|
The first thing we did to find your answer was search Yahoo! using the term "constellations." The most promising matches all seemed to be listed under the Stellar Cartography category, so we clicked on the hyperlinked category name and headed off. Unfortunately, after browsing almost all of the sites, we were unable to easily locate information about the Southern Cross. We suspected our troubles were the result of not knowing the proper name of the constellation (like Pisces, Orion, Cassiopeia, etc.), so we returned to the Yahoo! search box and entered a more specific phrase. A search on "constellation
names southern cross" offered good results. The top site, Constellation Names, lists the names and pronunciations for all 88 recognized star groups. As it turns out, the Southern Cross is formally known as "Crux." With our newfound knowledge in hand, we returned to the Stellar Cartography category and things picked up speed. At a site called The Constellations, we located the appropriate page on Crux and read up on its history and notable astronomical features. Still, there wasn't exactly a road map to finding the constellation in the sky. We continued on... At The
Dome of the Sky, we finally found a useful image of the night sky as seen from the Southern Hemisphere. We approximated your location by selecting Queenstown, New Zealand from the site's list of vantage points. Then it was just a click away to a map of the stars as seen from down under. The site describes the Southern Cross as located "in the vicinity of the south celestial pole," and advises you to "look for two bright stars of a bluish cast." A Google search on "southern cross constellation" turned up several more useful sites, including a beautifully
illustrated page from the University of Michigan. Finally, we recommend checking out Earth & Sky, a nice companion web site to a syndicated radio show. It offers all sorts of insights into celestial bodies and stargazing. We particularly enjoy their Question of the Week. Heavens knows why.
|
