Star Constellations: Taurus the Bull
Created | Updated Apr 24, 2009
Or sweet Europa's mantle blew unclasp'd,
From off her shoulder backward borne;
From one hand droop'd a crocus;
The other grasp'd the mild bull's golden horn.
- Alfred, Lord Tennyson - The Palace of Art.
Taurus the Bull
Origin: Ancient Greek (Tauros)
Latin: Taurus
Genitive: Tauri
Short form: Tau
Area: 800 sq deg
Co-ordinates: 4h, +15°
Sign of the Zodiac: 21 April to 20 May1.
Taurus is a major constellation in the Northern Hemisphere and the second sign of the western zodiac. Situated just to the north-east2 of Orion the Hunter, Orion's 'belt' (zeta Ori: Alnitak; epsilon Ori: Alnilam; and delta Ori: Mintaka) is roughly lined up with the 'eye of the bull' - the giant reddish orange star Aldebaran3 (alpha Tauri). Once this star has been identified, the constellation itself can be discerned; the main stars form a 'V' which are taken to be the bull's head and horns.
Objects of particular interest include:
Aldebaran (alpha Tauri), known to the Romans as Palilicium, is an orange giant star, 38 times the size of our own Sun. Aldebaran is around 65 light years distant, and it is the 14th brightest star in the night sky.
The Pleiades, (a Messier object - M45), is an open star cluster which contains over 3,000 stars. The Pleiades formed around 100 million years ago. We know the Pleiades is much younger than the Hyades cluster, because it contains several hot blue stars. Easily spotted with the naked eye, it is one of the most identifiable objects even for the novice astronomer. Turning binoculars or a small telescope upon M45 reveals its magnificence to the stunned viewer. The distance of 400 light years seems crossed in an instant and you almost feel like you can reach out and touch them. They truly are a spectacular sight.
The blue sub-giant star Merope (23 Tau) is surrounded by a nebula sometimes called Temple's Nebula, but it's more commonly known as Merope's Nebula, and NGC 1435.
The Hyades, another open star cluster, situated on the 'head' of the bull. At 150 light years distance, this cluster is the closest4 star cluster to us. The Hyades contains about 300 stars and formed around 400 million years ago. Ancient Greek poet and scholar Homer spoke of the Hyades to his students in 750 BC, this is the earliest mention of them (that we know of) in history.
The Crab Nebula (M1), a supernova remnant some 6,500 light years distant. The outermost 'horn' of the bull - the star designated zeta Tauri, is a blue giant. The Crab nebula is just beside it, located a little over a degree to the northwest of zeta Tauri, but you would need an optical aid to view it. There is a pulsar in the Crab nebula which spins extremely fast, emitting gamma and radio waves.
Prehistoric Planetarium
In 1940 a reported 16,500 year old map of the Pleiades star cluster was discovered on a cave wall at Lascaux in central France. Draped above the shoulder of a painted bull are markings which could represent the 'seven sisters'.
Around 17,000 years ago, this region of sky would never have set below the horizon and it would have been especially prominent at the start of spring. It is a map of the prehistoric cosmos. It was their sky, full of animals and spirit guides.
- Researcher Dr Michael Rappenglueck, of the University of Munich.
History
The ancient Egyptians identified Taurus with Osiris, the god of life, fertility and the flooding of the Nile (upon which all life in Egypt depended). They worshipped the figure Apis, which had either a human body with the head and horns of a bull, or a bull's body with a human head. On the ceiling of a tomb in Luxor (Thebes), a representation of the constellation Taurus is portrayed.
According to Exodus in the Bible, when Moses was busy up a mountain receiving the ten commandments, his followers got a bit bored. In the end they melted down all their collective gold and fashioned a bull which they then danced around and worshipped.
The Pleiades are mentioned in the Biblical book of Job, who speaks of the 'sweet influence' of them. The Pleiades are known in Sanskrit as Krittikas (the wives of the seven rishis). The rising of the Pleiades was considered a sign that the season for sailing had begun by ancient mariners, who believed a goddess protected sailors from storms.
The supernova which created the Crab nebula was seen from Earth in 1054. The actual stellar explosion5 took place 6,500 years before that, but it took the light until the year 1054 to reach us. It was so bright that it was viewable during the day and witnessed by Chinese astronomers, who kept meticulous records of the 'guest star'.
