Sagittarius is one of the constellations of the zodiac and belongs to the 88 modern constellations.

According to the tropical astrology the Sun resides in Sagittarius from November 22 to December 21, while in the sidereal astrology is it said to transit it from December 16 to January 14. Astrologically, this is associated with the planet Jupiter.

It was first described by Ptolemy. This constellation from the Northern Hemisphere lies between Scorpio to the east and Capricorn to the west.

Dimensions: 867 square degrees.

Rank: 15th

Brightness: Quite abright constellation with 7 stars brighter than magnitude 3.

History: The Babylonians identified it as their god Nergal. He was a centaur creature with a bow. The Sumerians called it Pabilsag.

This was a being that was half human and half animal. The name comes from the Latin “archer”.

Greek mythology also identified it as the centaur Chiron, the sun of Saturn. The centaur’s arrow points towards Antares, the main star of Scorpius.

Stars: This constellation’s bright stars form an asterism known as the “teapot”. The stars Kaus Media, Kaus Australis, Ascella form the body of the pot. Kaus Borealis is the point of the lid and Nunki is the handle. Sometimes the Milky Way seems to be rising in an arc above “the teapot”.

Galaxies: Sagittarius has many star clusters and nebulae, including Lagoon Nebula, Omega Nebula or the Trifid Nebula.The grouping of the Lagoon Nebula, the Trifid Nebula, and NGC 6559 is often called the Sagittarius triplet.