Constellation

From Terragen Database, the galaxy's most reliable star browser



A constellation is an area of a planet's celestial sphere where a group of visible stars form a perceived outline or pattern, typically representing an animal, mythological subject, or inanimate object.

The origins of constellations most likely go back to when beings develop the sentience and intelligence to advance to K-scale civilization type 0.1. These beings will start using constellations to relate stories of their beliefs, experiences, creation and mythology. Each recorded intelligent species have got, at some point in their existence, cultures and nations related to constellations, some of which (if the civilization has lasted enough to reach K-scale civilization type 0.6) would have merged into an international recognition. The recognition of constellations varies drastically upon every species, and in an own single species it has probably changed over time, having changed in shape, size or even name and the meaning behind of them. Some would become popular only to others eventually vanish, and others may have been limited to a single culture or nation.

Other star patterns, the asterisms, aren't considered constellations by formal definition, however they are used by observers to navigate through the night sky inside of a planet. Asterisms may be several stars within a constellation, or they may share stars with more than one constellation.

The most popular constellations within the Terragen Sphere are the human constellations, there being a total of 88. They are used as easy-to-go hyperlanes by spaceships and as useful navigation points, as each of the stars and their respective groups have gotten widely recognized names inside the whole area.