Corona Borealis
Northern Crown (Coronae Borealis)
Corona Borealis, the Northern Crown, is a small but distinctive constellation forming a beautiful semicircular arc of stars between Boötes and Hercules. Despite its modest size, it contains several interesting objects including T CrB, a recurrent nova that may soon erupt again. The crown's seven main stars are easily recognized on clear nights.
📜 Mythology
Corona Borealis represents the jeweled crown given by Dionysus to Ariadne, princess of Crete. Ariadne had helped Theseus escape the Labyrinth after he slew the Minotaur, but Theseus later abandoned her on the island of Naxos. Dionysus found the grieving princess, fell in love with her, and made her his wife. He gave her a crown of gold and jewels made by Hephaestus. When Ariadne died, Dionysus threw the crown into the sky, where its jewels became stars.
💡 Facts
- ✦Alphecca (Gemma) is an eclipsing binary that varies slightly in brightness every 17.4 days
- ✦T Coronae Borealis is a recurrent nova that erupted in 1866 and 1946, and astronomers predict another eruption soon
- ✦R CrB is the prototype of a class of unusual variable stars that fade unpredictably when carbon dust clouds form