Norma


Norma


English nameRule or Square

Major
stars
No star of the constellation exceeds the magnitude 3,5.

DescriptionSmall constellation of the southern hemisphere, to the southwest of Scorpius.

Norma contains some interesting double stars: eta Normae, two independent yellow stars, easily separable also to the naked eye; epsilon Normae, a system constituted by four stars; and iota Normae, observable with small telescopes.

In the southern part of the constellation there is NGC 6087, an open cluster of about 35 stars scattered on a rather vast area, visible with binoculars.


Mythology
and history
The constellation was drawn by Nicolas Louis de La Caille in 1756. It represents the square and the rule of a draftsman.

Norma doesn't possess the stars alpha and beta, since after the times of La Caille there were some changes of border: today the stars, which according to the French astronomer were the Norma's principal stars, are part of Scorpius.


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