Stars
The scientific star names are simple to understand (if you know your Greek alphabet). 'Alpha Tauri' means that it is the brightest star in the constellation Taurus. The next brightest is 'beta Tauri', etc. Some are named stars, like alpha Tauri is Aldebaran, others are known by their catalogue numbers or 'designation'.
| Star | Designation | Name | Brightness | Distance (light years) | Spectral classification and/or comments | |
| α Tau | Alpha Tauri | Aldebaran | 0.85 | 68 | Orange giant | |
| β Tau | Beta Tauri | Elnath | 1.65 | 131 | Blue giant | |
| γ Tau | Gamma Tauri | Ambrosia | 3.65 | 154 | Orange giant in Hyades | |
| δ Tau | Delta Tauri | Eudora | 3.7 | 150 | Orange giant in Hyades | |
| ε Tau | Epsilon Tauri | Coronis | 3.6 | 155 | Orbiting planet discovered in 1998 | |
| ζ Tau | Zeta Tauri | Shurnarkabti-sha-shutu6 | 3.0 | 417 | Blue-white giant | |
| η Tau | Eta Tauri | Alcyone | 2.85 | 440 | Binary in Pleiades | |
| θ Tau | Theta Tauri | Phaesyla | 3.8 | 153 | Orange giant in Hyades | |
| ι Tau | Iota Tauri | unnamed (102 Tau) | 4.6 | 160 | White dwarf | |
| κ Tau | Kappa Tauri | unnamed (65 Tau) | 4.2 | 152 | White sub-giant in Hyades | |
| λ Tau | Lambda Tauri | Althaur | 3.42 | 400 | Blue-white dwarf | |
| μ Tau | Mu Tauri | Kattupothu | 4.3 | 435 | Blue-white sub-giant | |
| ν Tau | Nu Tauri | Furibundus | 3.9 | 130 | White dwarf | |
| ξ Tau | Xi Tauri | Ushakaron | 3.7 | 225 | Triple star system | |
| ο Tau | Omicron Tauri | Atirsagne | 3.6 | 220 | Yellow giant | |
| π Tau | Pi Tauri | unnamed (73 Tau) | 4.7 | 455 | Yellow giant | |
| ρ Tau | Rho Tauri | unnamed (86 Tau) | 4.65 | 160 | White dwarf in Hyades | |
| σ Tau | Sigma Tauri | unnamed (91+92 Tau) | 5.0 | 155 | Double star system in Hyades | |
| τ Tau | Tau Tauri | unnamed (94 Tau) | 4.2 | 400 | Triple star system | |
| υ Tau | Upsilon Tauri | unnamed (69 Tau) | 4.3 | 155 | Triple star system in Hyades | |
| φ Tau | Phi Tauri | unnamed (52 Tau) | 5.0 | 342 | Binary | |
| χ Tau | Chi Tauri | unnamed (59 Tau) | 5.4 | 270 | Binary | |
| ψ Tau | Psi Tauri | unnamed (42 Tau) | 5.2 | 92 | Yellow-white dwarf | |
| ω Tau | Omega Tauri | unnamed (43 Tau) | 5.5 | 290 | Orange giant | |
| 5 Tau | SAO 93469 | Berhan Esat | 4.15 | 360 | Orange giant | |
| 16 Tau | SAO 76126 | Celaeno (Lost Pleiad) | 5.45 | 442 | Blue-white sub-giant | |
| 17 Tau | SAO 76131 | Electra | 3.7 | 440 | Blue-white giant in Pleiades | |
| 19 Tau | SAO 76140 | Taygeta | 4.3 | 440 | Triple star system in Pleiades | |
| 20 Tau | SAO 76155 | Maia | 3.9 | 360 | Blue-white giant in Pleiades | |
| 21 Tau | SAO 76159 | Asterope | 5.75 | 440 | Double dwarf system in Pleiades | |
| 23 Tau | V971 Tauri | Merope | 4.15 | 440 | Blue-white sub-giant in Pleiades | |
| 27 Tau | SAO 76228 | Atlas | 3.6 | 380 | Triple star system in Pleiades | |
| 28 Tau | BU Tauri | 'Purple' Pleione | 5.5 | 440 | Blue-white dwarf | |
| 71 Tau | SAO 76155 | Polyxo | 4.5 | 156 | Yellow-white variable in Hyades | |
| 119 Tau | SAO 94628 | unnamed (CE Tau) | 4.3 | 1,920 | Red supergiant |
New General Catalogue Objects
| NGC | Designation or Common Name | Brightness | Distance (light years) | Comments |
| NGC 1409 | UGC 2821 | 15.4 | 300m | Anti-clockwise spiral galaxy |
| NGC 1410 | UGC 2821B | 15.4 | 300m | Clockwise spiral galaxy |
| NGC 1435 | Merope Nebula | 13.0 | 440 | Reflection nebula |
| NGC 1514 | Crystal Ball Nebula | 10.0 | 1,950 | Planetary nebula |
| NGC 1555 | Hind's Nebula | Variable | Unknown | Variable nebula |
| NGC 1952 | Crab Nebula | 8.4 | 6,300 | Supernova remnant |
The two galaxies NGC 1409 and NGC 1410 are interacting and have collided many times. The gravitational pull is such that there is no escape for either of them and they will continue to bump and grind until they eventually become one huge galaxy.
