coathanger Cluster
between Altair and Vega –
with binoculars
this fuzzy patch of light resolves
to ten splendid stars
~
suspends the fabric of sky –
a strong little hanger
with an oversized hook
upside-down
~
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To get a copy of a glimpse of dragon, take a trip to Westminster Books in Fredericton, or order from Amazon https://www.amazon.ca/glimpse-dragon-Jane-Spavold-Tims/dp/B09M5KYBS3.
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Hurry up summer sky!
All my best
Jane
places off-planet #6 – the ‘Coathanger’ asterism
Most people have never seen my favourite star grouping, but if you use binoculars and can locate two key stars, I think you could see it too. It is the ‘Coathanger’ asterism (or group of stars), also known as Collinder 366, Al Sufi’s Cluster, or Brocchi’s Cluster. It looks like a little upside-down coathanger. It was first described by the Persian astronomer Al Sufi in 964 AD!
The ‘Coathanger’ is in the constellation Vulpecula in the ‘Summer Triangle’. To find the ‘Coathanger’, use the binoculars to sweep the Milky Way from the star ‘Altair’ towards the bright star ‘Vega’. The ‘Coathanger’ is found about one-third of the way from Altair to Vega.
photo is from Wikimedia Commons
original contributor DannyZ
~
~
coat hangers, closets and stars
~
1.
metal hangers
aggravate
refuse to cooperate
jangled
tangled twisted
~
2.
her closet
built for grace
satin hangers
muffled plumped and padded
kind to arthritic hands
~
pearl buttons to catch
her dresses
before they slip
to the floor
~
3.
between Altair and Vega
Brocchis’ Coathanger Cluster
also known as Collinder 399
suspends the fabric of sky
~
with binoculars
this fuzzy patch of light
resolves
to ten splendid stars
~
strong little hanger
oversized hook
upside-down
~
~
© Jane Tims 2011
nichepoetryandprose 