Thursday, November 6, 2008

II. Scorpio: Royal Antares

Photo of the constellation Scorpius from All the Sky.

The site says:
The constellation is one of the brightest of the larger constellations.
That bright red star in the upper right is Alpha Scorpii, better known as Antares ("anti-Ares", or the "Rival of Mars").

Antares is one of the four Royal Stars of the ancients, along with Aldebaran, Regulus, and Fomalhaut. It glitters with an unusual metallic red while the entire region is bathed in a pale red nebula, lit from the same star.

Somewhat above Antares lies the famous star nursery around Rho Ophiuchi with its prominent absorption, emission, and reflection nebulae.

I know Antares from Star Trek.

Uhura sings "Beyond Antares" in "The Conscience of the King":

Music by Wilbur Hatch, lyrics by Gene L. Coon

Where my heart is
Where....the scented lunar flower is blooming
Somewhere, beyond the stars
Beyond Antares
I'll be back though it takes forever
Forever is just a day.

Even with warp speed, Antares is more than a day's travel from Earth.

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