Octans

Southern SkyOctant
HemisphereSouthern Sky
Area291 sq deg
SymbolOctant

About Octans

The Octant. Introduced by Lacaille in the 1750s to honor the octant, a navigational instrument devised by John Hadley in 1730. Contains the south celestial pole. Unlike the north, the south has no bright pole star. Sigma Octantis, the closest naked-eye star to the southern pole, is only of fifth magnitude and hard to see. All other constellations appear to revolve around Octans.

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