Constellation Dorado (Swordfish)

Dorado
Dorado: IAU Constellation Map [150]

Properties

The constellation is southeast of the bright star Canopus in the constellation Carina. The most striking feature is the Large Magellanic Cloud in the south of the constellation. This is the larger of the two companion systems in our galaxy. The Small Magellanic Cloud is located around 20 degrees further west in the constellation of Tucana. The constellation covers an area of 179 square degrees in the sky and culminates around midnight on December 7th, but is not visible from Europe. [9, 15]

Data for constellation Dorado [150]
IAU NameDorado
IAU GenitiveDoradus
IAU Abbr.Dor
English NameSwordfish
Opposition7 December
Season (47° N)
Right Ascension03h 53m 17s … 06h 35m 45s
Declination-70° 06' 15" … -48° 40' 12"
Area179 deg2
Neighbours (N↻)Cae, Hor, Ret, Hyi, Men, Vol, Pic

Deep-Sky Object Descriptions

Tarantula Nebula
NGC 2070

Catalogues

Southern Constellations: Phoenix, Grus, Indus, Toucan, Hydrus, Pavo, Apus Indica, Triangulum Australe, Chameleon, Apis, Piscis Volans, Dorado
Southern Constellations: Phoenix, Grus, Indus, Toucan, Hydrus, Pavo, Apus Indica, Triangulum Australe, Chameleon, Apis, Piscis Volans, Dorado: Illustration from «Uranometria» by Johann Bayer, copper engraving by Alexander Mair, 1603 [28]

History

The constellation was first listed in 1603 by Johann Bayer in his Uranometria. It represents either a goldfish or a swordfish. [7]

References

  • [7] «Der grosse Kosmos-Himmelsführer» von Ian Ridpath und Wil Tirion; Kosmos Verlag; ISBN 3-440-05787-9
  • [9] «Drehbare Sternkarte SIRIUS» von H. Suter-Haug; Hallwag-Verlag, Bern
  • [15] «Hartung's Astronomical Objects for Southern Telescopes» by David Malin and David J. Frew; Melbourne University Press 1995; ISBN 0-522-84553-3
  • [28] «Uranometria omnium asterismorum continens schemata, nova methodo delineata aereis laminis expressa» Johann Bayer, Augsburg, 1603; DOI:10.3931/e-rara-309
  • [150] IAU: The Constellations, 11. Oktober 2020; iau.org/public/themes/constellations