![]() Depending on the time of night, the stars may appear as a bright W or M in the sky. In the order of brightness, these are Schedar (Alpha Cassiopeiae), Caph (Beta Cassiopeiae), Gamma Cassiopeiae, Ruchbah (Delta Cassiopeiae), and Segin (Epsilon Cassiopeiae). The W asterism makes it very easy to find these on a clear night.Ĭassiopeia’s W is formed by five bright stars at different evolutionary stages, located at different distances. The Heart and Soul Nebulae, the Double Cluster, the Pacman Nebula, the Bubble Nebula, and the open clusters Messier 52 and Messier 103 are among the many deep sky objects that lie in this area. Andromeda was saved by the hero Perseus and, as punishment for her vanity, Cassiopeia was placed among the stars and forced to circle the north celestial pole on her throne, spending half of the time upside down.Ĭassiopeia is located in a region of the sky full of bright, large nebulae and open star clusters that make easy targets for small telescopes. As punishment, Poseidon sent a sea monster, represented by the constellation Cetus, to ravage the land and asked that Cassiopeia’s daughter Andromeda be bound to a rock and left for Cetus. She was placed in the sky after offending the sea god Poseidon by boasting that she was more beautiful than the Nereids (sea nymphs). In Greek mythology, Cassiopeia was the queen of Aethiopia and wife of King Cepheus. ![]() The W-shaped asterism is the most visible part of Cassiopeia’s constellation figure, which represents the Greek mythical queen bound to her throne.Ĭassiopeia is one of the 48 constellations catalogued by the Greek astronomer Ptolemy in the 2nd century CE. Its five brightest stars form the distinctive shape of a W in the northern night sky. The constellation Cassiopeia has long been known by its popular nickname, the W constellation. ![]()
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