Musca in Chinese astronomy explained

The modern constellation Musca is not included in the Three Enclosures and Twenty-Eight Mansions system of traditional Chinese uranography because its stars are too far south for observers in China to know about them prior to the introduction of Western star charts. Based on the work of Xu Guangqi and the German Jesuit missionary Johann Adam Schall von Bell in the late Ming Dynasty,[1] this constellation has been classified under the 23 Southern Asterisms (近南極星區, Jìnnánjíxīngōu) with the names Bee (蜜蜂, Mìfēng) and Sea and Mountain (海山, Hǎishān).

The name of the western constellation in modern Chinese is 苍蝇座 (cāng ying zuò), meaning "the housefly constellation".

Stars

The map of Chinese constellation in constellation Musca area consists of:

Four Symbols !Mansion (Chinese name) Romanization !Translation Asterisms (Chinese name) !Romanization Translation !Western star name Chinese star name !Romanization Translation
-近南極星區 (non-mansions)Jìnnánjíxīngōu (non-mansions)The Southern Asterisms (non-mansions)蜜蜂MìfēngBee
β Mus[2] 蜜蜂一 Mìfēngyī1st star
α Mus蜜蜂二Mìfēngèr2nd star
δ Mus[3] 蜜蜂四Mìfēngsì4th star
海山HǎishānSea and Mountain[4] λ Mus海山六Hǎishānliù6th star

See also

Notes and References

  1. Book: Sun, Xiaochun . Helaine Selin . Helaine Selin. Encyclopaedia of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures . 1997 . 910 . . 0-7923-4066-3.
  2. AEEA (Activities of Exhibition and Education in Astronomy) 天文教育資訊網 2006 年 7 月 29 日
  3. 夢之大地 @ 國立成功大學 WebBBS DreamLand @ National Cheng Kung University WebBBS System
  4. AEEA (Activities of Exhibition and Education in Astronomy) 天文教育資訊網 2006 年 7 月 28 日