(TU) Constellations Lesson

Constellations and Myth

Ancient Arabs, Egyptians, Babylonians and Greeks were well aware of the different stars. Many varied interpretations were written and reported by those different populations. By connecting the stars, sort of like a dot to dot puzzle, shapes and pictures would appear. Depending on what they thought the picture looked like, ancient people associated them with objects, beasts or people. They wrote stories about stars related to heroes, heroines and beasts of their time and culture. Since those ancient times, people have continued to make up stories, develop religious practices and grow crops based on groups of stars.

Groups of stars are called constellations, patterns of stars in the sky that have been identified and named. Some constellations can be seen all year. These are stars that are close to the North Star. The North Star is directly above the North Pole and does not appear to move. The other stars seem to move around it at night because of Earth rotating on its axis.

What is a Myth?

A myth is a story handed down through history, often through oral tradition, that explains or gives value to the unknown.
When you look up at the sky, you can see the sun, moon, clouds, meteors, comets, planets, and stars. You may recognize certain star patterns, called constellations, such as the Big Dipper and the Little Dipper (also called the Big Bear and the Little Bear). You might know the names of the eight planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and the dwarf planet Pluto. Did you know that many of the names of these heavenly bodies come from myths?

[CC BY 4.0] UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED | IMAGES: LICENSED AND USED ACCORDING TO TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION