The History of Mer

Constellations have been around for aproximately 12 thousand

years, ever since they have been recorded.

- Which ancient civilizations recognized the same constellations?

The Big Dipper was viewed by various cultures and they all had

different views of the same pattern of stars. To the ancient Mayans,

it was a mythological parrot named Seven Macaw. To the early

Egyptians, it was the thigh and leg of a bull. The ancient Chinese

thought of it as a special chariot for the Emperor of the Heaven.

- How many constellations are officially recognized by astronomers?

In what year was this determined?

There are 88 officially recognized constellations, and they were

determined in the 1920's.

- Which language is currently in use for the names of the constellations?

The current language that is used for the names of the constellations is

Arabic.

- In one million years, will the constellations look the same as they do

now?

To us it'll only look like the same light, but the truth is we were looking at

the star's light a trillion years ago because it takes a while for the light

to travel because we are so far.

- Why do the constellations appear to shift to the west each night?

If observed through th e year, the constellations shift gradually to the west. This is caused by Earth's orbit around our Sun. In the summer, viewers are looking in a different direction in space at night than they are during the winter.