The Taurids - a Meteor Shower
There is an annual meteor shower called the Taurids, so named because they appear to originate from the constellation of Taurus. Meteor showers occur when the Earth passes through the debris path left by the tail of a comet, in this case comet Encke. As the peak happens around the end of October, they are sometimes known as Hallowe'en fireballs.
Legend
Taurus represents the white bull who fell in love with a beautiful mortal, Europa, Phoenician princess of Tyre, daughter of King Agenor of Sidon. The white bull was, of course, Zeus (Jupiter), king of the gods, in one of his disguises. Attracted to the magnificent creature, Europa decorates his horns with a garland of flowers and cannot resist straddling him for a ride. The bull then carries her off across the waters to the continent which still bears her name. She resists his amorous attentions, so to have his wicked way, Zeus has to resort to rape7.
According to some interpretations, their third son became King Minos of Crete. The Minoan people were really into bull-worship. Queen Pasiphaë, the wife of King Minos, was so infatuated with a bull that she commissioned Daedalus to build a hollow wooden cow. The intention was to hide inside and fool the bull into coupling with her. The plan worked and the result of the mating was the Minotaur, a monster which was part-man, part-bull. Daedalus was then given the job of designing a labyrinth in which to imprison the Minotaur, by King Minos. Around 1450 BC the Minoan people who created the stories of the Minotaur and the Labyrinth vanished, possibly wiped out by a tsunami following a volcanic eruption.
The Pleiades
According to Greek mythology, Pleione (28 Tau) was the wife of Atlas (the god who carried the heavens upon his shoulders). They had seven daughters: Alcyone, Asterope, Celaeno, Electra, Maia, Merope and Taygeta. When the seven sisters8 complained that they were being pursued by Orion the hunter, the gods changed them into stars and they became the Pleiades.
The Hyades
The Hyades were also daughters of Atlas, but their mother was a goddess called Aethra. They had a much-loved brother, Hyas9, and when he died while out hunting, his sisters grieved so much that they never stopped crying. In legend the rising of the Hyades is a portent of rain, supposedly the continuous tears of the heartbroken sisters.
Famous Taureans
- HM Queen Elizabeth II - 21 April, 1926.
- Klever Kaff aka Contralto Kathleen Ferrier - 22 April, 1912.
- William Shakespeare, generally thought to have been born in 1564 on 23 April, which is now celebrated as National Poets Day (as well as being the feast day of St George, England's Patron Saint).
- Star of The Yellow Rolls Royce Shirley MacLaine - 24 April, 1934.
- Oscar-winner Barbra Streisand - 24 April, 1942.
- Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the 11th Panchen Lama - 25 April, 1989.
- Bing Crosby - 3 May, 1903.
- Boxer Henry Cooper - 3 May, 1934.
- Orson Welles - 6 May, 1915.
- Ex Prime Minister Tony Blair - 6 May, 1953.
- Peter Tchaikovsky - 7 May, 1840.
- Sir David Attenborough - 8 May, 1926.
- Motown legend Stevie Wonder - 13 May, 1950.
- Pioneering scientist Pierre Curie - 15 May, 1859.
- Vaccine pioneer Edward Jenner - 17 May, 1749.
- El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz aka Malcolm X - 19 May, 1925.
- The Princess Bride star André the Giant - 19 May, 1946.
- Both halves of the married double act Richard and Judy are Taureans.
