The SWAN (Cygnus)
Scouting the Stars with Mr. R.

AbsoluteAstronomy.com
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[Archer] [Big Bear] [Crab] [Dragon
[Eagle] [Goat] [Harp] [Hercules]
[Herdsman] [King] [Little Bear]
[Lion] [Northern Crown] [Scales]
[Scorpion] [Swan] [Twins]
[Virgin] ["W"]

Mr. R.

 
The SWAN (Cygnus)
The Swan can be found flying southward down the Milky Way.  Its bright star Deneb is one of the first stars to come out at night, and is part of the asterism The Summer Triangle (made up of Deneb, Vega, and Altair).  Trace south of Deneb and there is another bright star.  From there, go both east and west to for a large "T" shape.  Now continue going south until you find a fairly dim star about 2-1/2 times further away.  This is Alberio, a beautiful double star.  When viewed through a telescope, it can be seen as to close stars--one blue and one gold.  Hence the name, the Cub Scout Star.
We now have the asterism known as the Northern Cross.
If we extend the arms of the cross both east and west we'll have a larger set of wings for our Swan.  Trace lines back from these extended arms to Deneb and we have a set of two large wings.  To complete the picture, you can add a couple of feet coming from the back wing. 
Photo credit: John & Janet's (Amateur Astronomy) WAITING FOR PERMISSION
 

HELPFUL LINKS TO "CONSTELLATION" INFORMATION
    Absolute Astronomy.com Choose your desired constellation
    The Dome Information on constellations, their stars, and starlore
    Allthesky.com Constellation photos, deep sky objects, observatories, etc.
    John & Janet's (Amateur Astronomy) Actual photos of constellations
    Teletrade Used telescopes and equipment (If he ain't got it, you don't need it!)
    PAS (Peorea Astronomical Society) Constallations info galore
    A Practical Guide to Astronomy Very educational site
    KidsAstronomy.com STARS--Red, yellow, blue, orange...

Return to: [5-Galaxy & Constellations]
[Archer] [Big Bear] [Crab] [Dragon] [Eagle] [Goat] [Harp] [Hercules] [Herdsman] [King] [Little Bear]
[Lion] [Northern Crown] [Scales] [Scorpion] [Swan] [Twins] [Virgin] ["W"]

Return to: [Scouting with Mr. R.]
 

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Webpage updated February 2003
Webmaster, Mr. R.