Fornax constellation lies in the southern hemisphere of the sky. Its name means “the furnace” in Latin. Fornax is one of the constellations added by the French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in the mid-18th century. There are no myths associated with it.
Fornax is a relatively obscure constellation, with only one star brighter than magnitude 4.0. It is notable for the bright galaxies in the Fornax Cluster, including the Great Barred Spiral galaxy (NGC 1365), Fornax A (NGC 1316), the Fornax Dwarf, and UDFy-38135539, the galaxy that is the second most distant object in the universe to be observed.
FACTS, LOCATION & MAP
Fornax is the 41st largest constellation in the sky, occupying an area of 398 square degrees. It is located in the first quadrant of the southern hemisphere (SQ1) and can be seen at latitudes between +50° and -90°. The neighboring constellations are Cetus, Eridanus, Phoenix and Sculptor.
Fornax belongs to the Lacaille family of constellations, along with Antlia, Caelum, Circinus, Horologium, Mensa, Microscopium, Norma, Octans, Pictor, Reticulum, Sculptor, and Telescopium.
Fornax contains four stars with known planets and no Messier objects. The brightest star in the constellation is Alpha Fornacis, with an apparent magnitude of 3.85. There are no meteor showers associated with the constellation.
STORY
Fornax was introduced by Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in 1756, after his trip to the Cape of Good Hope, where he observed the southern stars and constellations.
Lacaille originally named the constellation Fornax Chemica, the chemical furnace, after the small fuel heater used for chemical experiments.
It was the English astronomer Francis Bailey who shortened the constellation’s name to Fornax at John Herchel’s suggestion in 1845.
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