Properties

Pictor is another inconspicuous constellation and stands in the shadow of the bright star Canopus on the eastern side and the Large Magellanic Cloud in the south. The center of the 247 square degree constellation culminates around midnight on December 15th. ^{[9, 15]}

Catalogues

• Yale Bright Star Catalog (HR)
• New General & Index Catalogue (NGC/IC)
• Galactic Planetary Nebulae (PNG)
• Milky Way Globular Clusters
• Principal Galaxies Catalogue (PGC)

History

The constellation was introduced in 1752 by the French astronomer Abbé Nicolas Louis de Lacaille under the original name Equuleus Pictoris (painter's easel). However, the name was shortened by Gould in 1877. ^{[7, 10]}