Sagitta

Not to be confused with the southern constellation of Sagittarius. For other uses, see Sagitta (disambiguation).

Sagitta
Constellation
Sagitta
List of stars in Sagitta
AbbreviationSge[1]
GenitiveSagittae[1]
Pronunciation/səˈdʒɪtə/ or /səˈɡɪtə/ Sagítta,[2]
genitive /səˈdʒɪtiː/
Symbolismthe Arrow[3]
Right ascension18h 57m 21.3919s – 20h 20m 44.8677s[4]
Declination16.0790844° to 21.6436558°[4]
Area79.9[5] sq. deg. (86th)
Main stars4
Bayer/Flamsteed
stars		19
Stars with planets2
Stars brighter than 3.00m0
Stars within 10.00 pc (32.62 ly)2 (GJ 745A/B)
Brightest starγ Sge (3.51m)
Messier objects1
Bordering
constellations		Vulpecula
Hercules
Aquila
Delphinus
Visible at latitudes between +90° and −70°.
Best visible at 21:00 (9 p.m.) during the month of August.

Sagitta is a dim but distinctive constellation in the northern sky. Its name is Latin for 'arrow', not to be confused with the significantly larger constellation Sagittarius 'the archer'. It was included among the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd-century astronomer Ptolemy, and it remains one of the 88 modern constellations defined by the International Astronomical Union. Although it dates to antiquity, Sagitta has no star brighter than 3rd magnitude and has the third-smallest area of any constellation.

Gamma Sagittae is the constellation's brightest star, with an apparent magnitude of 3.47. It is an aging red giant star 90% as massive as the Sun that has cooled and expanded to a radius 54 times greater than it. Delta, Epsilon, Zeta, and Theta Sagittae are each multiple stars whose components can be seen in small telescopes. V Sagittae is a cataclysmic variable—a binary star system composed of a white dwarf accreting mass of a donor star that is expected to go nova and briefly become the most luminous star in the Milky Way and one of the brightest stars in our sky around the year 2083. Two star systems in Sagitta are known to have Jupiter-like planets, while a third—15 Sagittae—has a brown dwarf companion.

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference pa30_469 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Sagitta". Lexico UK English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 2021-04-15.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference Kunitzsch was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference boundary was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference tirionconst was invoked but never defined (see the help page).