Constellation: Scorpio

Scorpius, the southernmost constellation, is a magnificent showpiece on a dark, starry night. This "J" shaped group of stars looks a bit like a Scorpion, minus its claws, with its fish hook shaped Scorpion's stinger dipping into the Milky Way's stream of stars. Scorpius was one of the 48 classical constellations listed by astrologer/astronomer Ptolemy in 150 AD and is the constellation that defines Scorpio the 8th sign of the zodiac.

Location of Scorpio

In the Northern Hemisphere, Scorpius lies close to the southern horizon; in the Southern Hemisphere, it lies high in the sky near the center of the Milky Way.

Scorpius rises in the evening sky by mid-spring. However, July and August are prime time months for observing this wondrous constellation. Observers in the southern hemisphere will find the constellation high in the sky, and those in the northern hemisphere see it on the southern horizon.

As seen from mid-northern latitudes, Scorpius never climbs high in the sky but can be seen along the horizon. This means you'll need an unobstructed view southward. It also means the further north you are when viewing Scorpius, the less of Scorpius you'll be able to see. However, its brightest star, Antares, can still be seen as far north as Southern Alaska.

Stars at Scorpio

Scorpius has many bright stars, including Antares (α Sco), Graffias (β1 Sco), Dschubba (δ Sco), Sargas (θ Sco), Shaula (λ Sco), Jabbah (ν Sco), Girtab (ξ Sco), Iclil (π Sco), Alniyat (a name shared by two stars: σ Sco and τ Sco) and Lesath (υ Sco).

Antares, also called alpha Scorpii, is a red supergiant and the 16th brightest star, with an apparent magnitude between 0.96 and 1.8. It is part of a binary system, having a faint companion. Shaula, also known as Lambda Scorpii, is the second-brightest star in the constellation and the 25th brightest star in the sky, with an apparent magnitude of about 1.63.

Astronomers have confirmed it too is made up of two stars, and there could be a third one given that the star system is producing more X-rays than expected. Other binary stars in Scorpius include Beta, Nu, Xi and Sigma Scorpii.

The constellation encompasses U Scorpii, one of only 10 known recurring novas, which is the rapid increase in the brightness of a star. While it normally has a magnitude of 18, it reaches a magnitude of about 8 during outbursts, which have been observed in 1863, 1906, 1936, 1979, 1987, 1999 and 2010.

Scorpius is also home to four deep space object that were among the first to be catalogued by Charles Messier: M4 (NGC6121); M6 (NGC6405), also called the Butterfly Cluster; M7 (NGC6475); and M80 (NGC6093).

Mythology

Scorpions have played an important role in mythology since the earliest times, and many Scorpion goddess and gods appear in the myths of ancient cultures.

• In Mesopotamia, the Scorpion goddess was Ishihara. She was the Goddess of Love and was often identified with Ishtar as a fertility goddess.

• Chelamma is a Hindu Scorpion goddess that was worshipped along with the tantric goddess, Kolaramma.

• In Aztec mythology, Malinalxochitl, the witch goddess, was the goddess of snakes, scorpions, and the insects of the desert.

• Ancient Egyptians believed Serqet, the friend of the dead, had power over venomous snakes and scorpions and could send them to punish those of whom she disapproved.

• Hededet, also an Egyptian scorpion goddess, was the daughter of Ra. She was depicted with the head of a scorpion, nursing a baby.

• Ta-Bitjet is also an ancient scorpion goddess encountered in Egyptian mythology.

• The Aqrabuamelu were scorpion men who guarded the entrance to Kurnugi, the land of darkness in Babylonian mythology.

• In the mythology of ancient Egypt, Seth, the God of Chaos, was a scorpion god and the brother of Nephthys, the queen of the Land of the Dead.

• Tiamat, a Babylonian goddess of chaos created scorpion men to fight a war against the younger gods for the betrayal of her mate Apsu.

• The Tzitzimime were scorpion men who are mentioned in Aztec myth. These scorpion men were considered spirits of gods cast out of the sky.

There are many others, but just those above reveal that there's little doubt the scorpion was an important animal in ancient times and worshipped by many many cultures.

Reference: http://horoscopes.lovetoknow.com/Constellation_Scorpio https://www.thehoroscope.co/sign-articles/scorpio-Scorpio-Constellation-Facts-34.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scorpius http://www.astronomytrek.com/scorpius-the-scorpion/